Published on Jun 2, 2006
Monotonous albums are a scourge on music. Repetition
of one single idea (however great) throughout a whole album doesn’t
really make for an interesting listening. This especially holds
true for the genre of techno (and its various progenies), which is
doomed to be cursed with monotony; techno records thrive on “the
one song” from which the whole record is cloned.
Such is the fate of The Focus, an album by
German industrial-techno act Absurd Minds, which is condemned to be
repetitive and hence deploringly boring. But, strangely, its
monotony is not quite the same as one would expect of an album of
this nature.
Absurd Minds, in the league of similar bands like Project Pitchfork
and VNV Nation, is a part of the generation of techno inspired by
the manliness of industrial music, minus the guitars and the gore.
The Focus, built on the same foundation, is full of tough
beats, menacing synths, and vocals that rasp. Add to this the
coerced positivism of techno, and it yields tracks that are uptempo
but still finding themselves in the cocoon of industrial gloom.
Moreover, give it the urgency and punch of punk rock, and the
tracks turn out racy, catchy, and succinct; The Focus is a punk
album for techno zealots.
In what is such an elegantly-crafted dance record,
monotony rears its ugly self as the album unfolds, with the tracks
sharing a similar tone, a similar beat, and a similar pulse; and
all the cuts find themselves heading in the same direction.
However, here’s where the genius of Absurd Minds shines, and takes
the album to a zenith that is seen in techno records, only few and
far between. While traditional club records tend to be for the
musically-ignorant party-goer who doesn’t care what’s being played
as long as it serves the booty-shaking purpose, The Focus is
meant for the more serious listener, and in general has been
musically very well thought of.
Although the tracks tend to head the same way, they
are built on dissimilar chemistries, and possess subtle textural
variations that strongly characterize each of them. The album
kickoff “Essence” is a synth powerhouse with a charged-up 80s pop
chorus that’s as anthemic as it is instantly addictive. More racy
and club-like, “Captivated,” “Doors,” and “The Focus” have the feel
of the early electronica movement, whereas “A Stride Through Time,”
“Body,” and “Crucifixion” have a more melodic 90s Euro-techno
appeal. “Self-Imposed” and “My Search” sound like something out of
the 80’s Sisters Of Mercy Goth-punk scene sans the guitars.
The Focus is nothing less than a brilliant
dance record and one of the best techno albums ever made. The fact
that all of its tracks share a few common traits is only a bane of
the genre. Every punk rock album ever released (even the greatest
ones) is burdened with the same curse; blame it on the genre.
Forgiving the monotony is only a minor price to pay for what the
record rewards with: a nice little package of explosive dance music
that’s abundant in style and substance. This is techno like you’ve
never heard before.