Raunchy - Death Pop Romance
LifeForce Records - LFR 058-2 - 2006
By Philip Whitehouse
This is Danish sextet
Raunchy's third album, their first for LifeForce records and also, their first with new vocalist Kasper Thomson at the mic. You'd be forgiven for not knowing anything about the band previous to this release, since their last two albums didn't really receive much press, despite being admirably urgent works of modern melodic metal.
Death Pop Romance should rectify this mistake, however, as it is easily the best thing
Raunchy have come up with to date.
Raunchy describe themselves as 'Futuristic Hybrid Metal', which actually isn't a bad description, if the hybrid you're thinking of is between the relentless mechanized stomp of
Strapping Young Lad and the surging, memorable chorus-craft of latter-day
Soilwork. Throw in some unashamedly accessible songwriting and make all the elements complement each other perfectly rather than fighting like tom cats in a sack, factor in a crystal-clear and impeccable production courtesy of Tue Madsen, and you've got a good idea of what
Death Pop Romance is all about. Kasper's vocals range from smooth crooning ('Phantoms' contains a particulalry hook-worthy vocal harmony) to throaty growls to violent screams, Morten Toft Hansen's drumming caters for piston-firing blasts as well as cymbal-crashing grooves, and the guitarwork is as gnats-arsehole tight as it is memorable.
Now, all this said, I realise that there a lot of people around here who won't get as much out of this album as I do. One listen to
Death Pop Romance's glossy production and hook-laden songcraft will be enough to have most UM regulars shouting about pop-metal and selling out. However, I invite those people to go and fornicate themselves with a sharp stick. I love my grindcore and suicidal black metal and hour-long drone tracks as much as the next person, but sometimes, you just want an energetic, adrenalised, anthemic and uplifting metallic shot to the arm, and
Death Pop Romance provides just that.
8.5/10
UM's Review Rating Scale
Official Raunchy Website
Official LifeForce Records Website
