Cygnosic - Fire And Forget

So Georg Psaroudakis' ability to craft a Dark Electro classic in a short time has been noticed for a while now - after 'Fallen' sold out quickly, it was re-released with a second disc. Around the same time, the original 'lost' album "A Deity in Pain" was re-recorded with improved vocals, among other major changes, giving us effectively three new discs of CygnosiC material last winter. Barely a quarter later, and we have the third full album by one of the finest Greek acts.

Dropping mere days before tomorrow nights debut UK show at Resistanz, "Fire and Forget" is both memorable and quaint - aggressive and at times gentile - every bit of edge has a calmer 'yang' - a balance met with aplomb on this album.

"Fire and Forget" begins the release, and utilises the same style of melodic, layered synth that makes CygnosiC immediately recognisable. It seems a lot more efficient this time - I'd tap my foot, but who the hell does that to Industrial and EBM? It's Georg's brutal vocal that contrasts so well with the melody that make CygnosiC special to many, and it's not hard to see why.

Next up is "Escape", and BOOM - that melody! The sounds could trace a smile from ear to ear, such is their unorthodox focus on pure melody - distortion isn't something that CygnosiC really does - the vocals feel natural and talented, the melody is exactly as a melody should be, it doesn't feel like it's buckling under tons of pressure or effect - an artist like this doesn't come along that often, but when they do they really add a glow to a scene that's got many, many problems in it.

"This Is The Night" is much heavier and has a Guitar-laden intro, before becoming a more traditional Dark Electro track - however the melody here is more pronounced, with guitar riffs segueing between vocal and verse - a favourite of mine so far.

"Alone" absolutely crucifies me every time - the melody that opens the track is OUTSTANDING. It's one of my favourites in the entire sub-genre - this entire song is just incredible - although some may consider it pretty simple - it doesn't matter. Technical is not what this style needs to be. Anyway, "Alone" - a track I could listen to for the rest of my life, it's so damned amazing.

Succeeded by "Crawl", "Alone" leaves a very very difficult gap to fill. It's faster and has a higher BPM (I'd guess around 150). There's some stunning synth work on here - the last time my head was so full of melody was when I first got into Hocico.

"The Drowning" opens with an Asian sounding string intro - totally unusual but gorgeously composed. This leads into a gentle Electro section, which is undermined by Georg's vocal. Slow, gorgeous, and so different that it never fails to make a good impression.

"Mad Desire" turns the whole genre on it's head. It's a cover of a new wave track by Den Harrow from 1984 (hear the original here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ifCFrA1T7Y). It gets really interesting because the lead fits into CygnosiC's style, and Georg delivers this cover with perfect execution, his vocal style giving it an entirely different rendition.

I've described the first half of the album, and to be honest, it never dips in quality. "Begin With Me" is a dancefloor hit, "Greed" is simply brilliant, "Until Glory" is a typical DWA closing track with a gentle, more acoustic feel at times... but CygnosiC isn't following any template. I dare say if this came out in the 2001-2004 era, most Dark Electro bands would be doing this, instead of the Suicide Commando style sounds they do.

Finally, this album comes with three remixes : FGFC820, Grendel, and AAimon taking on some of the albums finest. All three put the respective artists to serious acclaim, and a "Witch House" style band on a CygnosiC album is something I NEVER thought I'd say - but hell...

I have a new favourite album. At least for the next 6 months.
Those going to Resistanz are in for a big, big treat. Mar 28 2013