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Kronic.it (Italy) - April 2008
Voto 3 su 5.
La germinazione ha avuto inizio
Racchiuso in un elegante digipack, curato graficamente da Mauro Berchi, i milanesi The Stompcrash debuttano per Nomadism con un CD di 43 minuti contenente 12 brani intrisi di oscura dark wave macchiata da venature post punk.
“Requiem Rosa” cattura subito l’attenzione sfoderando un sound non troppo complesso e sufficientemente amalgamato. I brani, legati in modo indissolubile tra loro, alternano una discreta varietà di melodie crepuscolari all’insegna di uno stile gotico mai radicale, in grado di nutrirsi di sfumature pop, rock e post punk senza snaturare la propria natura. In questo modo le trame s’infittiscono ed acquistano varietà anche grazie all’alternarsi di due stile vocali agli antipodi come quello profondo (e più canonico) del chitarrista Christian Celsi e quello più acidognolo ed “alternativo” della tastierista Daniela Palermo che - a mio avviso- sapientemente garantisce un po’ di sana imprevedibilità.
La produzione, purtroppo, penalizza la resa finale, tant’è che alcuni tappeti di tastiera, oltre ad essere – ahimé – leggermente banali, non convincono per qualità e scelta dei suoni. Anche l’originalità è sommariamente deficitaria ma la band, pur attingendo dai vari Cure (“Moskow”), Ikon e Thelema (“99 Cats”), lascia intravedere garantita genuinità.
L’altalenanza qualitativa dei brani (su tutti: “Like A Noise”, “99 Cats”, “The London Fog” ) ed alcuni errorini di gioventù pregiudicano il voto finale di una release che, a tratti, è veramente entusiasmante.
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GraveConcernsEzine.com - (USA) - April 2008
I am always somewhat skeptical when I hear of new bands that fall somewhere under the Gothic umbrella, but when someone I regard very highly in one of my favorite bands recommended them, I had to investigate. I am very glad that I did. From the opening chords of “The London Fog”, I was hooked. With alternating male and female vocals, and this quite danceable song with gloomy organ effects. “Like A Noise” starts as a Cure-esque sort of song then gets harder with some great post-punk guitar and Daniela’s poignant and truly captivating vocals. Play this one loud! “Watching Me Fall” is one of my favorites, with Christian’s vocals and awesome guitar hooks that reminds me of Ikon. Being a cat lover, anything song about Cats catches my eye, but “99 Cats” would be just as good under any other name. A moody number, Daniela’s vocals are rather vampish in a Siouxsie sort of way. After a break with a bit of tribal drumming, the song comes to an atmospheric close. “Dorian” brings back Christian’s great vocals and refers to Oscar Wilde’s famous story, with ominous overtones and whispered warnings. “Modern Slaves” has Daniela’s strident vocals, great bass lines, distant guitar and a powerful refrain that sinks into a machine-like interlude before rising again. “I Will Kill Myself” is a moody number that could come right out of mid-‘80s New Wave. “Moscow” is another one of my favorites, not just for the historical allusions, but for the driving post punk sound as well. The harder “Wake Up in a Grave” starts off rather eerily, and then launches into a great guitar-driven track accentuated by bells and other effects. “Bloody Rain” stays in the same territory. Echoed vocals and tribal percussion combine with a bit of buzz guitar that is also best played at optimum volumes. “The Wind That Moves the Flowers” begins with nearly psychedelic guitar that turns out to be quite addictive. Synth and concurrent vocals create a sound that is spooky, yet somehow upbeat, sort of like watching your favorite horror movie. “Mountains of Madness” is also one of my favorites, and not just because of the nod to H.P. Lovecraft. Christian’s fine vocals are ably complemented by Daniela’s arias, as forceful guitar weaves around atmospheric synth, windy sound effects and pounding percussion. Those who say that Goth and Post-Punk are passé need look no further than Stompcrash. “Requiem Rosa” belongs in the collection of anyone who appreciates new underground music built on the foundations of Gothic literature and dark post-punk music.
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Insomnia Magazine (UK) - April 2008
THE STOMPCRASH
“Requiem Rosa”
(Nomadism Records)
Debut offering from a band that obviously has a lot to offer the Goth genre.
‘Requiem Rosa’ came about from a website that the band stumbled across
(www.requiemrosa.com) which offered some gloomy vocal lines that the band gave new life. And what a fantastic job they did. This is definitely an album for the Trad-Goth lovers out there and is very reminiscent of the Goth sounds of the eighties but with a modern twist. It’s hard to believe that The Stompcrash owe this album to an “unknown and generous songwriter”, thankfully they
took the decision to let everyone know how to reach Requiem Rosa.
The highlight of the album is the beautifully haunting ‘99 Cats’ which could
easily become a Gothic masterpiece.
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Heathen Harvest (USA) - April 2008
The Stompcrash is a goth rock band from Milano, Italy. Requiem Rosa is their first album and it's rather a good surprise! Requiem Rosa has a website dedicated to it. Who knows what one can find inside? It's about a lost melodic line one should bring new life to. Interesting initiative.
The tracks are sometimes consisting only on a female voice, other times only on the male one, and more rarely on both. Several styles, emotions are spread by voices: theatrical male voice (03), even more typically goth (01), or melancholic, more sincere than theatrical (05), Female voice mostly sounds really goth: sometimes plaintive, often with punk remnants (02, 04, 06). But it also appears as more modified (07) and distant (09) or sweeter, less punk (11). The last track features both male and female voices (12). Alternance between both is most of the time chosen.
Bass guitar is is sometimes very present, other times rather discrete. We can notice a stereo effect on the bass on the 1st track where the instrument is put ahead (01). Its sounds varies across tracks and may give a bass guitar with a rather strong 'personality' (06). Distorted guitars are sometimes discrete, sporadic (02, 03), distant (04), while other times they're more assertive, with a smoother metal sound (02, 03). Their sound might be discete, sweet and their even a bit plaintive, not far from The Sins Of Thy Beloved's (07). But, guitars may be more explicitely metal (09), and tracks such as the 10th can be qualified as metal. Synth are as important as the voices in this album to build catchy melodies. They play nocturnal melodies (04), are dark (09), sad (07), melancholic (11). They often play the main melody (f.i. 04, 05). Dark atmosphere are invoked thanks to a delightful organ sound (01, 03) and /or dark synthetic sounds (02, 03).
Drums adorn melody with some fineries (03), but most of the time remain really an adequate accompaniment. We however notice how necessary and efficient they are to structurate a whole ambient magma on the 7th track. We note the 6th song has a lil' raw, indus touch thanks to percussion and their metallic noises, unusual for the genre. But, other experiments with noises are present, although rather discrete. Indus ambient noises (04, 09), weird high-pitched and white-noisy sounds (10). These original electronic, experimental noises sound unusual for the genre, ti therefore brings something more.
All these elements are combined into a progressive orientation. Typically, echoed guitars appear, then synths etc., other layers, till finally, the ensemble of all instruments cumulated gets its maximum intensity, before calming down again, punctuated by calmer, emptier interludes (06)... And it goes up and down, yet with a strict control of loudness, of relative intensities of these instruments. These small interludes are interesting for they usually allow an instrument to illustrate itself, for instance bass or drums. But, this band creates catchy tunes – usually melancholic exceptionnally a rather fantastic, funny atmosphere (10) – mostly through voices (01) or synths (05), the core of the ensemble.
The Stompcrash serve us short but quite efficient tracks. Music is well aranged, so that it doesn't need many fineries, many sounds, many melodic layers. It's progressive but doesn't get lost into an inconsiderate superimposition of melodies. It stays in a strict aesthetic, rather simple, but efficiently expressive. There's a good balance between all instruments: usually no one dominates others completely. There is no hesitation of variating the loudness of some instruments to reach an appropriate balance, so that they alternate well in building the main melodic lines. Subtility dwells. Between tracks the transitions are very natural: the atmospheres create a kind of evolution on a continuum that sounds really natural.
Simplicity and sincerity of expression prevail on complexity and technical demonstration. The same goes for the quality of arrangements, combinations of sounds and subtle alternance between instruments that are the most positive point of this band. Everything is here to create a nocturnal melancholic urban atmosphere... You may recognize some influences across tracks, but not in an annoying way at all. Some may say this music is mainstream. It however has its own personality. Thus, it's suitable for goth rock fans, of course, but it's also accessible for other listeners. Make up your mind on The Stompcrash's myspace.
