Tristraum - SHIVER MCD Release Date: April 2004 Label: Intrapop (Germany)

Sideline Magazine (Belgium)- Tristraum Shiver MCD

After a first single "Brilliant" which was released on Intrapop, we now get “Shiver” (with vocalist Krystyna Eller), an EP holding 10 remixes of the title track plus two other tracks. Modern electronica meets 80s synthpop, that’s exactly what Tristraum is about. At first I had the impression listening to a reunited Communards, because Krystyna’s voice has quite a distinctive vocal colour, but more obviously because it’s close to that of Sommerville’s . While the original version is already very appealing, the remixes give it even more flavour resulting in one of the most exciting CD singles I have heard for quite some time. The remixers have obviously been chosen to offer a very diverse collection of approaches resulting in a whole that doesn’t bore you for one single second. The remix by Assemblage 23 for instance is a guaranteed floor-filler, but the best is yet to come with Echo Image who from their part offer a mix that could well have been one by Chicane or Seize, both known for bringing some really uplifting beats and layers into a song. The result from Echo Image is nothing less but pure delicious europopdance that would do well on club-playlists if it manages getting on there. The same goes for Infam who offers a mix that holds enough club hooks to catch a mainstream public. Hard beats are delivered by Amun-Ra, in fact their approach reminds me of those good old dance fests at Café D’Anvers before it got infested by crap… again material that will do well in clubs. Empire State Human offer in good tradition a more electropop version that has shown me once again what they are capable of, a band whose remix work is improving each time. The Equatronic mix could not convince me that much for being a bit too electropoplike to my taste, this track deserves a more dance orientated approach which is clearly present again in the Lime n’ Dale remix that closes the remix chapter. On the version we got there were no extra tracks, so I have no idea how they sound like, but if they are anything remote to what I heard on this MCD than it’s a must have for sure! Recommended for sure, if not satisfied, I’ll personally refund you! Contact www.tristraum.com for more info.

Regen Magazine - New Tristraum Single Out

The storming new Tristraum 10-track CD single is out now. The MCD is available from A Different Drum and Metropolis (USA) and Intrapop (Germany/Europe). "Shiver" contains three songs ("Shiver," "Brilliant" and "I'm Under No One") and nine remixes by Assemblage 23, Empire State Human, SaxxonPike, Echo Image, Equatronic, Amun-ra, Infam and others. "Shiver" features strong female vocals (sometimes reminiscent of Annie Lenox) and rich electronic textures that are perfect for the dance floor. "Shiver" comes after a string of remixes from Tristraum for acts such as T.O.Y., Fiction 8, Underworld, Echo Image, Assemblage 23, Color Theory and Project X. They have scored TV tracks for Apple Computer, Coors Brewing Company and AT&T. Perfect single, great buy.

Maurizio Pustianaz - Chain DLK Magazine (Italy)

Tristraum is a band formed by two guys (Randall Erkelens and Pierre Norman) deeply involved into the nightclub scene and really active into the remixing activity and by Krystina Eller on vocals. The CD I received is their first effort and present three original tracks ("Shiver", the instrumental "Brilliant" and the melancholic "I'm Under No One") plus nine remixes of the main track. The sound of the band find its roots into the alternative / synthpop / industrial music. The tracks are danceable, bleepy with dreamy almost whispered female vocal parts (the ones I don't appreciate as they tend to make the songs sound all the same). The remixes reflect the characteristics of the remixers and for this reason we can find e.b.m. versions of the track thanks to Assemblage 23 and Lime'n Dale, modern synthpop versions remixed by Echo Image, Empire State Human and Equatronic, almost tehcno tunes produced by Infam, Invisible Asps, Saxxonpike. I think this release could be appreciated by remixers addicted who also love female goth vocals and industrial pop tunes.

GunHed - Wetworks Magazine

"Shiver" is the new single from Tristraum, a new project on the Intrapop label. The band consist of members Randall Erkelens, Pierre Norman and Krystyna Eller. Tristraum's roots began in remixing. Beginning with the San Francisco-based Twitch Remix Service in the early 90s, through the past two years, the duo's production resume has included remixes for names like Future Sound Of London, The Prodigy, The Orb, Front 242, Meat Beat Manifesto and more.
Musically, "Shiver," is your run-of-the-mill Synthpop single. Atmospheric synthwaves dance around with tight thumping beats and soft female vocals. The single is quite loaded, too. "Shiver" contains 12 tracks in all with remixes from Assemblage 23, Echo Image, Empire State Human, Equatronic and Infam just to name a few. To be honest, the remixes of "Shiver" didn't do too much for me, but there are some highlights. Echo Image do a nice job of giving the track a Trance makeover while adding a nice vocoder effect. Infam's "Infamous Electro Dub" mix is fantastic, giving a sort of, bouncy, house flavor to the track.
"Shiver" is perfect for any dancefloor, but grows a bit tiresome if listened to at home. I'm interested to see what this project does with a full-length album.

