MELOTRON STERNENSTAUB ALBUM SYNTHETIC SYMPHONY, PLAYGROUND RELEASE: OCTOBER 6, 2003 REVIEW: SEPTEMBER 26, 2003

I have been a huge fan of Melotron since their second album “Fortschritt”. They have grown far beyond the And One clone they seemed to be at first. Melotron have a fantastic sense for melody and quality that you seldom hear in this genre - as well as a good vocalist. This have taken them on a very successful journey indeed. The last album “Weltfrieden” was on my “best of 2002” list. It has some damn good tracks on it. Now, a year later Andy, Edgar and Kay are getting ready to release the follow-up “Sternenstaub” ("Stardust").
Alas, no particular new ground is covered, and Andy’s vocals need some new ideas. His verses all sound pretty much the same, with the voice merely going up and down a bit, while almost talking. Minor nagging, though.
Of course Olaf Wollschläger's production is top notch once again. Still, I feel more could be done, since some of the tracks are also a bit bland. What really saves this album are the two fantastic floor fillers “Der Anfang” and “Erwartungen”. Possibly the most perfect blend of EBM and pop music since “Folge mir ins Licht” on the last album. Strangely, they are both vastly better than the first single from the album, "Kein Problem", which is cool, but pretty rough and it lacks catchy hooks. The brilliant varied dance tracks are where Melotron really show their strength, and I think they should do even more of those. The slower songs could be more eventful, and bluntly said, less boring, although they often show beauty as well as power.
Anyway, if you’re expecting the best thing since sliced bread (I certainly was), you’ll be disappointed. If you want some really high quality electronic pop music, better than most, go and get yourself some German stardust.

JOHAN CARLSSON