Angst (KMFDM album)

Angst
Studio album by KMFDM
Released October 13, 1993 (1993-10-13)[1]
Recorded Early 1993[2]
Genre Industrial metal, industrial rock
Length 48:42
Label Wax Trax!/TVT
Producer KMFDM
KMFDM chronology
Money
(1992)		 Angst
(1993)		 Nihil
(1995)
Singles from Angst
  1. "Sucks"
    Released: October 1992
  2. "A Drug Against War"
    Released: September 14, 1993[3]
  3. "Light"
    Released: February 15, 1994
  4. "Glory"
    Released: October 31, 1994

Angst is the seventh album by industrial metal band KMFDM. It was released on October 13, 1993, on TVT/Wax Trax! Records in the United States. The UK release on Roadrunner Records also included five remixes of "Light" from the "Light" single. It was recorded in Chicago, Illinois.

Background

Bandmates Sascha Konietzko and En Esch began working together again after splitting up during the recording of their previous album, Money.[4] Konietzko had moved to Seattle in 1993, while Esch had moved to New Orleans, Louisiana.[5] Angst was the first album the band recorded in America with new engineer Chris Shepard, after recording their first six albums in Hamburg, the previous four of which had all been engineered by Blank Fontana.[6] Angst also marked the first appearance of steel guitarist Mark Durante, whose presence made a noticeable impact on the band's sound, moving it towards a more guitar-driven style.[1] Dutch vocalist Dorona Alberti made her mark on the album as well, singing on half the songs, including lead vocals on "The Problem".[1]

Production

After very limited participation on Money, Esch had a much stronger hand in the songwriting and recording of Angst, and commented after its release, "We've tried to involve guitar players, we tried to be like a real band, especially in the creative kind of aspect."[5]

The song "Agogo" was originally recorded for Angst, but was not available until it was released on Agogo in 1998.[7]

Release

Angst was released on October 13, 1993.[1] Unlike previous albums, Angst had a more rock-oriented sound, so the marketing strategy of Wax Trax!/TVT changed.[8] TVT director of sales and marketing Paul Burgess said, "We decided to work them not like a typical dance-rock artist, but like a serious rock band, and it has crossed over to metal and commercial alternative this time."[8] KMFDM embarked on the Angstfest Tour in support of the album in April and May 1994.[9] In addition to the studio lineup, guitarist Mike Jensen was brought along for the live shows to duplicate the heavy sound of the album.[9] This led to stage performances that included up to four guitarists playing at once.[10]

The album had sold 20,000 copies by February 1994,[8] and went on to sell more than 100,000 copies by October 1995.[11] A digitally remastered reissue of Angst was released on November 21, 2006.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
CMJ New Music Reportpositive[12]
The Trouser Press Guide to '90s Rockpositive[13]
The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Musicpositive[14]

Andy Hinds of Allmusic said KMFDM had reached their full potential on the album.[1] He called "A Drug Against War" "the band's most over-the-top moment to date"[1] and thought "Sucks" was funny and irreverent. He concluded by calling Angst a great album for KMFDM newcomers.[1] Ira Robbins called Angst "the fulfillment of Money's promise, a meld of pop choruses, metal guitar riffs and industrial machine-beats".[13] Colin Larkin said Angst "perfected the band's aggressive fusion of pounding electro rhythms and screeching guitars."[14] Angst was given a Silver Salute by CMJ New Music Report in 2003, with Brad Filicky saying, "KMFDM managed to make people laugh, even as they were checking under their beds for monsters and finding the inspiration to plug their guitars into a MIDI unit."[12]

Track listing

All tracks written by Sascha Konietzko, En Esch, Svet Am, Mark Durante, and Chris Shepard, except where noted. 

No. Title Length
1. "Light"   6:05
2. "A Drug Against War"   3:43
3. "Blood (Evil Mix)"   5:12
4. "Lust"   4:22
5. "Glory" (Konietzko, Am, Shepard) 3:54
6. "Move On"   5:33
7. "No Peace"   4:28
8. "A Hole in the Wall"   5:50
9. "Sucks" (Konietzko, Am) 3:32
10. "The Problem" (Konietzko, Esch, Am, Shepard) 6:03
Total length:
 48:42

Personnel

Musicians

Additional personnel

Production

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hinds, Andy. "Angst Review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
  2. ↑ "KMFDM History on April 4, 1997". KMFDM.net. KMFDM Enterprises. Archived from the original on April 8, 1997. Retrieved September 11, 2010.
  3. ↑ Landau, Joshua. "KMFDM: A Drug Against War". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
  4. ↑ Money (CD booklet). KMFDM. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Metropolis Records. 2006. pp. 2–3.
  5. 1 2 Sutton, Jeneveve (January 1994). "Laff Mich Glucklich Seim". Magnet. Magnet Magazine Inc. Retrieved July 26, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Blank Fontana Credits". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  7. ↑ Agogo (CD booklet). KMFDM. Chicago, Illinois: Wax Trax! Records. 1998.
  8. 1 2 3 Borzillo, Carrie (February 5, 1994). Popular Uprisings. Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2012.
  9. 1 2 Nihil (CD booklet). KMFDM. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Metropolis Records. 2007. pp. 2–3.
  10. ↑ Strauss, Neil (May 26, 1994). "Review/Rock; Heavy Metal, With an Emphasis on Heavy". New York Times. Retrieved August 11, 2012.
  11. ↑ Cardenas, Georgina (October 26, 1995). "KMFDM Blows Your Top". Miami New Times. Retrieved March 1, 2010.
  12. 1 2 Filicky, Brad (September 22, 2003). "CMJ Silver Salute". 77 (5): 5. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  13. 1 2 Robbins, Ira A. (1997). The Trouser Press Guide to '90s Rock. Simon & Schuster. p. 399.
  14. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2000). "KMFDM". The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music. Virgin Books. p. 220.

External links

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