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Darkroom-magazine.it (Italy) - March 2008
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
(Nomadism/Masterpiece)
Time: (43:33)
Rating : 8
L'attivissima Nomadism Records continua a tirare fuori preziose perle dal sottosuolo gotico italiano. Stavolta è il turno degli Stompcrash, che con questo notevole debut "Requiem Rosa" ci ricordano quanto l'Italia sia terra fertile per il gothic-rock di pura derivazione wave, quel sound che negli anni Ottanta lasciò tracce indelebili proprio qui da noi e che ancora oggi piace (e non poco) al popolo oscuro della nostra penisola. "The London Fog" è l'opener ideale, un intreccio magico tra le voci della bravissima Daniela Palermo e di Christian Celsi (anche lui positivo, ma sicuramente dalla timbrica meno 'originale'), e la formula spesso si ripete con successo anche con le rimanenti song, che tra l'altro si lasciano ben supportare da convincenti tappeti tastieristici e da una sezione ritmica assolutamente suggestiva. Sarei stato curioso di ascoltare anche un brano cantato in italiano, perché si sente lontano un miglio quell'appartenenza e quell'approccio al genere tipicamente nostrani, senza dover per forza andare a pescare nell'Inghilterra che fu, come molti (purtroppo) fanno tutt'oggi. "Requiem Rosa" è un lavoro genuino, malinconico ma non 'pesante', che trova i suoi punti di forza nel già citato brano d'apertura, in "Modern Slaves" e nella sognante "Moscow", che mi ha riportato in mente certe cose dei mai dimenticati Sad Lovers & Giants. Nient'altro da aggiungere: questo è un disco che piacerà moltissimo a quel pubblico di vecchia data che ancora oggi cavalca quegli anni così unici per la storia della (nostra) musica, ma anche a chi apprezza una certa rock-wave a grandi linee... dopotutto "Requiem Rosa" è un disco fatto con il cuore, e si sente. Emozionatevi.
Chemnitz
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Shapelesszine.com (Italy) - March 2008
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
Voto: 7
A me piacciono i dischi che hanno dietro una storia. Non importa che si tratti di una storia vera o semplicemente di una leggenda; non voglio nemmeno sapere se si tratta di una storia creata ad hoc per aumentare l'interesse attorno ad un lavoro. L'importante è il risultato, quell'aura di mistero che aggiunge un pizzico in più al tutto.
Bene, anche "Requiem Rosa" nasce con una storia: si racconta che gli Stompcrash, navigando in Internet si imbatterono in un sito chiamato proprio "Requiem Rosa, che offriva alcune linee vocali, degli spunti, a tutti coloro che volessero utilizzarli. La band, affascinata da tutto questo, decise di realizzare un album partendo proprio dalle idee accennate sul sito.
Arriviamo quindi a questo primo full-length e vediamo un po' cosa ha saputo realizzare questo quartetto milanese. Innanzitutto partiamo un po' dalla carta d'identità della band: la musica degli Stompcrash ritorna indietro nel tempo e si rifà principalmente a quella scena dark-wave degli anni '80. Tra le note di "Requiem Rosa" troviamo numerosi accenni ai Cure, ai Sister Of Mercy, Siouxsie And The Banshees e Bauhaus. La musica è decadente, malinconica e depressa, ma allo stesso tempo mantiene quella strana caratteristica che ha reso così particolare la musica di quel decennio: quel suono un po' sintetico, ritmi saltellanti e quell'attitudine punk che persisteva ancora nell'aria.
Non posso dire che "Requiem Rosa" sia esente da imperfezioni, ma è innegabile come questo lavoro possieda quel fascino sinistro a metà fra la follia e la tristezza. Vediamo un po' la cosa nello specifico. I brani interessanti non mancano e la qualità è decisamente buona: prendiamo l'iniziale "The London Fog", per esempio, con quelle tastiere spettrali e la voce profonda e sensuale di Christian Celsi a guidare il tutto. Proprio il cantante si rivela uno degli assi del gruppo, grazie ad uno stile a metà strada tra Jim Morrison e Dave Gahan dei Depeche Mode. Sullo stesso livello anche "Watching Me Fall", con la sua malinconia che si insinua nell'ascoltatore nonostante il ritmo sostenuto e quasi ballabile; "Moscow", ritmata e convincente nel suo ottimo ritornello, e soprattutto la bellissima "Dorian", che, come l'opera a cui si ispira, mantiene un fascino di decadente bellezza, guidata ancora una volta dalla voce di Christian.
Proprio sulla questione delle voci, comunque, risiede il mio principale dubbio sull'opera degli Stompcrash. Le dodici canzoni di "Requiem Rosa", infatti, non sono tutte cantate da Christian, ma vengono equamente divise con la tastierista Daniela Palermo. Ecco, queste due voci rappresentano un po' le due anime del gruppo: Christian si cimenta nei brani più avvolgenti, quelli più vicini al sensuale romanticismo del dark, mentre Daniela canta con uno stile più 'punk', se mi passate il termine. Una voce volutamente sgraziata che si sposa con i brani più spigolosi del gruppo, come "Modern Slaves". Ecco, personalmente non sono riuscito ad amare questa seconda anima del gruppo: mi piacciono tutti i brani con protagonista Celsi, mentre diventa forte la tentazione di saltare alla traccia successiva in quelli guidati da Daniela Palermo. Questione di gusti, indubbiamente, e non mi stupirei se un altro ascoltatore pensasse esattamente l'opposto. Fatto sta che la sensazione che mi rimane è quella di un album sbilanciato, che presenta due volti non sempre conciliabili.
Nonostante questo, comunque, "Requiem Rosa" resta un lavoro consigliato a tutti gli amanti delle sonorità descritte: non mancano le canzoni di valore e la band sembra promettere molto bene per il futuro.
(Danny Boodman - Marzo 2008)
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AlternativMusik.de (Germany) - February 2008
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
Manchmal stellt sich die Frage, was denn wichtiger ist: Innovation oder Qualität? Doch dann stellt man fest: Eigentlich beantwortet sich die Frage von selbst, denn auf Biegen und Brechen innovativ zu sein kann unter Umständen schwerwiegende Folgen in Bezug auf die Qualität haben. The Stompcrash scheinen dies auch gedacht zu haben und stellen sich auf ihrem Debütalbum eindeutig in die Tradition des Gothic Rocks der 80er Jahre mit Bands wie The Cure und Joy Division und zeigen, dass dieser Pfad noch längst nicht ausgelatscht ist. Die musikalische Tradition ist zwar eindeutig herauszuhören, dennoch klingen die Italiener von The Stompcrash alles andere als altbacken.
The Stompcrash spielen Gothic Rock mit wavigen Elementen und haben dieses für diese Art von Musik bekannte Sehnen in ihren Klängen. Dorian beispielsweise demonstriert dies dem geneigten Hörer. Harmonien in Moll, sehnende Melodieverläufe, untermalende Synthieflächen und ein Gesang, der die Melancholie der Grundstimmung der Musik gut zu untermauern weiß. The Stompcrash wollen das Gefühl und die Emotionen ihrer Hörer ansprechen und dies gelingt ihnen auf Requiem Rosa auch ziemlich gut. Meist melancholisch, gelegentlich auch mit apokalyptischem Einschlag und einer dezenten Portion Aggression.
Wenngleich auch bereits herausgestellt wurde, dass hier sicherlich kein Innovationspreis gewonnen wird, so muss man doch eine Besonderheit der Gruppe und ihrer aktuellen CD herausheben: Den Gesang. Dieser ist hier nicht nur einstimmig, sondern zweistimmig ausgefallen: Einmal männlich, einmal weiblich. Und dies auch nicht so, wie man es oft hat, dass das eine Geschlecht das andere ein wenig anreichert, sondern absolut gleichberechtigt, so dass einem hier neben rein männlich und rein weiblich vorgetragenen Stücken auch solche Titel begegnen, bei dem männlicher und weiblicher Gesang gleichberechtigt aufeinander treffen und dabei auch sehr gut harmonieren.
Am Ende kann man so konstatieren: The Stompcrash haben es richtig gemacht. Altbekannten und altbewährten Pfaden haben sie ein neues Leben eingehaucht und zeigen, dass man diese Pfade auch sehr gut bestreiten kann, ohne dabei gestrig zu wirken. Requiem Rosa ist somit wärmstens jedem ans Herz zu legen, der Gothic Rock mag, aber auch jenen, die allgemein gerne mal Rockmusik mit einem leicht düsteren Einschlag hören. Viel Vergnügen!
Marius Meyer
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Rockit.it (Italy) - February 2008
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
N3 Music / Nomadism Records (2007)
di Andrea La Placa
Questo "Requiem rosa", debutto dei milanesi The Stompcrash, è un lavoro ben fatto che, pur non presentando novità o caratteristiche di rilievo rispetto al genere e pur scontando una produzione non all'altezza, riesce ad intrattenere l'ascoltatore grazie al buon livello medio dei suoi brani.
Lo stile è presto evocato, gothic rock, post punk, Inghilterra, anni '90, voci femminile e maschile, basso, chitarra, melodie, strutture circolari, leitmotiv dark ad ogni piè sospinto. Quello che manca in originalità si tenta di recuperare in stile ed interpretazione. Ed allora nota di merito per pezzi come la trascinante "Like a noise" o "I will kill myself".
