Friday, October 13, 2017

Cassette Review: Venderstrooik "Smetvrees & Kruisbesmetting (Aangepiekte verkens met stoute dromen)" (Raketenbasis Haberlandstrasse)


It's been a little over a year since I reviewed Venderstrooik.    I've found myself missing the sound that comes with this artist because it just seems to be a lot of everything at once and then sometimes seemingly nothing at all.   It's a perfect balance and I really enjoy the chaos that it brings to music.

This cassette starts with an electronic beeping and then vocals eventually do kick in.   It's darkwave but also has me wondering whether or not Atari Teenage Riot is still a thing.    Through the synth can come high pitched singing or just a normal sort of tone for singing, but either way it's bringing the destruction.   This can sound like a violent game of Pong (which I didn't previously think was possible) just as easily as Marilyn Manson.  

Fast paced electronics bring about a song about ecstasty and as he sings along to some video game sounds he claims he wants to be Dennis.   I actually listened to this song several times before looking at the j-card to realize that the title was in fact "Dennis", so I wasn't sure whether he was saying he wanted to be Dennis or a dentist.   It's just odd that someone would want to be Dennis but I guess Dennis has it going on.

There is a lot going on.   Echoing vocals tell the tale of a bowling ball.    It can become almost like a polka at times as well.   A quieter moaning leads way to the sounds of Devo.   Then there are beats and spoken words.    See, some of these songs can be catchy where they get stuck in your head and you want to listen to them and sing along (Though I'm hesitant to use the term "pop") while others are so empty but nonetheless good in their own way.

That seems to be the story of this cassette for Venderstrooik.    There is either a lot going on all at once or very little going on.   Either way, it's worth listening to over and over again until you've devoured every last bit of it.    From the simple to the complex, this cassette has it all and if you're not listening to it then you don't know what you're missing.


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