Seekers Are Lovers - 2023 - Nepenthes

(49:20; Echozone)

Track list:
1. Transform the Urge 4:15
2. Hunting a Ghost 5:36
3. Frozen People 6:26
4. Hayley 4:58
5. Deadly Cure 5:24
6. Tyrants 5:49
7. Cold 6:47
8. Don't Lose Yourself 4:20
8. Smalltown Boy 5:45

Line-up:
Chris N - vocals
Patty J - instruments


German band Seekers Are Lovers appears to be a fairly recent addition to the German music scene, with the band starting out back in 2020 and with an initial EP released back in the spring of 2021. "Nephentes" is their debut album, and was released through German label Echozone in the fall of 2023.

I will readily admit that the landscapes explored by this band aren't ones I'm intimately familiar with, although I have listened to quite a bit of music related to the material that is present on this album. I guess electronic rock is an appropriate manner in which to summarize this production as a whole, although in this case this tradition is explored with a distinct nod back towards the 1980s.

The songs we get appear to operate with either electronic pop or new wave as something of a core foundation, with the former being used for the tighter and more energetic excursions here and the latter more prevalent for the songs with a slower pace and a more majestic expression. Somewhat subdued guitars are quickly added to the arrangements, and often right from the start. On some occasions this latter aspect is present in more of an alternative or punk-oriented manner, while in other passages the guitar riffs and patterns are used more in line with a classic hard rock tradition. We also get a liberal array of futuristic and textured synthesizer motifs and effects throughout, while the vocals tend to be darker toned and delivered with a little bit of a Gothic tone and appeal.

The end result here are songs that mainly are energetic and efficient, and sometimes majestic and impactful. Some of the most appealing songs are creations that comes across as simple, basic affairs, making very efficient use of basic elements to craft and maintain a high level of energy and tension throughout. Other songs are much more deliberate, nuanced and detailed, with a couple of instances that came across as songs that early 80s Killing Joke might have created if they joined up with mid 80s Erasure. Possibly with a little bit of creative input added by Gary Numan and Tangerine Dream.

These are songs you can dance to as well as inspire to a little bit of headbanging. Songs that can bring a smile to your face, but also an appropriate soundtrack for the days when the world comes across as a constant uphill battle. There's a good balance between light and dark here, between cold and barren sounds and landscapes with a warmer and darker presence. There's energy and majesty, operating as separate entities but also combining on occasion. A Gothic new wave post punk explosion, set somewhere in an electronic pop universe that was established sometime around 1985.

While I suspect that many of those who love and treasure new wave, post punk and Gothic rock in equal measures will find this album to be rather intriguing, a secondary audience for this album would, in my opinion at least, be those who listen to the artists that were inspired by these sounds too, with fans of artists such as Marilyn Manson and Nine Inch Nails a likely demographic in that context. For my sake I was very much entertained by this album, a surprisingly efficient and energetic serving of dark electronic rock energy.

Olav M. Björnsen, November 2023

Links:
https://www.facebook.com/seekersarelovers
http://www.echozone.de/