Certo c'è ancora da lavorare, vuoi per una migliore resa sonora, vuoi per una personalità più spiccata. Ma siamo fiduciosi. For lovers. (26-02-2008)
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Flash Magazine (Italy) - February 2008
THE STOMPCRASH
"Requiem Rosa"
(Nomadism Records)
(80/100)
Paesaggi intrisi di oscuro e nebbioso romanticismo
vengono dipinti con sublime eleganza dal debutto
discografico dei The Stompcrash, giovane combo italico
nato nell'autunno 2002 in quel di Milano. Sebbene la
carta d'identità sia tricolore, lo spirito di questo
quartetto è, senza dubbio, britannico, figlio del
fascinoso gusto darkwave di quella Londra gotica che
dal mercatino di Portobello sfocia nelle malie alternative
di Camden Town, passando per le zone meno turistiche
del Tamigi. "Requiem Rosa" propone 12 canzoni dark
rock anni '80, le cui sfumature dandy vanno a braccetto
con una cultura musicale sotterranea, alquanto allergica
alle recenti derive commerciali del genere; sono, infatti,
i Sisters Of Mercy, David Bowie, i primi Ikon e gli attuali
All Gone Dead alcuni dei nomi che vengono evocati dalle
sensuali note di songs dirette e piacevoli come l'opener
"The London Fog", l'ipnotica "99 Cats" e l'anthem
"Dorian". Le tastiere risultanofunebri ed essenziali,
le chitarre profondamente visionarie, mentre il vincente
intreccio vocale tra lo stile tenebroso di Christian Celsi
e quello dolcemente allucinato di Daniela Palermo
enfatizzano il generale mood bohemien scaturito dal
songwriting. Pur non inventando nulla di nuovo,
i The Stompcrash si distinguono per la capacità di
scrivere musica dal feeling oscuro, immediato e
conturbante. "Requiem Rosa": un salto indietro nel
tempo, laddove il vecchio gothic/darkwave segnava
la cultura musicale dei giovani meno avvezzi ad ogni
conformismo di sorta.
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Rockerilla Magazine (Italy) - 15 February/15 March 2008
THE STOMPCRASH
"Requiem Rosa"
(Nomadism Records)
(7/10)
Primo capitolo lungo per The Stompcrash,
quartetto milanese che agisce nelle retrovie della
nuova scena dark assai cara ai talent-scout
dell'etichetta barese Nomadism. Senza perdersi
fra stucchevoli comparazioni sarà però utile dire
che la musica degli Stompcrash tradisce origini
di scuola anni '80, con particolare riguardo alle
icone dell'after punk inglese (dai Cure ai Cocteau
Twins) legate agli umori del rock romantico-decadente
e della ballata notturna. I 12 brani allineati in "Requiem
Rosa" sono viaggi interiori all'ombra del crepuscolo che
alternano atmosfere sognanti e momenti più elettrici
con le parti vocali affidate ora alle curve melodiche di
Daniela Palermo, ora ai timbri profondi di Christian
Celsi, sempre comunque intrisi di quel mood
esistenzialista capace di ferire molti cuori .
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Gothicgoddessmedia.com (USA) - February 2008
The Stompcrash > Requiem Rosa
The mystique behind The Stompcrash’s “requiem rosa” began with the creation of a (imaginary) poet/lyricist and his accompanying site allowing access to his work. One sends an email to the web site called “requiem rosa”, thereby receiving a secret word which then gains one access to his work. Only the vocals are available. You download the lyrics and add music to your unique liking. Every time new music is attached to the same lyrics, they are reborn so to speak. “In this lost place were buried some gloomy and strange vocal lines waiting to someone that give’em new life…” – http:// www.requiemrosa.com/.
“Most of our lyrics are based on gothic stories, tales about love and death and we take inspiration from writers like Lovecraft, E.A. Poe, Dick, we research melodies and atmospheres to give special emphasis to every story we want to tell. Our aim is to catch all the energies and emotions we feel and put them in our songs, so that we hope that (those) who listen to us could share, at least, a little of what we feel.” – courtesy of The Stompcrash
The best way to sum up the sound of The Stompcrash’s album “requiem rosa” is a marriage between old school Gothic rock and 80s new wave. The music is on the one hand moody and melancholic, and on the other, a steady up beat with tremendous club play potential.
The Stompcrash attributes their musical influences to such bands as Clan of Xymox, 69 Eyes, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Sisters of Mercy, and Love Like Blood. I also liken the band’s sound to that of Nosferatu (the long time British Goth band). Chris’ vocals, which contribute to the Gothic rock aspect of the band’s sound, are in the vein of those of Ronny Moorings of Clan of Xymox, Jyrki 69 of 69 Eyes, and to a certain degree Andrew Eldritch of Sisters of Mercy. I will even go so far as to say that he reminds me a bit of Mik’s vocals of the Gothic band So Cold from Trieste, Italy. Dany’s vocals, which contribute more to the new wave aspect of the sound, remind me of Siouxsie of Siouxsie and the Banshees, Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson of The B52s, and a bit more tempered Lene Lovitch (sans the high octave extremes). The play between the male and female vocals, song stanzas and chorus throughout, remind me of the vocal interactions between Fred Schneider and Cindy Wilson of the B52s.
However, what strikes me the most about this band is the mystery they developed around their lyrics, their ingeniousness in creating a web site where people could virtually make their own “custom song”, and in their storytelling. For example, the song Dorian (which is both my favorite song on the album and my favorite gothic story as well) is based on the story of a famous Irish writer and poet (can you guess?). Wake Up in a Grave is based on the short story of a famous gothic American writer and poet (can you guess?). Of course the pièce de la résistance is in Dany’s sometimes organ-like keyboards. A certain type of keyboard style seems to be my new music fetish, lol. Nothing like particular keyboard/organ sounds to remind one of gothic architecture/cathedrals, horror movies, “gods and monsters”and so on. I don’t want to spoil the fun in this album by divulging the authors and their stories behind the songs. I suggest checking out songs from the album on The Stompcrash’s myspace and even going so far to purchase the album. It’s fun, clever stuff, and worth adding to Goth/80s new wave, club dj sets.
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Mick Mercer (UK) - February 2008
THE STOMPCRASH
REQUIEM ROSA
Nomadism
This record presses so many of the right buttons you’ll think you’re wearing an especially seductive waistcoat. Gothy and Punky, with an usually chirpy funeral keyboard they come lunging at you with ‘The London Fog’, the guitar tense and hard with space left around the deep dark male vocals, as he admits distress, and then they pitch into a classic chorus with the female vocals tearing around, the keyboard blinking, aghast.
‘Like a Noise’ has beautiful gawf guitar and comes bathed in warm keyboard, the song gently spilling out with her crouched, constantly trickling vocals, and song spirals slowly upwards into its arched ceiling, but they also let its bones show through by dropping back before a shiny rebuild. ‘Watching Me Fall’ finds him thoughtfully mournful in a slower song with snappy twists among a graduated mellifluous march. ‘99 Cats’ shivers with a scathing, stalking gait, the guitar slowly edging in, with clipped percussion
‘Dorian’ is sweeter by far, a dreamy but lilting pop tribute to the man with no problem grey hairs, from which the frisky, clanking ‘Modern Slaves’ strides with another streamlined chorus, seething innards and brilliant guitar. ‘I Will Kill Myself’ is, as you might appreciate, a gloomier affair, mellow and melancholic. ‘Moscow’ has dramatic inserts and bustles along, sometimes with a similar feel to The Cure’s ‘A Forest’, except the trees are aflame. ‘Wake Up In A Grave’ oscillates like it means business and the stealthy bass gives a firm grounding, while the synth shudders and pokes and flint guitar grenades take your resolve apart.
‘Bloody Rain’ has a weirdly sparky pop lurch, with lashings of pop vocal hectoring, and scurvy noise. Stylish, bare drums bring ‘The Wind That Moves The Flowers’ alongside supine vocals and some creeptastic keyboards are stalked by furtive guitar, which only leaves the loose but steady ‘Mountains Of Madness’, lightly atmospheric some well disguised prickles.
Supremely enjoyable, this is darkly bitter and yet frequently catchy, like a beneficial virus.
Mick Mercer
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Lunar Hypnosis Webzine (USA) - February 2008
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
8 of 10
The Stompcrash is a Gothic band from Milan, Italy, which has equal parts of classic 80’s English Gothic rock, post punk, and some darkwave characteristics to form a diverse, transfixing and catchy release.
As it usually goes with this sort of music, the vocals alternate between Chris’ lead bassy male voice to Dany’s female voice, which sound great, especially with her Italian accent very much intact. The music, although showing some clear influences from artists like The Cure, Joy Division, Sisters of Mercy, Siouxsie and the Banshees and Cocteau Twins, is still way above average. Through the fair usage of keyboards the songs have a strong atmospheric and dreamy sort of quality I like quite a bit. As it also goes with this sort of music the bass guitar is rather audible and the guitar work is well done with plenty of interesting riffs, some of which sound a bit melancholic to my ears.
I really like most of the songs on this album, but in particular ‘Like a Noise,’ ‘Dorian’ and ‘Modern Slaves’ are the best, filled with great melodies and tons of catchiness to keep me coming back for more and more.
At forty three minutes and twelve songs strong, this is definitely a must for anyone that enjoys classic Gothic music. Likewise it’s always pleasing to see modern day artists still creating this sort of music, and even if you didn’t grow up with music like this you’ll quickly fall in love with it once you hear it.
February 9, 2008
By JJM
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Darknation.eu (Poland) - January 2008
The Stompcrash > Requiem Rosa
Otwieranie skrzynki mailowej jest czasami jak…, i tu pozwolę sobie na posłużenie się słynną kwestią filmową, … pudełko czekoladek, nigdy nie wiesz co Ci się trafi. Bywa bowiem tak, że nagle, ni z tego ni z owego, jakiś zespół ze słonecznej Italii (dokładnie z Milanu) na przykład, wpadnie sobie na pomysł wysłania Ci wiadomości, dzięki której zasób nie tylko Twojej wiedzy muzycznej, ale i półki z płytami niechybnie się powiększy;) Oto więc włoski zespół The Stompcrash, tudzież jego, godzien w tej sytuacji pochwały, management postanowił wziąć sprawy w swoje ręce i zapukać do drzwi wszelakich w celu promocji debiutanckiego, wydanego przez Nomadism Records w październiku 2007 roku albumu grupy zatytułowanego „Requiem Rosa” .
