Grausame Töchter - Mein Eigentliches Element

Grausame Töchter (lit. 'cruel daughters') is the musical project of German Aranea Peel, which she started in 2009. Areanea brings her previous experience of both classical and modern dance/theatre to Grausame Töchter, as well as a hefty dose of evocative and erotic themes; this is reflected as much in the project's sound as it is in the BDSM-themed lyrical content and live presence.

The first thing that strikes me about this album is the range of influences being encompassed, and sublimely at that, into one overall style. The music is at the same time contemporary and retro; heavy beats and extensive use of tom drums (on stage, the band make use of no less than three drummers) give the music an old-school flavour which a lot of the time borders on the martial. Just when you think you're listening to the offspring of dark ambient or neofolk, a filthy electro bassline comes out of nowhere to bring it back to today's musical precepts.

There's even use of orchestral samples throughout (the violin samples on 'Freundin' are fantastic), a treat for those of us who remmber the heady days of 90's electronica. Guitar lines also feature throughout the album, although in a slightly diminished, low-key capacity rather than as a major element of the music. This doesn't detract from the music, as it simply acts as yet another element in the genre-spanning sound.

Aranea's vocals are the part of Grausame Töchter's sound that ironically were the biggest block to me at first, but which became one of my favourite parts of the sound. She is capable of both soft, soothing ranges (such as on the spoken intro to 'Wie eine Schlange') and that hallmark of the old school EBM sound, martial chanting. When she uses the latter style the power in her voice is almost palpable through the speakers, putting her on par with other proponents of that vocal style such as McCarthy, de Meyer and Douglas Pearce.

The range on this album is pretty good; tracks like 'Mephisto', 'Bis das Blut Fliesst' and 'Freundin' are obvious overtures to today's electro-industrial/cyber club-goers with their overt use of pounding drums and contemporary sampling/keys. The second half of the album is a different beast entirely: it focuses more on dischordant sounds and low-tempo ambient noise. Perhaps Aranea's love of using sex as a metaphor in her music is at play here, but whatever the reason, it means the album has a multi-faceted appeal that is becoming far too rare with contemporary industrial releases.

Overall, this is an excellent album which, although it isn't exactly pushing the envelope too far with regard to contemporary releases (everything being done by Grausame in the studio has been done before by other artists, although in a lot of cases not as well), is still a great example of how modern industrial need not be nothing but bleeps and beats. There's a lot of creativity here, and a solid aesthetic behind it. May 22 2011