Anders Larsson - Moving Hands Music Magazine (Sweden)

This is the debut EP from San Francisco based artists of Tristraum. If you're a fan of remixes then you're gonna love this one! On it you'll find no more than nine (!) remixes of title song "Shiver". Some are good and some aren't and the best ones are the ones from Assemblage 23 and Echo Image. These artists make the music more alive because Tristraum's own version doesn't sound anything like the remixes, but that's also a something that's good. Tristraum on the other hand is very good at remixing other artists and they've got a nice selection of mixes for T.O.Y., Project-X and Anything Box to mention a few. I'm a little bit curious on the full album because I know their potential that they've got. I don't think this debut shows what they can do. The remixes from Assemblage 23 and Echo Image are amazing and just because of these two I strongly recommend this EP!

Azriel J. Knight - Comatose Rose Music Magazine (Canada)

Female fronted lectro-pop: Mixing harder-end synthpop, darwave and trance, this trio presents "Shiver,"
a maxi-signal release on Intrapop, and sold on A Different Drum. Basically what this twelve-track release offers is ten mixes of the title track and two bonus tracks. A couple notable remixes include the "Polar Remix" by Assemblage 23 and the "Whisper Remix" by Echo Image. Other than the obvious redundancy that comes with most singles and EP's, this is a solid release. The vocals could use a little tweaking, but that will come with time. I eagerly wait to see what they show us next.

The Fixx: An Electronic Tribute Release Date: April 12, 2005 Label: Section 44

Synthpop.net - Review by Jason Baker

The Fixx are probably best known for their hit 1983 single "Saved By Zero", but as this compilation proves, that wasn't the only good song this band composed. Beginning in 1981, the band has remained active (for the most part) for 20 years, including the 2003 album "Want That Life". Released by Section 44 Records, this tribute finds 13 well-known bands looking back fondly on a musical Fixxation. (Sorry, that was uncalled for..)

Empire State Human open the compilation with The Fixx's most recognizable song, "Saved By Zero". This is a very faithful cover, as Aidan handles the vocals on this song perfectly, giving the song a excellent rendition. The catchy bass guitar riff is recreated electronically here, but there is a guitar in here as well for the purists. A great track!
Glow impressed just about everyone who heard their album "Rain Theory" when it was released (and really made a great impression at the ADD SLC 2K4 fest), and here they stay true to form, with a very solid rendition of "Stand Or Fall". Very smooth, catchy and beautiful. I remain firmly addicted to the Glow sound...

Tristraum contribute a cover of "Chase The Fire", and also coordinated/executive produced the project. Krystyna's vocals here lend a smoky Jazz feel to the track somewhat, and the mid-tempo music with deep bass line serves to accentuate that feeling a lot. I though this approach worked really well!

Kiss The Star is the musical project of Craig Smidt and Meg Erben, with Jeff Harper (aka Intervox, aka Dominoeffect) on keys and programming. This is another smooth track, and Meg's vocals are up to the task of this track, but I really thought the portions of the chorus where her voice was multi-tracked (just guessing here, it sounds like her vocals have been layered to sound a little stronger there) were the strongest parts.

Royal Visionaries have been impressing a lot of people with their EP "Back To Yazoo", and Steven & Patrik turn in another impressive performance here. It seems Steven has really been working hard to polish his vocals, as here he sounds the best he has yet. The synth work here is also very solid, and it's just overall a very impressive version of "NO One Has To Cry".
The next track was a really big surprise for me. I Thought I had heard Gene Loves Jezebel on the original Mortal Kombat soundtrack (don't ask), but that turned out to be a false impression. The choppy guitar sounds and processed vocals on "Red Skies" turn out to give it a really cool feel. A very textured and deep track, it's really quite an enjoyable listen!

Astromill contributes yet another track that seems tailor-made for her unusual vocals. "Are We Ourselves" seems to really work perfectly for her especially in the chorus, as the layered vocals really make the chorus shine. A excellent, very distinctive track.

I've been a pretty outspoken non-fan of Equatronic for several years now, but this is actually one of their tracks I can listen to and enjoy. I still don't care too much for Oliver's vocal style, but this track is quite listenable. Not thrilling, but listenable.
This is the first officially released new material from Midihead/Monolithic , and it's just as dynamic, powerful and moving as you've come to expect from Monolithic. The guitars in the chorus add just the right amount of grit to the track. Tons of energy in this cover, I can easily imagine this one going over very well on the dancefloor. "Deeper And Deeper" is a track I can't get enough of!