Początkowa ciekawość przy pierwszym podejściu do przesłuchania płyty została wstępnie nieco stłumiona przez wrażenie kompletnego braku zaskoczenia, tudzież odczucia pod tytułem ”nic specjalnego”, ot gotycko-rockowa muzyczka jakich wiele, niczym szczególnie się nie wyróżniająca i co tu kryć, średnio przykuwająca moją uwagę. Po kolejnym odtworzeniu „Requiem rosa” mogę z całą pewnością stwierdzić, że jakby niezbyt odkrywcze było to granie, to jednak ma w sobie coś, co sprawia, że mój odtwarzacz lubi je coraz bardziej. Może właśnie w przypadku The Stompcrash sprawdza się zasada, że dobra płyta to nie taka, którą pochłaniamy bez zmrużenia oka i cienia wątpliwości już od pierwszych dźwięków, ale ta, którą musimy powoli i bardzo uważnie przetrawić.
Mroczne, aczkolwiek intrygujące i niedopowiedziane teksty, pełne, jak na rock gotycki przystało, wątków odnoszących się do śmierci czy miłości, w których podmiot liryczny często zwraca się do bliżej nieokreślonej, zawsze tajemniczej postaci, tworzą atmosferę tego albumu. Czy są one, jak przedstawia ich pochodzenie zespół, tylko interpretacją odkrytych przypadkiem w sieci liryków nieznanego autora, czy nie, to tylko kwestia indywidualnego podejścia, odbioru i oceny, bądź co bądź prawdopodobnie pomysłowego chwytu marketingowego:). Aby natomiast przekonać się ile gotyku jest w gotyku w wydaniu „Requiem rosa” wystarczy chociażby rzucić okiem na tytuły utworów:); „The London Fog”, „Watching me fall”, „Dorian” (odnoszący się rzecz jasna do Doriana Graya - tytułowego bohatera powieści Oscara Wilde’a), intrygujące „99 Cats”, „I will kill myself”, „Wake up in a grave”, „Bloody rain”…zawartości w większości przypadków nietrudno sobie wyobrazić. Taka konwencja…Niemniej jednak teksty są mocną stroną płyty. Doskonale współgrając z chwytliwą, utrzymaną w tradycyjnym klimacie gotyckiego rocka, niekiedy tchniętego duchem lat 80tych, czy miejscami post punkowymi akcentami, muzyką, stanowią o coraz bardziej zadziwiającej mnie samą sile i magnetyzmie debiutanckiego krążka Włochów. Charakterystyczne, surowe gitarowe riffy i partie instrumentów klawiszowych brzmiących niekiedy jak żywcem wzięte ze ścieżki dźwiękowej jakiegoś starego klasycznego horroru o wampirach tworzą razem doskonałą, płynnie komponującą się całość. Oczywiście nie obyło się bez skojarzeń czy to brzmieniowo instrumentalnych czy wokalnych. Te jednak przekornie pozostawię dla siebie, bo jak mówią, ilu słuchaczy tyle skojarzeń. A skoro już o wokalach mowa, ciekawi mnie jak zespół brzmiał za czasów dwóch męskich wokali. Teraz bowiem, choć damsko męskie są równo wyważone (mamy w końcu równouprawnienie, kto powiedział, że kobieta w gotyckich bandach ma pełnić tylko rolę wdzięcznych chórków;)), to jednak długo przychodziło mi przekonanie się do specyficznej barwy głosu wokalistki. Jakkolwiek wokal Christiana od razu przypadł mi do gustu, gdyż to jedna z barw męskich głosów, które bez wątpliwości akceptuję (nie powstrzymam się jednak przed zdradzeniem moich skojarzeń przynajmniej w tej kwestii: to coś jakby mieszanka Svena Friedricha, Yorcka Eysela z odrobiną Nicka Cave’a, a nawet Marcina Kotasia- kiedyś Cemetery of Scream), tak pani Daniela dysponuje tego rodzaju wokalem, który swoją manieryczną jakąś skrzekliwością i płaczliwością niestety przestał mnie drażnić dopiero po wielu przesłuchaniach płyty. Jakby jednak nie było, płytę jako całość oceniam pozytywnie, bo to kawałek dobrego, przemyślanego i dopracowanego debiutu. Warto sięgnąć po to wydawnictwo chociażby z czystej ciekawości, a nóż dacie się w końcu omamić, jak ja:).
Khiara
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The Sentinel of Time (France) - January 2008
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
C'est en 2002 à Milan que The Stompcrash voit le jour. Après deux autoproductions où les Italiens se contentent essentiellement de proposer des reprises (The Cure, Joy Division, Clan Of Xymox, Depeche Mode…), 2007 salue la naissance de leur premier opus "Requiem rosa". Autant l'avouer de suite, ce n'est pas The Stompcrash qui va révolutionner le monde des sonorités dark ; oscillant entre gothic rock et dark wave, très proche par certains aspects de la scène allemande, les amateurs du genre ne risquent pas d'être déstabilisés ! Se reposant sur des formats depuis longtemps figés le quatuor parvient cependant à nous offrir un album fort attrayant, les mélodies sans être transcendantes savent tracer leur chemin vers nos centres sensibles, nos transalpins ont su insuffler une âme à leur musique, de nos jours, dans ce domaine c'est presque de l'ordre de la performance ! Pour ce qu'il en est des vocaux, si côté masculin nous avons droit à une version assez classique, et de bonne tenue, de ce qui se fait dans ce style, l'un des points forts de "Requiem rosa" est incontestablement le chant féminin de Daniela Palermo, capable d'apporter de la sensualité et une touche de folie qui vient taquiner la batcave et permet de donner davantage de profondeur aux compositions où il apparaît. Cette réalisation, loin de briller par son originalité possède, quand même, on l'aura vu, des arguments qui méritent votre attention.
Brown Jenkin
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Gutsofdarkness.com (France) - January 2008
The Stompcrash › Requiem Rosa
2007 - Nomadism records, Nomad-007 (1 cd)
vote 5 of 6
Originaires de Milan, les membres de The Stompcrash décrivent leur démarche de la manière suivante: 'La plupart de nos textes sont inspirés d'histoires gothiques, des histoires d'amour et de mort et nous sommes influencés par des auteurs tels que Lovecraft, Poe, Dick; nous recherchons des mélodies et des atmosphères pour mettre en valeur chaque histoire que nous racontons...'. C'est exactement ça, à l'écoute de cet excellent 'Requiem Rosa', on sent le groupe qui a beaucoup travaillé ses compositions, qui a pris le temps de mûrir ses atmosphères et le résultat en vaut clairement la peine. The Stompcrash, c'est un gothic rock subtil et varié dans ses climats, reposant vocalement sur une alternance de vocaux masculins et féminins. Le chant de Chris, grave et profond, donne une touche obscure; celui de Daniela incarne le côté plus fou pour des atmosphères un brin décadentes. Cette dualité complémentaire est parfaitement illustré par des chansons comme 'Watching me fall' ou 'The London fog' très gothiques, nocturnes, presque mystiques tandis que le superbe '99 cats' a presque quelque chose de cabaret. Le mixage est très bon, rythmique et guitare assurant une base efficace tandis que le clavier apporte une touche atmosphèrique de grande qualité, que ce soit dans les nappes ou les apports plus discrets (le petit son de boîte à musique de 'Wake up in agrave', par exemple). Le chant est toujours voilé d'un léger halo, d'où un effet de retrait spectral renforçant l'approche atmosphérique. Il est bien sûr impossible de parler de 'Requiem Rosa' sans évoquer la qualité des mélodies, impressionnante pour un premier album. Qu'il s'agisse du gothic rock obscur de 'The London fog', de la mélancolie de 'Dorian', de l'aspect cabaret de '99 cats' ou de l'attaque plus agressive de 'Wake up in a grave', pas la moindre faiblesse, les hits s'enchaînent. Quand je pense qu'ils jouaient dans une soirée à Milan et que je suis arrivé après leur set, j'ai manqué quelque chose, c'est certain. (mardi 22 janvier 2008)
Twilight
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Ritual Magazine (Italy) - January 2008
Dalla morte con amore.
Ispirati alle care, vecchie e irrinunciabili letture sbagliate (Lovecraft, Poe, Dick, e chi più ne ha più ne metta), gli Stompcrash sfumano nella loro opera prima i contorni della tradizione dark-wave (Sisters Of Mercy, The Mission e Siouxsie in primis), calandoli fra le mura di un borgo sperduto, nel cuore della Bassa. Non è infatti il rantolo ghiacciato di spettri in agguato ad avvolgere e sopraffare l'ascoltatore, quanto piuttosto un tepore inaspettato, che dalla letteratura gotica mutua gli aspetti più squisitamente melanconici, ravvivati da un citazionismo talvolta piacevolmente imprevisto (si faccia caso agli "Scary Monsters" e agli "Eyes without a face" nel testo di "The London Fog").
