En Direct have produced a quality debut. Utilizing elements of industrial, EBM and synth wave, these newcomers have struck their own pose as they weave moments of electro into their compositions.
Three years of silence would indicate, to many, that a label has decided to call it a day. Thankfully this is not always the case. Following thirty six months of waiting, Lunatic returns to record shop shelves with a brand new signing.
The Leipzig imprint never adhered to one specific style with 12’s spanning acid, electro and out-there edits. En Direct signals a new genre for the label. The self titled EP opens with the distant and dejected “Unwilling.” Synth stabs cuts into biting snares as lone lyrics etch a tale of emotional drain and a torn life. “No Witnesses” is cut from a similarly solitary cloth. Vocals switch to German with meandering notes kept in check by a stern beat. A cold dripping bass smothers a slip of percussion to introduce “Sweet Decay.” With all its reduced finery the track has all the attributes of electro but the lean is towards a detracted wave, dark and dehumanizing. The flip jumps to life with the speedy kicks and metronomic blips of “Stellwerk.” Dead-pan words are spoken over the driving rhythm to produce a work brimming with an aggressive primal energy. The finale races on terse rhythm patterns. Keys are bold and bracing with echoing speech calling time on “Rendez-Vouz.”
En Direct have produced a quality debut. Utilizing elements of industrial, EBM and synth wave, these newcomers have struck their own pose as they weave moments of electro into their compositions. An EP that hopefully marks the full return of Lunatic.
En Direct is available on Lunatic.
