DE/VISION TWO ALBUM DRAKKAR, BMG RELEASE: OCTOBER 1, 2001 REVIEW: SEPTEMBER 3, 2001

The last De/Vision album, "Void", was either loved or hated. Mostly hated, from what I've gathered. Their still increasing fan base had big problems with the restructuring of their sound with more use of guitars and acoustic drums.
They can all breathe a lot easier now, though. "Two" is more... well, more De/Vision, frankly. Softer with the focus back on emotional, effective pop songs. Steffen has a knack for writing clever songs as well as appealing harmonies and Thomas handles the duties of the lyricist brilliantly.
The single "Heart-shaped Tumor" (release September 10) is a great example of a perfect combo of dark poetry and impressive song pacing. It builds up beautifully, from the tender piano based intro to the edgy, trashing chorus. One of De/Vision's best songs, no question.
"Two" holds mostly slow or mid-tempo tunes, but that's what they do best, in my opinion. "Drowning Soul", another song I would put on my personal "Best of De/Vision" CD-R, is a ballad so moving it almost brings tears to my eyes and lyrics I, and I presume, many with me can relate to. "Uncaring Machine" is the most remarkable track, with leftovers from "Void" in the heavy guitar based refrain. Still, I think it's far better than most of the tracks on that album. There are two or maybe three songs on "Two" that are a bit anonymous, but never anything remotely uninteresting.
"Two" is one big step back, towards their more electronically built songs with emphasis on catchiness and melody, but two huge leaps forward in comparison to "Void". Almost as good as "Monosex", actually. Chew on that.

NIKLAS FORSBERG