Un viaggio dritto al cuore della notte, che cerca in un'invocazione il sortilegio di un raffinato esteta ("Dorian"), non tralasciando quel pizzico di grazia felina ("99 Cats"), senza il quale il quadro sarebbe sicuramente incompleto.
Paolo Bertazzoni
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RockShock.it (Italy) - January 2008
I milanesi The Stompcrash costruiscono un album dark/gothic davvero eccellente. Drum machine, tastiere e due voci che cantano la disperazione, il vuoto, la follia. Fagocitante
The Stompcrash
Requiem Rosa
(Cd, Nomadism Records, 2007)
Dark, Gothic, rock
8/10
Nati nel 2002, i milanesi The Stompcrash inanellano 12 perle dark/gothic, figlie di un sole che muore, di inverni gelidi, di nebbie a banchi e di vespertini tramonti.
I quattro componenti giocano al suicidio con arie asettiche e funeree, dove la drum machine, le tastiere e le due voci di Christian Celsi e Daniela Palermo sono il fiore (del male) all’occhiello.
Le prime due tracce che il gruppo ha composto sono, cronologicamente Wake Up in a Grave, con voce distorta cervellotica e chitarre fendenti, e Like a Noise dove un tappeto di tastiere introduce il canto disperato di Daniela Palermo.
L’opener è The London Fog, che ben rappresenta l’ambientazione nebulosa del disco. Foschia e ottenebramento che vagano come spettri nei meandri dell’album, andandosi ad infilare nelle tubature dell’Io per risvegliare i fantasmi sopiti. Visioni di “occhi senza volto” di Idoliana memoria, che ricalcano a tratti le magnificenze della penna dark per eccellenza, Robert Smith (Eyes like ice don’t move).
Watching me Fall (dal titolo curesque) è una dolce rovina senza fine: guardandomi cadere mi perderai per sempre. Senso di smarrimento, di vuoto, divorato dall’incedere disperato di 99 Cats, uno degli episodi migliori del disco.
Passando dall’evanescente Dorian, dai toni più allegri che ricorda oltremodo gli H.I.M., attraverso le catene di Modern Slaves, si arriva all’apogeo di tutto il lavoro. I Will Kill Mysekf, una rarefatta ballata stile Enigma (anche dal titolo), endocitotica e cannibalistica. Semplice nella sua costruzione e per questo affascinante e magnetica. La voce della Palermo si strazia d’amore: ti amerò, ma ucciderò me stessa. Visoni crocifisse, altari del sacrificio, immagini ipnagogiche, bestie alate che si nutrono di cadaveri.
I ritmi si fanno leggermente più sostenuti in Bloody Rain, mentre Mountain of Madness chiude il disco.
Requiem Rosa è una perfetta fusione di ritmi dark e gothic, sintesi della follia e del senso di vuoto. Le voci di Christian Celsi e Daniela Palermo ben si alternano e fondono tra loro, anche se più cura dovrebbe essere posta nella pronuncia dell’inglese (le prime due strofe di I Will Kill Mysekf sembrano quasi cantate in tedesco…).
Per il resto Requiem Rosa è decisamente uno dei dischi migliori di band emergenti che ho ascoltato in questo anno appena trascorso.
Già li amo.
…perché forse anch’io mi ucciderò.
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Mentenebre.com (Spain) - January 2008
"Requiem Rosa" es un trabajo de The Stompcrash editado en Nomadism Records (Ref: 007) en Diciembre 2007.
Interpretado por Christian como cantante y guitarrista & Daniel como cantante y teclista & Maurizio como bajista & Diego como bateria desde Italia y se centra en el estilo Darkwave y tiene una duración de 43:31 minutos.
Enlaces Relacionados: The Stompcrash & Nomadism Records
Valoración: 8/10
Presentamos el primer largo trabajo de la banda milanesa The Strompcrash, llamado "Requiem Rosa".
Esta banda de la "Ciudad del Diablo", nació en el año 2002 y han esperado cinco años para su estreno con un largo trabajo.Hasta entonces, solamente habían colaborado en un tributo a Depeche Mode, con el tema 'In Your Room', realizado en una autoproducción de un EP, llamado "I Will Kill Myself". Allí aparecen ya sus primeros temas propios, además de otras versiones de Ikon, Clan of Xymox, The Cure y Joy Division. En ese sentido, su estreno musical en lo que a visita al estudio se refiere, fue en el año 2004 para la grabación de tres versiones más, para un trabajo llamado "A Great Strange Decades", grabación de autopromoción donde comprobamos que poseen una fuerte afición por versionar a bandas clásicas.
Esta es la cualidad que más deseo destacar de esta banda. Son absolutamente clásicos. Su estilo carece de intentos de investigación sonora o experimentación ajenos a patrones conocidos. Quizás este dato sea un defecto para una élite de oyentes que dicen estar cansados de lo mismo. Por mi parte, mi queja fundamental es que estoy cansado de tanta experimentación. Me gusta acercarme de vez en cuando a bandas que me lleven de retorno a “esos tiempos mejores”, donde el rock gótico era algo reconocible desde el primer compás. Es una banda que marca sus composiciones con una construcción clásica al más puro estilo "Sisters". Incluso en sus comienzos disponían de su propio Dr. Avalanche que ellos bautizaron con el nombre de Dr – 770.
Después llegó el ser humano que se ocuparía de dar vida al "corazón" de la banda, Diego Itri, sin perder por ello en sus composiciones los hipnóticos ritmos circulares que nos transportarán hacia una atmósfera muy bailable. La formación es absolutamente clásica formada por voz masculina y guitarra, Christian Celsi, voz femenina y teclados, Daniela Palermo, bajo a cargo de Maurizio Iacono, y el comentado batería Diego Itri.
Análisis de temas:
'The London Fog':
Comenzamos el Disco con un tema en un puro tono de darkwave. Mi diferenciación fundamental entre el darkwave y el rock gótico estriba en el grado de “danzabilidad” en su composición. Unas bases rítmicas, lineales o secuenciadas, nos dan la oportunidad de poder experimentar estos temas en un Gothic Club, danzando con ese “Pogo ralentizado” tan característico del Gothic Dance. Guardapolvos agarrados como alas de murciélago, y... ...¡a danzad malditos, danzad!
El estribillo pegadizo de este tema lo convierte en un posible “llena-pistas”. Y ya nos encontramos con una de las características de The Strompcrash. Sus dos cantantes. La voz masculina realiza la estrofa y el estribillo es marcado por la voz femenina. Una forma sencilla de darle otros matices a un tema de estructura The Sisters of Mercy, básica para la creación de estos cortes musicales. Este tema parece pedir un relleno más electrónico para convertirse en un verdadero "Dark Disco Hit".
'Like a noise':
Un bonito riff de guitarra nos abre las puertas al segundo tema, con unos teclados "ochenteros" ya casi abandonados en las bandas actuales. Es la voz femenina quien nos introduce suavemente en esta canción. A pesar de las guitarras contundentes del estribillo el tema es muy suave y dulce, deshilando con el mismo espíritu constructivo de la parroquia de los The Sisters of Mercy. Canónicamente fieles a su ritual rítmico.
'Watching me Fall':
Esta vez es Christian, la voz masculina, quien nos invita a la siguiente experiencia musical. Un tema que posee para mi gusto un preámbulo y desarrollo demasiado corto. Quizás, en mi "deformada" apreciación, la hubiera cargado mucho más de instrumentación. La mezcla sigue siendo muy suave, y no destacan las guitarras, quedando en "barrido onírico" todo el desarrollo del tema, muy efectivo para la generación de “eterelidad” que considero es la ambientación buscada para esta canción.
'99 Cats':
Fabuloso tema, con una extraordinaria ambientación rítmica y musical, al más puro estilo London After Midnight. Destaco la excelente interpretación vocal. Una melodía y estribillo fabuloso, interpretado fantásticamente por Daniela, que cada vez me recuerda más a Krisanna Marie de los Hatesex. Su voz posee la fuerza de las clásicas voces femeninas del post-punk, sin perder su capacidad melódica. Sin duda, uno de los mejores temas de este álbum, de pegadizo estribillo idóneo para abrir cualquier fiesta gótica.
'Dorian':
Un acuoso piano nos abre las melodías del siguiente tema. Con ese teclado “de siglo pasado” que como digo, ya está prácticamente abandonado y nos trae recuerdos de tardes escuchando el "Disintegration". La línea del bajo, y la interpretación masculina, nos recuerda poderosamente en su estribillo al clásico entre los clásicos 'Marian'. Curiosamente sea por la posible rima con el nombre 'Dorian,' ya que armonicamente no poseen relación con el clásico tema de los The Sisters of Mercy. Esta es una de las cualidades que se podría destacar de esta banda. Nos transmite la melancolía de un sonido que ya nos parece clásico, y para algunos “anticuado”. Esta será la virtud y vicio de esta banda. Para mí, lo clásico seguirá teniendo su sitio en mi siniestroteca.
'Modern Slaves':
Me encanta la voz femenina de esta banda. Ella es la encargada de introducirnos a un tema que posee la energía bailable de los Depeche Mode con el toque personal de los The Strompcrash. Comprobamos como se distribuyen democráticamente las responsabilidades vocales entre sus dos cantantes. Aunque yo personalmente me quedo con la chica, sin menospreciar por supuesto el buen hacer de su homólogo masculino.
