Search - Einsturzende Neubauten :: Alles Wieder Offen

Meine Ohren sind wieder Wunde!

L. Vierhout | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 04/25/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"EN crashed into my world long ago with Seele brennt. It opened up a field of sonic and emotional experience unbeknown to me, quite exciting. But after Tabula Rasa I really became disinterested. I listened to the new releases but apart from the occasional song, the material just could not keep me captivated.

But Blixa and consorts have found new ground to erect temporary dwellings for the soul. There is a new vulnerability to the material which is really touching (and sweat!).

The into the abyss brutal expressionist noise - I admit I still miss it and long for it sometimes - has been replaced by careful, thought through song structures. This development had already begun on previous albums but now it seems to pay off. There is a balance between the new open sound and philosophical bend lyrics that wasn't there before. Not for me anyway.

There is a strong delivery of the words by Blixa that comes across as convincing and honest, reminiscent of the Halber Mensch era. And what is most important, there again is a vast amount of space and time between the bars creating the tension and friction which made EN music special and exciting to begin with.

Meine Ohren sind wieder Wunde!"

Everything open again

Andreas Faust | Tasmanian Autonomous Zone | 12/04/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This album cements Einstürzende Neubauten's status as one of the most original acts in the world, as dazzling in the field of music as their countryman Werner Herzog has been in the film world. In modern German musical terms they are comparable in greatness to Kraftwerk, even if they haven't been anywhere near as influential. In fact the title track off their last album Perpetuum Mobile seemed a musical nod to Kraftwerk's 'Europa Endlos'. But while Perpetuum Mobile felt light and airy, evoking breathing and the cycle of air in the heavens, this new one is darker...not as beautiful, but with superb songwriting. The instrumentation is perhaps a bit more 'traditional' this time around, though they still make use of many 'found' instruments like jet turbines, plastic pipes, blue bins, and a metal sheet.



The title, Alles Wieder Offen, means 'Everthing Open Again', and it sounds like singer Blixa Bargeld is clearing his system of all the deritus of the past. The music feels cathartic, and some of the lyrics too, most notably the title track and the grotesque 'Unvollständigkeit'. On 'WeilWeilWeil' Bargeld sounds outright angry. He advises the listener: walk your own path, and don't take advice or criticism from the decrepit ones who've "long since frittered away their winter fat of opportunities."



Spiritual themes also surface on the album. The last track, 'Ich Warte', even has a brief passing reference to Miguel Serrano's writing. 'Die Wellen', which builds slowly to a crescendo, has Bargeld hearing the voice of Jesus in the waves: "Warum hast du mich verlassen?" (why hast thou forsaken me?). Bargeld holds his own, asking angrily of the waves if they, at least, will stay. The waves themselves try to define the undefinable, to 'measure' the coastline with their abrasive action.



But the catchy 'Susej' is more blatent in this regard. 'Susej' is 'Jesus' spelt backwards, and the chorus itself consists of someone singing 'hallelujah' backwards. Bargeld seems to be saying that even Jesus' death, which for the Christian is the central moment is history, can be reversed. At least, that's what I think he's saying...it's hard to tell with Bargeld's idiosyncratic, often playful lyrics. "Seid vorübergehend!" (Be transitory!), he admonishes. If Christ steps down from the cross, then everyone (both magi and the plebian rabble) can go home. But of course, it won't necessarily make things better. The same could always happen yet again.



'Nagorny Karabach' deserves special mention, and will probably be the 'hit' song of the album. Musicians trying to capture a spirit of place can have mixed results. But when the place in question is a partly imaginary, idealised image or dreaming, this sometimes works better. Think Bathory's 'Home of Once Brave', or 'Californication' by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. 'Nagorny Karabach', in my opinion, is even better than these two admittedly very good songs. It refers to a real place, a highland region in Azerbaijan, but in the song has become somewhere outside of this world, outside time and space. 'Nagorny Karabach' is a dark, opiate jewel that glisters more each time you listen to it."