Strange Attractor - New Album

[wii]

I need to write a review when I have the time. I agree with the production itself, it sounds really really good, best sound since Salvation.

I can't stop listening to A Handful of Darkness, just beautiful, love it

[Arjan]

Are the bonus tracks very different compared with the regular versions?

[*ariAna*]

Originally Posted by Kaz

The presenter didn't seem too impressed, with his doesn't sound anything like Alphaville line. I for one can't wait to hear it.

That's alway the problem with people who haven't heard something new from AV in decades ...
But they point it out on their internet side as a music tip, so it can't be that bad! ;-)

[Clare]

I haven't got mine yet. I'm kicking myself for not cancelling my online order as soon as I knew I'd be in Berlin. Even though I didn't know they'd have the CD at the party, I knew I'd have time on Friday. Stupid.

However, there's Spotify and it will occasionally let me listen to a track from SA so first impressions... Handful of Darkness is brilliant. Just as I hoped it would be and captures the essence of the performance in Prague. I worried that it would sound different and not be as good. I like all the others that I've heard (although I've not heard all of them.) The one that stands out for me is Nevermore. On my second listen I decided it might be my favourite song for a long time. I listened through headphones last night and I suspect dome songs are best listened to through speakers. I have to wait until Thursday :(

[jetset]

Interview 05/04/2017. As usual, a machine-translated version :

"On the stage is a prostitute"

With "Strange Attractor" Alphaville announce themselves back. Band leader Marian Gold gives an insight into the development process.

After seven years, the synth pop-heroes Alphaville return with a new album. "Strange Attractor" dares the balancing act between old acts and modern sounds. Why the new album feels like a half comeback, band leader Marian Gold reveals in the interview with the news agency spot on news.

"Strange Attractor" sounds refreshingly modern, but also quotes the glorious 80s. Was this balancing act a formulated goal before they started writing new music?

Marian Gold: That has more or less surrendered. I would not be able to define this as precisely as you have done. I just assume times that it is so. We have produced the album in three starts over seven years. We always need a relatively long time, but it was a damn long time for us. Of a total of 24 pieces, the darker and somewhat gloomy songs finally made the album.

Longtime keyboardist, Martin Lister, died unexpectedly in 2014. Was this a reason for the long production time?

Gold: That was a very bad loss for me. Not only musically but also personally. I've worked with Martin for more than 20 years. He is an ingenious musician and composer and a really friendly person. For me the idea that he is no longer there is still hard to bear. This has torn a very, very large gap into the band. I did not even try to fill them again. But I wanted us to continue our journey without Martin, which ultimately also resulted in the production of the album with the new members in the band.

Is the album so dark, because you process his death through your music?

Gold: It fits at least to the mood and self-understanding of the band. We are all very happy with the album and also very happy that we had Martin with us so long. The last piece I wrote with Martin, "Beyond The Laughing Sky," is also the last song on the album. Crazy that it has become this title. This is almost Martins monument. But we did not write a piece to him. I would have felt this as a fool, because such a loss must be processed in a different way.

Are you up to date with current pop artists or are they listening to songwriting from the outside world?

Gold: I am very interested in current affairs. Especially on the independent scene, because new music is constantly being developed there. There are new opportunities. But as soon as I go to the studio, I am totally unresponsive to advice or influences from the outside. This is a very introverted process. Just the opposite of what you do when you stand on a stage. Where you try everything to bring people together. These are the two polarities between which one oscillates as an artist. In the studio one is a kind of terrorist of his conviction and on stage rather a kind of prostitute.

Musicians are looking for the recognition and reactions of the fans.

Gold: And at all costs! If we re-arrange the pieces for the live situation, then, we'll be thinking about what could and could not work. The artistic value is not important to me live.

You are now in the music business for more than 30 years. How do you survive in this fast-paced business?

Gold: You need talent and a lot of luck. Without luck one comes to nothing. The fact that we are so long is only a part of our own dung. We were lucky to have written some Welthits. This alone keeps you in business. When you release an album like us every four or five years, it feels like a half comeback every time - that's a drawback, of course. But at the same time people are also very interested.

You have seven children. Do these instruments or do they want to follow in the footsteps of their father?

Gold: No. Two of my children played instruments, but that is more of a hobby. They do not because their daddy is a musician. My children have entirely different interests.

What's next at Alphaville?

Gold: We'll be playing a small tour with a focus on Germany next to the concerts already booked. And, quite against my habits, we are already writing pieces for a new album. I am very optimistic that we will be ready to start production in early 2018.

http://www.gala.de/stars/interview/a...-21343788.html

[hajak]

Thanks for posting,interesting,production start early 2018 for a new album

[sophienoelle]

Downloading my copy from Itunes FR now. Unfortunately everyone is still sleeping, so will need to wait a while. Maybe time to take a drive somewhere in my car...Loved Hearbtreak City, can't wait to hear the rest.

[emilzone]

After several replays, mostly through earphones, I consider SA yet another fine release. This--and also the previous--album might not fully contain what people say "AV signatures", but they offer some excellent poppish beat as well as ballad tracks. So far, the gems treasured in this album IMHO are House of Ghosts, Around the Universe, A Handful of Darkness, Sexyland, and Beyond the Laughing Sky. Marionettes with Halo, Enigma, and Fever! are just so-so.

[nicole]

A Handful of Darkness and Giants are my favorite songs on this album. I can't stop listening to them. Just beautiful.

[Foolship1077]

The fact that it's already on the US iTunes is just fantastic! Sure, I had pre-ordered the CDs already, but what the heck, I would have loaded the disc onto my iTunes files anyway.