'I Will Kill Myself':
Con semejante título no podemos esperar nada alegre. Melancólico comienzo para tal oscuro deseo expresado por la voz femenina. Es un tema construido en la línea de la abandonada etiqueta Romantic Wave, que considero que está en desuso actualmente, pero que tuvo su pequeño en el reino de la oscuridad gótica, hará unos diez años en algunos recopilatorios de dudosa calidad.
'Moskow':
Volvemos con la línea The Sisters of Mercy, quizás aun más marcado por una pronunciación muy en ese tono a cargo de su vocalista Christian Celsi. Un tema más que aceptable adornado por ese teclado "ochentero" y unos riffs de guitarra que realizan un espacio angelical, por su equilibrado uso del delay, ( el maestro de este uso es sin lugar a dudas Robert Smith ). Buen estribillo. Buen tema.
'Wake Up in a Grave:'
Vuelve mi querida Daniela Palermo con un tema más endurecido en sus guitarras, melódicamente algo más caótico. Quizás el tema más extraño del disco. Para aquellos que consideren el album falto de originalidad este será el tema que más les llame la atención. Aun así, siguen en la línea clásica que son absolutamente fieles. No me cansaré de repetir que esta actitud musical no es ningún defecto en mi entender, ya que el exceso de experimentación nos deja a veces a los buscadores de sonidos re-conocibles con muy poco margen de búsqueda en las nuevas bandas.
'Bloody Rain':
Otro tema curioso, construido desde la óptica del tema anterior. Pero para mi gusto este tema me resulta más coherente y simpático. La producción del álbum quizás no sea la más adecuada, pero ese problema, que suele ser una cuestión económica, no es achacable a ellos. Es una lástima no disponer de más medios para conseguir que un disco suene mejor. Aun así, la producción es más que audible, y puntualizaba ese dato ya que con otra producción más elaborada este tema hubiera ganado aun más fuerza.
'The Wind That Moves The Flowers':
Un bajo distorsionado y un ritmo tribal oscurecido nos muestran otra percepción musical más cruda. Estos últimos temas parecen ser los más personales en la forma compositiva de The Strompcrash. Esta realización se acerca poderosamente al deathrock, y con otra producción sonora probablemente tendríamos un tema descaradamente “deathrockero”. Destaco por ello, a gusto personal, este tema por encima de los demás.
'Mountains of Madness':
Concluimos el CD de forma magistral, con una genial intro, un precioso bajo, bien marcado, y una solemne voz de nuestro amigo, Christian Celsi. Como es la despedida no podía faltar también los coros de la voz femenina, que de forma muy solemne parecen decirnos adiós. A mitad de la canción surge la figura musical, con su estilo clásico, lineal y bien marcado. Estos chicos son unos tradicionalistas. Y en ese Culto Oscuro, de la tradición nacida a finales de los ochenta y principios de los noventa, terminan su viaje de presentación.
Conclusión:
Una banda de puro darkwave. Sin florituras ni experimentaciones extrañas, ya sea por el mundo del electro o del rock. Si lo que buscas es una banda clásica, si estás cansado de extraños proyectos, incomprensibles conceptos e instrumentaciones indefinidas, este "Requiem Rosa" de The Strompcrash, es tu disco. Sólo lamento la falta de una producción más elevada en su calidad para potenciar la calidez y textura de los sonidos. Por lo demás, quizás no se conviertan en las nuevas estrellas del rock oscuro, pero seguro que con el tiempo, ya que son una banda de fácil escucha, encontrarán su buen sitio en las siniestrotecas más tradicionalistas, que no quieren surcar pasajes sonoros alejados de la melancolía lineal de los buenos ochenta.Como curiosidad, y a título de originalidad, disponen en internet la siguiente dirección del álbum. www.requiemrosa.com , dónde podréis escuchar mediante previa solicitud de la llave todos los temas en formato Acapella. ¿No os parece en este caso algo altamente original?
by Cain Uriel
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Gothtronic.com (Netherlands) - January 2008
Band: Stompcrash, The(int)
Label: Nomadism Records
Genre: gothic (gothic rock / (dark)wave / postpunk / batcave)
Type: cd
Grade: 7.4
Review by: Nightporter
This band from Milan was formed in 2002 and consists of Christian Celsi (voice and guitar), Daniela Palermo (voice and keyboards), Maurizio Iacono (Bass guitar) and Diego Itri (Drums). They play 'dark rock tunes' as they state on their Myspace. 'Tunes' is maybe a somewhat euphemistic word in this respect because some of the tracks are grave and dramatic. The lead vocals are almost equally divided between Christian and Daniela on this album, which is the band's first release. Daniela's voice is slightly reminiscent of that of Christian Death member Maitri. The Stompcrash' sound in general also has a resemblance to Christian Death, on a noticeably smoother tone though and with more emphasis on synthesizers. Other bands that come to mind are HIM, The 69 Eyes and Ikon. For a debut this is a solid and well-produced piece of music. Although it might not have the artistic edge of a compatriot like Chants of Maldoror, they make up for that by making more accessible songs that can attract a larger audience. With "The London Fog" the album opens with a song they can be proud of. Ominous synths, gently screeching guitars, a powerful feel and well-balanced vocals turn it into the album's most catchy track. The nicely shimmering guitars of "Like a Noise", the throbbing bass line on "Whatching me fall", the overtly creepy vocals on "99 cats", the sing-along chorus of "Dorian" and the militant "Modern slaves" show that The Stompcrash has the ability to write bona fide goth-rock tracks. The strong Italian accent of Daniela on "I will kill myself" may have some charm, but it doesn't sound very professional. There would be nothing against singing some songs in Italian also, Daniela should just choose the language she deems to be the most appropriate for a song. The radio broadcast fragments on "Moscow" add to the cold, desolate nature of that track. The remainder of the album is a further showcase for The Stompcrash style: darkly seductive without being too pompous. The band makes good use of the synths to add driving, bleak or catchy accents. For diehard batcave/deathrock fans this album is probably a little too standard and slick, for those keen on more easily digestible goth-rock Requiem Rosa comes recommended.
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Erba della Strega (Italy) - January 2008
(will be published on the new version of EDS)
THE STOMPCRASH
Requiem rosa (Nomadism 2007)
Un ricordo accompagna il mio primo incontro musicale con gli Stompcrash: appena si concluse la concerto degli Skeletal Family durante il “Bats over Milan” dissi ad un amico “Ha, se solo la cantante degli Stompcrash fosse al posto di quella degli Skeletal Family, il gruppo Inglese tornerebbe ad essere un gruppo serio”.
A distanza di alcuni mesi da quel festival ritrovo gli Stompcrash con l’album di debutto “Requiem rosa” che mi permette di valutare meglio le capacità della band Milanese dato che al famigerato “Bats over Milan”, per problemi di “tempistiche”, risuscii ad assistere solamente al finale della loro performance. Il cd che ho tra le mani è formato da dodici canzoni legate tra loro da una fortissima attitudine wave: già l’assenza del canonico spazio silente fra un pezzo e l’altro, sostituito da una sorta di outro a fine traccia che ricopre il ruolo di intro per la nuova, fa capire la compattezza di un disco le cui canzoni sono come anelli di una catena strettamente avvolta al lato più wave della musica oscura.
In “Requiem rosa” troviamo, infatti, la classica new wave basata su leggiadri giri di tastiere (“I will kill myself”, “Dorian”, “Like a noise”) che si fanno più “pop” nell’iniziale “The London fog”, una delle hit dell’album con “Wake up in a grave” qui ri-arrangiata e meno “cureggiante” rispetto alla versione precedentemente contenuta nel singolo. Il sound si fa più nervoso grazie ad una tribale sezione ritmica in “Bloody rain” ed “Modern slaves” dove la parte chitarristica prende vigoria fino ad essere protagonista nel dark-rock di “Moscow” e “Mountains of madness”, entrambe cantate dal chitarrista. Proprio il timbro vocale di Christian -simile a quello di Chris McCarter-, unito allo stile melodico della canzone, rende “Watching me fall” una “vera e propria” out-take di un album degli Ikon e questo, sia chiaro, è una grande nota di merito.
Concludendo, “Requiem rosa” è il primo di tre debut-album che vedranno protagoniste, entro fine anno, altrettante bands nazionali di darkwave/postpunk (con The Stompcrash, i compagni di etichetta Mydian Gallery ed i Piemontesi Moldig) così, se il buongiorno si vede dal mattino, non posso far altro che dire “Viva l’Italia!"
Mr. Moonlight
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Rumore (Italy)- January 2008
7/10
The Stompcrash - Requiem Rosa
Con l'immaginario britannico nel cuore e calati sul contemporaneo.
Gli Stompcrash definiscono una prassi convincente nell'attuale fucina Nomadism puntando anzitutto sull'eleganza noir, sulla cura crepuscolare dei riflessi violacei, manifestando una sensibilità gotica abilmente tratteggiata nelle insidiose ambivalenze wave e neo metal.
Un filo estremamente labile e sottile quanto le emotività raccolte da un'era (la stessa evocata nell'iniziale "London Fog" e dribblata con "The Wind that Moves the Flowers", "Modern Slaves", "Wake up in a Grave") quella di Bowie (con i suoi Scary Monsters), Idol, Echo & The Bunnymen, primi Ultravox e Cure (quelli di Faith specialmente).
