Don't Blow Your Cover
As we all know, Cleo has become the tribute label. Iam hard pressed to come up with the name of a bandoutside of Razed in Black or Electric Hellfire Clubwho is actually still on the label. This frustrates me, as there are only so many tribute albums that one can stand...case in point is the 3 CDs full of Metallica covers. Beating a decomposed horse is even worse than beating a dead one...and ickier.
Nonetheless, I did pick up the KMFDM "Don't Blow Your Cover" tribute album because I am a KMFDM fan. In all honesty, this album probably should not have been done as KMFDM was still warm after its freshly announced death, and because it's a band that is getting covered by other bands in its genre. I am more forgiving and understanding about Cleo bands doing covers of bands that aren't in the same genre...doing industrial covers of punk bands or classic rock bands or people like Tori Amos allow for cross genre listeners and give the music a new flavor.
Another thing that is kinda wrong about this disc is the fact that 2 KMFDM members were contributers: PIG and Guenter Schulz. Can the tracks they performed really be called "covers" when they were actually involved in the band? It's like an odd kind of cannibalism. That said however....I'd be lying if I denied my enjoyment of several of the tracks on this disc.
We start out with the KMFDM alumn Raymond Watts (PIG), doing a sultry loungey version of Disobedience. I can picture him in a black suit, with stringy hair hanging in his face, seducing some thirties looking vamp in a bitch red dress under the dark lights of a swing club. Slinky slinky slinky. I love it. The track has this trashy, sleezy kind of class and charm that only PIG can deliver. His voice is unmistakeably creepy but strangely attractive.
We then move to the other KMFDM powerhouse, Guenter Schulz. A silent man of many talents, Guenter proves his power resides not only in his vicious guitar playing, but programming AND vocals. He gives us a magnetic, stompy version of Light, which contains what is probably his most well known guitar work. His vocals exude a shadowy kind of menace in the unfiltered portions. After hearing this I'd really like to hear more vocals from him. An excellent track, this song is instantly club worthy and is a wonderful update.
Die Krupps presents a bouncey version of Power from the Xtort album. Being a german band themselves, they do justice to the KMFDM's original and still add their own fingerprint with Jurgen's gravely vocals. Nice chunky guitars make this song fly and the added electronics add a new level to the familiar sound of this track.
Sigue Sigue Sputnik does an ok version of Virus, but I'm not overly impressed with it. The intense vocal filtering kinda loses me, and there's something about it that just doesn't move.
Razed In Black is one of Cleo's favorites to put on tribute albums, and this song plainly tells you why. Romell has taken a mosh pit favorite and turned it into an aggressive dance hit without reducing the speed. He does a great job at matching Guenter's expert guitar work, while adding a techno-trance touch and melodic elements to make the song his own. And, in reverence to true KMFDM form, he even inserts Razed In Black for KMFDM when the name masturbation portion of the song ensues. This is an wonderful example of what a tribute song should sound like when it is done well.
Rosetta Stone does a crunchy cover of Vogue which is more in the realm of harsh electronic than goth. This song moves along well, the vocals are good, and the experimentation is nice to hear from them. The sandpapery percussion makes this track.
16 Volt Vs Spahn Ranch doing Don't You Blow your top really doesn't do much for me. It's a pretty weak track, not enough variety for my taste and the guitars seem out of place. I think the combination of these 2 bands was perhaps a mistake...
Sheep on Drugs are a strange band in general in my opinion. Their version of Money however (which is one of my fav KMFDM tracks) is quite possibly the weakest track on the whole disc. Repetitive from beginning to end with a consistent bass thud that gets on my nerves. The vocals don't cut it either. Blech. No thanks.
Once again, Cleo showcases Romell's prowess by putting his Transmutator cover of spiritual house on this album. This track is a very bouncey trance club hit laced with female vocals. All electronic, no guitars and lots of energy and of course the addition of nice melodic touches. I haven't heard the original of this song, but Romell's cover makes me want to.
The remaining tracks on the album do little to hold my attention, and I usually only play the disc up to the Transmutator cover. I was VERY disappointed with Inertia's cover of Juke Joint Jezebel, and I am quite fond of Inertia. The constant noisy bleep and stompy thud irked me, and the fact that they were trying to SING a song that is better growled really made this track sink.
Overall, I find that half the album is very good..the beginning half that is. I am almost sure that Cleo was trying to hook listeners by putting the better tracks, especially with PIG and Guenter, at the front. Very few of the bands really put enough energy behind the vocals they were singing, or enough variety in the musical layout of the songs. I find that repetitiveness was a big problem on the weaker tracks.
I'm still glad I picked up the disc, mind you, but I warn those who are considering it that you are only getting half of what you are paying for. If you are considering buying it, purchase it for Guenter and PIG's work, as well as Romell's as their renditions of the old KMFDM favorites make the album.