seven

drunkness strikes back with third full-length album after their brilliant "a light beyond the end" in 1998 and "area51" before that. the band matured and diverted from alien-filled lyrics presenting a very solid release. vocalist is one of the things that make drunkness so unique - the voice is powerful and clear and he is actually singing occasionally backed by a female vocals. seems like the guitars are used a bit less on this album. the melodies are incredible catchy and balance on the brink of electro and synth-pop. the clear sequences mix together with pulsating rhythm; the music is really addicting and you will be singing along with every song.

the album starts with "in 1999..." a track with strong political content and provocative lyrics; guitar and danceable beats make i a great opening track. "hol mich ein" is a german track featuring guitar and pulsating ebm beat; it is quite aggressive in comparison with other material on the disk. "forgotten times" is a slow instrumental track with wonderful programming and soft dark melody. "live in paradise" features almost orchestra-like sound with beautiful mix of female and male voices. "down" is a vocal-driven ballad, sad and beautiful.

overall the album might be a bit darker and more melancholy than the previous releases (once drukness decided to concentrate on earth-related topics) but the music is the same intelligent mix of irresistably catchy and diverse danceable melodies, stellar vocals. drunkness continues to create the music that definitely stands out and create the nice of its own. if you do not have "a light beyond the end" pick up "forgotten times" - either one of those is guaranteed not to leave your cd player for a while.