Requiem melodrammatico e nostalgico quindi, bruciante dall'interno, il cui colore evoca affinità spirituali con la spiccata rifinitura di un certo decadentismo proposto nei primi '90 alla corte degli originari Dreadful Shadows, Ikon ("Watching me Fall") e London After Midnight (la sinuosa "99 Cats"). Raffinati.
Stefano Morelli
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JGoth.com (Japan)- January 2008
Rating: 4 of 5
Stompcrash’s Requiem Rosa has a very interesting provenance, originating in the online poetics of an unknown writer, being picked up by the band and turned into a full-on Gothic CD. The music is no-nonsense Gothic rock played with finesse. The sound combined with the feelings emoted by the original author of the words forms a pretty darned good CD.
The official blurb wraps up the origins of the lyrics:
A treasure is always hidden. Time ago they were buried in woods or lying in the deepest oceans. Today they hide in the mysterious ways of the Net. Surfing without direction The Stompcrash found one of them. A site called RequiemRosa.com offers some gloomy vocal lines waiting for somebody to give them new life. That’s what The Stompcrash did: their first first album Requiem Rosa is their interpretation of those awesome melodies written by an unknown and generous songwriter. It could remain a secret forever, but The Stompcrash decided to share it and let everybody know how to reach Requiem Rosa. Just to see if someone could bring new life to these lonely voices. Now it’s up to you.
Released through Nomadism Records Stompcrash’s Requiem Rosa contains 12 tracks.
The CD starts nicely with The London Fog paints a dark Gothic landscape with deep male vocals and works very well giving an image of London during the Ripper’s days there. Like a Noise is more a straight Goth rock track with strong femme vocals emphasizing the ever-present darkness in the listener’s life.
Watching Me Fall is wrapped around very deep male vocals and atmospheric background music. The sadness of the song where the singer has (emotionally) fallen and cannot be rescued by the one he loves or perhaps loved. 99 Cats is a much lighter sounding song with has an early 80’s shoe-gaze style.
Traditional Goth rock with clever vocals adorns Dorian, linked to the classic horror-novel by Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray. Modern Slaves is another quicker-paced song driven by strong femme vocals about the dilemna of today – have we all become slaves in the modern era?
I Will Kill Myself is a heavy-hearted song with a lot of sad violins and the protagonist declaring her love to her partner, but that she will kill herself. I am not sure if this is literal or metaphorical suicide, but either way it is a very beautifully sad track. Moscow is a rock song dotted with sound bites from World War II-style bulletins of Russians reclaiming territory from the Nazi’s.
Wake up in a Grave is another track driven by femme vocals, depicting the rather scary idea of waking up in a grave. Bloody Rain is a lot bouncier and plays like an 80s Goth/Post Punk track. They do a good job too, mixing deep male and strong female vocals throughout the song.
The Wind That Moves the Flowers is probably my favorite song with the female vocals seeming to slip through the instrumentals like a wind spirit. The CD wraps up with Mountains of Madness a good Goth-rock track. It was a nice finish to the album.
I found this CD to be really enjoyable, especially The London Fog, Like a Noise, Dorian, The Wind That Moves the Flowers and Mountains of Madness. The songs were crisply made and quite clear. The only downside for me was that a few times the vocals were sometimes a little hard to catch, especially as the concept of the record was based on an online anonymous poet. Aside from that one quibble I like this CD a lot and find the sound quite addictive. You can have a listen for yourself at their MySpace location or on their homepage.
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HARD WIRED (U.K.) - December 2007
Reviewer
Stuart Moses
Rating
8/10
When I'm walking alone in the dark...' is a great opening line, to the wonderfully-titled "The London Fog". It's delivered deadpan by Peter Murphy sound-a-like Chris. A creepy, yet strangely funky, church organ adds to the atmosphere. Then singer Dany adds Danielle Dax-style strident female vocals. This, Ladies and Gentlemen, is Italy's The Stompcrash, who have prepared an album of post-punk, 80s-influenced alternative rock for your delight. "Like a Noise" blends Cure guitars and New Order synths, with female vocals to the fore. The Stompcrash have the feel of a real band who play together nicely. There's an organic feel to their songs that never feels lo-fi, while at the same time never sounding polished to exclusion of its joie-de-vivre, or should that be joie-de-mort? The mix of FX-driven guitars and doomy synths is a classic one, but it is a style of which I'll never tire.
"Watching Me Fall" brings to mind The Chameleons, with its shimmering guitar which builds to a satisfying climax. The curiously-titled "99 Cats" has a wonderful lolloping rhythm. Dany presents us with a story which starts with the intriguing line: 'She tried to escape in a long white robe'. It's easy to imagine that this is one of the band's songs which take inspiration from the gothic stories by writers such as HP Lovecraft, Edgar Allen Poe, and Philip K. Dick. Investigating further one discovers that The Stompcrash's lyrical style is a cruel and unusual one, but this perverse twist to the words adds to the quality of the band's music as a whole. Using a girl's name as inspiration for a song title has become a cliche, so full marks to The Stompcrash, for Dorian, named after the titular character in Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray.' This song is mid-paced, which is no less exciting for its languor.
"Modern Slaves" blends the riffing guitars and walls of synthesisers perfectly. There's a feeling of the intensity of The Bolshoi, though the spiky female vocals are very different from those of Trevor Tanner. "I Will Kill Myself" drops the pace to almost ambient speed. Male and female vocals entwine over subtle use of keyboards and guitar. The pace picks up towards the end, preventing from the atmosphere becoming dull. "Moscow" sounds like a Cure b-side, with radio reports about the titular city. Thankfully there is proper singing too – few things irritate me more than songs with samples of speech rather than real vocals. Once again the keyboards and guitars work well together. "Wake Up In A Grave" is another fast-paced alternative rock song, enlivened by siren sounds.
"Bloody Rain" and "The Wind That Moves the Flowers" are more of the same. They are enjoyable, but don't stretch The Stompcrash template. The Lovecraft inspired "Mountains of Madness" brings things to a close. The bass and echo-laden guitars give a Fields of the Nephilim vibe in the quieter moments of the song. There are even icy wind effects to add to the spooky atmosphere. I almost wish that this song had been twice the length allowing it to really take the listener on a mystical journey.
The Stompcrash have taken certain 80s elements and brought their own spin to the sound. The use of male and female vocals, sometimes together sometimes apart, keeps things interesting. There's an organic feel to their songs. They are never predictable, but never avant-garde either. If you want a band that takes the best of The Cure, New Order and The Chameleons and fashions something new then The Stompcrash are for you.
Stuart Moses
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Feindensland.de / Schwarzes Osnabrueck (Germany) - December 2007
Fledermäuse im Weihnachtsbaum - oder zurück durch die Zeit!
Gut, zugegeben, dieses Album erschien bereits im Oktober und hat mit dem völlig kommerzialisierten Weihnachts- bzw. Julfest eigentlich nicht das Geringste zu tun. Indes erhielt ich den Silberling erst in der zweiten Dezemberwoche - und Zeit mich mit ihm intensiv auseinanderzusetzen, fand ich erst kurz vor dem Höhepunkt des ganzen Rummels.
The Stompcrash sind eine junge italienische Band, die aus Daniela Palermo (vocals, keyboards), Christian Celsi (vocals, guitars), Maurizio Iacono (bass guitar, backing vocals) und Diego Itri (drums) besteht. Mit "Requiem Rosa" bringen sie ihr Debütwerk heraus.
Schon die ersten Töne ließen mich alten Brummbär schmunzeln. Heutzutage wird ja m.E. mit dem Begriff Batcave viel Schindluder getrieben (irgendwelche Discos weisen den alten Stil als Referenz für ihre "schwarzen" Partys aus, aber die/der entnervte Old-SchoolerIn bekommt dann Tekkno sowie pseudomittelalterliches "tröten, tuten und rappeln", frei nach dem Kollegen Raphael, vorgedudelt!). The Stompcrash allerdings hätten problemlos in dem legendären Londoner "Gemäuer" auftreten können. Die Verwandtschaft mit Kultinstitutionen, wie z.B. frühen Cure, Clan of Xymox, Siouxsie and the Banshees, den Sisters of Mercy der Anfangstage oder den Sex Gang Children, "zwingt" sich der Hörerin/dem Hörer geradezu auf. An dieser Stelle dürfte nun auch klar sein, dass AnhängerInnen von zeitgenössischem, Finnischen Goth Rock "Requiem Rosa" besser meiden sollten, wie der Teufel das Weihwasser, so sie dem Opus keinen historischen Wert beimessen. Eigentlich könnte ich es damit bewenden lassen, die älteren Semester unter der SchwarzenOsnabrueckleserschaft wissen jetzt ohnehin schon was sie erwartet. Dennoch kurz zum Gebotenen: Positiv sticht das Schlagzeug hervor, welches eben NICHT von einem "getauften" Computer generiert wurde und organisch durch das Riffing pulsiert. Bei der Saitenarbeit halten sich Melodik und unterkühlte Melancholie die Waage, konvenable Basslinien runden den Sound ab. Die archaisch anmutenden Keyboardstrukturen verleihen der Tonkunst des Quartetts die Patina der späten 80er und rufen Erinnerungen an die damalige Resignation, den Pessimismus (Stichwort No Future!) einer ganzen Generation wach. Die leicht kratzige, röhrende Stimmbandarbeit der Signora bildet einen kräftigen Kontrast zum klar/dunklen, dezent pathetischen Gesang von Maestro Celsi.