The Dignity Of Labour and "Read Between The Lines" combine to make a very elegant track, filled with smooth piano work over subdued percussion and Kirk's solid vocals. This is one of those songs I tend to sit back and let wash over me, which makes it hard to write about sometimes. Actually, the song itself seems to drag a little until the first chorus rolls by, but otherwise the song is very enjoyable.
Color Theory follow with "One Thing Leads To Another", and to be honest I felt this version slowed the song down too much. It seems to drag a little to my ears. Brian's vocals are wonderful as always, and I liked the piano work here, but again it seemed too slow. A slightly higher tempo would have benefited the cover a good bit.
It's probably not fair to compare, but Internal Dialogue's version of "Red Skies" is a much more laid-back electropop version of the song when compared to the Gene Loves Jezebel version. Enjoyable, not bad or anything, just way overshadowed by the Gene Loves Jezebel version.

The Echoing Green close the compilation with what really amounted to a collaborative track with Tristraum, with Tristraum handling the music programming and Joey on vocals. The nature of this collaboration was such that the song ended up with more of a remix feel, so EG is listed as the artist with Tristraum as the remixer. Still, I felt the intro on the track was a little overly long, and also that the vocals were distorted in too many sections of the song. But when Joey is left unprocessed, he really shines here. Also, since Joey wanted to give the track a darker feel, there is a line removed from the lyrics, the one referring to "Euro-vision".
Overall, this was a very satisfying tribute album. Some really solid versions of songs, and only two tracks that I could find minor issues with. Welll worth your time and money, and very recommended!

Rocket: A Tribute to Dead or Alive Release Date: May 30th, 2005 Label: Section 44

Connextion Bizarre - Review by James Ryan

Dead Or Alive might strike some as another headstone in the eighties graveyard, exhumed for the electro revival - a one hit wonder who might offer a second passing fancy to a new generation of synthesiser-obsessed glamourpusses. To anoraks and people who were actually there, the songs of Pete Burns are glorious, simple explorations into dark sexual themes under a veneer of pop plasticity. This covers CD, from Section 44, offers reworkings of DOA that are just as enjoyable as the originals, and reflect the inherent strength of the band's songwriting.
Opening with "Isn't it a pity" a decidedly queer vibe is set with lyrics that amuse where they might once have shocked and delivered almost operatically in a crescendo of orgiastic indulgence - writhing synths and dry snares supporting it. "Black Leather" continues the theme with heavily affected vocals and sleazy bubbling keys grinding agains an almost uncertain refrain.

Baxendale's "Come Home" is my pick from the compilation - a Marc Almond-styled lead camps it up to funky artificial bass - glitch-styled skipping effects displacing this vocal and the overall electro-disco feel unsettlingly. The Alfa-Matrix styled EBM of "My Heart goes Bang" by Fr/Action is one disappointment, with its cold sliding lead line and vocoding, it's completely deadpan. Eurodance in the most over the top style is the medium for Tristraum's "Baby don't say Goodbye" and makes for the second choicest cut of the disc... for all its pop excess it's emotive, the production is smooth - polishing bittersweet, femme vocals and pattering percussion.

The reflective Shadow Valley's "Something in My House" is a departure from club tracks with plastic drum machine kick and pulsing rounded bass and soft harmonies, while Electroluv's "What I need" returns to the electro vein in a completely dissonant fashion. Finally, the most well-known DOA track, "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" by Spray is a little disappointing in that the hook is really played down, but the song is huge-sounding, ideal for club play.

Overall, this tribute album is much like Pete Burns and his original music - at times fun and outrageous, at times dark and avant-garde, at times very pretty and also very ugly, but always unashamedly so.


Out Magazine - Review by Julien Tomasello

The queen of growling and groovalicious pop is receiving a tribute fit for royalty. Pete Burns and his band, Dead or Alive, are the subject of Rocket: A Tribute to Dead or Alive. Produced by Irish quartet Empire State Human, the 16-track disc showcases an international selection of synth and electro-pop recording artists as they reinterpret tracks from Dead or Alive’s two-decade oeuvre, from the huge hits to lesser-known gems.

The result is an eclectic and electric listening experience that highlights Dead or Alive’s formidable lyrical talents—an aspect of the band that has been overshadowed by frontman Pete Burns’s outrageous gender-bending appearance. When attention is paid to the songs rather than the singer, the music emerges as very accomplished songcraft, especially when the writing is about the gay experience.

Particular highlights from Rocket include U.K. artist Astromill’s take on “Isn’t it a Pity,” which she transforms into a delicious female-empowered anthem; American group Tristraum’s beautiful and seductive recreation of “Baby Don’t Say Goodbye” is highlighted to full effect by the group’s androgynous and yearning vocals; and U.K.-based Baxendale’s cover of “Come Home With Me Baby” takes the already-in-your-face sex appeal of the song and mixes it into a fun and funkadelic ode to the one-night stand that would make Burns proud.