I've just been lurking around for a while, but I'll make my return post here :p
I preordered the album (B-Type) and it should be here Wednesday/Thursday, so I'll post scans of the lyrics if anyone wants them. I've listened to the album sans instrumentals (Gothic Elements, Pendel etc) and I'm pretty happy with it so far so mini-review on the tracks that have been rearranged & new:
Remains of Mind: I always liked the old version and this track just feels like it's had the dust polished off it. Production standards are improved, some new strings in the intro... Solid track.
Traumerei: I had no idea who Rookie was (I thought he was a guitarist in a VK band, idk) so this track came as a surprise. I'm guessing the only real instrument in this track is the violin? Still, the rest of the instruments sound sharp enough so it gets away with that. It's nice to hear Kaya's falsetto but in places it sounds a bit flat, but I really enjoyed it.
Babylon: I didn't mind the original, but I really like the remake just for the changes towards the end because it sounds a bit more trippy. That's all I have to say
Sodomy: I thought this track sounded horrendous in the previews on Amazon and not much better in the youtube clip, but I actually really like it! The production is much better then usual, sounds a bit Rose Jail/Addict-ish until the second chorus when it introduces some *gasp* new synthesizers that sound incredibly sexy. Also, did anybody else notice the 'Maria' & 'Sodomy' lyrics? Why does something tell me this will involve the virgin mary
Salome: Probably my favourite single so far, even though I thought it sounded a bit too... crowded? It just sounded too confusing in places. Essentially this is it stripped down to just guitar/bass/drums and a few synthesizers but sounds so much better. The instruments are real, the vocals are basically the same but it sounds so so SO much cooler. It would be awesome to see this played live.
Memento Mori: Someone said that the PV reminded them a bit of old-school VK. I don't necessarily agree, but there's something really nostalgic about this track. It's less intense then Infection, but seems much more... personal? I don't know. But it's a solid track, has a cool vocal part towards the end (because I feel like Kaya doesn't live up to his potential of holding notes long) and it's a good track.
Danse Macabre: It's mostly, but not entirely engrish but it's so enjoyable. Like Zencho said it's a track that sounds like it could be played at a party, if not for the awful english pronounciation :p
Tempest: I was so so worried this would sound like a gay 80's club anthem mixed with chanson electro goth jazz Thankfully, it's not. If it's an indicator that Kaya could write some of his own tracks, even in collaboration with other composers, it has merit for that.
Also, Kaya has a mini-site for Gothic which has other VK artists/musicians commenting on their input or what they thought of it, along with a page of Kaya's liner notes: http://kaya-rose.com/gothic/
I preordered the album (B-Type) and it should be here Wednesday/Thursday, so I'll post scans of the lyrics if anyone wants them. I've listened to the album sans instrumentals (Gothic Elements, Pendel etc) and I'm pretty happy with it so far so mini-review on the tracks that have been rearranged & new:
Remains of Mind: I always liked the old version and this track just feels like it's had the dust polished off it. Production standards are improved, some new strings in the intro... Solid track.
Traumerei: I had no idea who Rookie was (I thought he was a guitarist in a VK band, idk) so this track came as a surprise. I'm guessing the only real instrument in this track is the violin? Still, the rest of the instruments sound sharp enough so it gets away with that. It's nice to hear Kaya's falsetto but in places it sounds a bit flat, but I really enjoyed it.
Babylon: I didn't mind the original, but I really like the remake just for the changes towards the end because it sounds a bit more trippy. That's all I have to say
Sodomy: I thought this track sounded horrendous in the previews on Amazon and not much better in the youtube clip, but I actually really like it! The production is much better then usual, sounds a bit Rose Jail/Addict-ish until the second chorus when it introduces some *gasp* new synthesizers that sound incredibly sexy. Also, did anybody else notice the 'Maria' & 'Sodomy' lyrics? Why does something tell me this will involve the virgin mary
Salome: Probably my favourite single so far, even though I thought it sounded a bit too... crowded? It just sounded too confusing in places. Essentially this is it stripped down to just guitar/bass/drums and a few synthesizers but sounds so much better. The instruments are real, the vocals are basically the same but it sounds so so SO much cooler. It would be awesome to see this played live.
Memento Mori: Someone said that the PV reminded them a bit of old-school VK. I don't necessarily agree, but there's something really nostalgic about this track. It's less intense then Infection, but seems much more... personal? I don't know. But it's a solid track, has a cool vocal part towards the end (because I feel like Kaya doesn't live up to his potential of holding notes long) and it's a good track.
Danse Macabre: It's mostly, but not entirely engrish but it's so enjoyable. Like Zencho said it's a track that sounds like it could be played at a party, if not for the awful english pronounciation :p
Tempest: I was so so worried this would sound like a gay 80's club anthem mixed with chanson electro goth jazz Thankfully, it's not. If it's an indicator that Kaya could write some of his own tracks, even in collaboration with other composers, it has merit for that.
Also, Kaya has a mini-site for Gothic which has other VK artists/musicians commenting on their input or what they thought of it, along with a page of Kaya's liner notes: http://kaya-rose.com/gothic/