Fazit:
Lange Rede, kurzer Sinn: Wer "der guten alten Zeit" hinterhertrauert und vom heutigen, gotischen Massenkommerz angewidert ist, sollte The Stompcrash sein Ohr leihen. Wundert Euch also nicht, wenn plötzlich ein Fledermausschwarm durch Euer Domizil flattert. Ach ja, Innovation(en) vermag ich leider keine zu konstatieren.
Geschrieben von Michael
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TERRORVERLAG.de (Germany) - December 2007
Artist: THE STOMPCRASH
Title: Requiem Rosa
Homepage: THE STOMPCRASH
Label: NOMADISM RECORDS
Vor fünf Jahren taten sich Christian Celsi (Gesang & Gitarre), Daniela Palermo (Gesang & Keys) und Maurizio Iacono (Bass) mit einem Drumcomputer zusammen und begannen in Mailand Songs u.a. von THE CURE, DEPECHE MODE, JOY DIVISION und MARILYN MANSON zu covern. Zwischenzeitlich hat sich das Trio mit Diego Itri einen leibhaftigen Drummer zugelegt und die erste Langrille mit eigenen Songs namens „Requiem Rosa“ an den Start gebracht.
„The London Fog“ startet ganz in der Dark Wave-Tradition solcher Bands wie THE CURE und JOY DIVISION und lässt die Achtziger wieder auferstehen. Dem verschließt sich auch „Like A Noise“ nicht, bei dem Signorina Palermo federführend für die Vocals zuständig ist. Beim folgenden „Watching Me Fall“ überlässt die Dame das Mikro ihrem männlichen Gegenpart, der es versteht, eine angenehm-düstere Stimmung zu verbreiten. Die „99 Cats“ schnurren sanft ins Ohr, bevor Piano-Geklimper und Synthiestreicher „Dorian“ begleiten. Metallische Rhythmen und treibende Beats prägen „Modern Slaves“, dann breiten sich mit „I Will Kill Myself“ erneut synthetische Klangteppiche aus, die direkt aus den Eighties zu stammen scheinen. An die damaligen Zeiten des Kalten Krieges scheint auch „Moscow“ erinnern zu wollen. „Wake Up In A Grave“ lässt es etwas härter angehen, dann legt sich ein flotter„Bloody Rain“ übers Geschehen. Leider geht dem Silberling zum Ende hin ein wenig die Puste aus: „The Wind That Moves The Flowers“ dümpelt arg vor sich hin, dafür gefällt „Mountains of Madness“ noch mal mit sphärischen Klängen.
Wer sich nur schwer damit abfinden konnte, dass die Achtziger Jahre nicht mehr andauern, wird hier mit nettem Dark Wave bedient, der auch noch ins 21. Jahrhundert passt.
ump (28.12.2007)
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Masterpiece.com (Italy) - December 2007
Debutto sulla lunga distanza per i THE STOMPCRASH. "Requiem Rosa" si presenta come un raffinato manifesto sonoro che spazia dalla dark wave al gothic rock più melodico e accattivante, con doppia voce maschile/femminile . Un personale incrocio tra Siouxsie and the Banshee e Christian Death.
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The-Pit.de (Germany) - December 2007
Nach ersten musikalischen Gehversuchen, die 2002 starteten, und drei Demo-CDs, die zumeist aus Cover-Versionen von Songs anderer Bands, wie beispielsweise Marylin Manson, The Cure oder Depeche Mode, bestanden, haben The Stompcrash nun ihre erste komplett eigenständige Platte eingespielt.
„Requiem Rosa“ heißt das gute Stück und vereint klischeehafte Gothic-Texte mit atmosphärischen Klängen. Dank zahlloser Auftritte in ihrer Heimat haben die Italiener schon ein reiches Repertoire an Erfahrungen aufzuweisen, dass sich auch in der Musik bemerkbar macht. Anfangs noch durch den amerikanischen Kollegen „Dr-770“ (ein Drum-Computer) unterstützt, haben sie inzwischen auch einen festen Schlagzeuger finden können.
Mit diesem wurde nun auch Requiem Rosa aufgenommen:
Der Opener „The London Fog“ verspricht stimmungsvollen Gesang und einen Takt der sehr gut mit dem Songtext verbindet. Der Gesang ist oft dominant, während die Instrumente darauf zielen eine dichte Atmosphäre zu erschaffen, was auch prima gelingt. Spieltechnisch zwar nicht unbedingt neu oder besonders verzwickt, aber auch nicht schlecht.
Das besonders durch synthetische Flächen gestützte „Like A Noise“ wird – im Gegensatz zum variierenden Vorgänger - komplett von der Sängerin gesungen. Allerdings wird „Watching Me Fall“ gänzlich von einer männlichen Stimme vorgetragen.
Bisher eine angenehme CD mit äußerst gelungener Stimmung und einigermaßen guten Gesang, werden nun die wahren Perlen aus dem Beutel gezogen – „I Will Kill Myself“ ist eine bis ins Detail vollendete Ballade, die ganz und gar den Gemütszustand der Protagonisten des Textes beschreibt. Äußerst gelungener Gesang – sowohl weiblicher als auch männlicher Natur – und wieder einmal passend intonierte Instrumente.
Allerdings gibt es auch einige Songs wie „The Wind That Moves The Flowers“, die keinen Lichtblick haben – freilich sind bestimmt alle hörbar, doch sie bieten dem Hörer nichts Besonderes wie eine einprägsame Melodie, oder andere gewinnende Elemente.
Alles in allem vertrete ich jedoch die Meinung, dass die CD zwar nicht perfekt ist, aber für Freunde von typischem Gothic-Rock mit enormer und oft auffallend gut gelungener Atmosphäre inklusive typischer Klischee-Erfüllender Texte mit Sicherheit nur zu empfehlen ist. Der Sound der CD ist nicht schlecht, aber dass hier keine Profis am Werk waren, merkt man dennoch allein am Klang. Der CD fehlt ein professionelles Mastering – es entstehen keine sonderlich breiten Klanggebilde, worüber man, in Anbetracht des sonst vollkommen klaren und deutlichen Sounds, aber auch mal hinwegsehen kann.
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Rock-Impressions.Com (Italy) - December 2007
THE STOMPCRASH - Requiem Rosa
Nomadism Records
Genere: Dark / Goth Rock
Support: Digipack CD - 2007
Bel lavoro dalle tinte spiccatamente crepuscolari è “Requiem Rosa”, caratterizzato da pregevoli intarsi chitarristici che adornano un tappeto sonoro di buona fattura, intessuto con grande attenzione e cura dei particolari dalla pulsante sezione ritmica e da tastiere a tratti sontuose.
Le cangianti ambientazioni che distinguono ogni singolo episodio vi faranno gioire delle pulsazioni death rock dell’opener “The London Fog” o di “99 cats”, decisamente americaneggiante nei suoni, o delle citazioni di certa wave albionica ingiustamente sottovalutata, come in “Like a noise” (qui i quattro musici partono alla ricerca di autentiche perle nascoste in anfratti ombrosi e discosti, portando alla luce le testimonianze gloriose rilasciate dai mai troppo lodati Sad Lovers and Giants). Giovandosi inoltre di due ottime voci (Christian Celsi e Daniela Palermo, che di queste canzoni sono pure gli autori dei testi, interpretati con passione spontanea), possono sfruttare questa rara opportunità, accentuando a volte il lato drammatico di queste belle songs (come in “Modern slaves” interpretata da Daniela, credetemi, terminato l’ascolto del disco, ho trascorso una buona oretta nel gelo della mia mansarda a cercare le X Mal Deutschland, ah!, cosa non fa la benedetta nostalghia!), altre quello più intimo e cogitabondo (“Dorian”).
Ma è la versatilità appunto a mettere a punto il risultato di maggior valore, quella capacità di mutar scena che vi porterà ad apprezzare incondizionatamente la bellissima “I will kill myself”. “Requiem rosa” è lavoro sontuoso, professionale ed assai ricercato, anche (ovviamente, mi viene spontaneo rilevarlo trattandosi di una produzione targata Nomadism Records!) nell’apparato grafico (a cura di Mauro Berchi, una assoluta certezza). Il ritmo secco di “Moscow” omaggia ancora gli ottanta, senza che prevalga quel senso di vuota rimembranza che a volte inficia prove analoghe, e la prova viene brillantemente superata, col massimo dei voti (soffermatevi sul lavoro intenso del basso e della batteria, sulle reiterate note della chitarra e sugli svolazzi delle keys: da manuale!). Ma non mancano ferme esibizioni di forza (“Wake up in a grave”) ad arricchire un songbook già completo (l’incipit di “Bloody rain” ricorda vagamente i Blur!), ed a far definitivamente pendere l’ago della bilancia a favore dei bravi The Stompcrash, una delle proposte, non solo italiane, più convincenti di quest’ormai declinante duemilaesette.
(AM)
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Versacrum.com (Italy) - November 2007
The Stompcrash: Requiem Rosa (CD - Nomadism Records/Masterpiece, 2007).
Avevamo già parlato degli Stompcrash qualche mese fa, recensendo l' EP I will kill myself ed eccoci ora a commentare il primo full lenght del quartetto milanese, realizzato per |
