Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.
Background/Info: Red Cell is a Swedish formation formed in 2003. They don’t exactly release new work on regular basis. This new album is the third one and the first one in 8 years.
Content: I remember Red Cell for their hard hitting electro sound, which on the previous work (cf. “Lead Or Follow”) was moving towards classical dark-electronics with solid and melodic leads on top. “Endings And Beginnings” sees the band moving towards electro-pop fields with guitar on top. The compositions become ‘softer’ and sound like an experienced electro-pop band.
It’s a clean and well-crafted production revealing melancholic passages, but still delicate arrangements. The vocals perfectly match with the sound.
+ + + : Even if I prefer the harder electronics from before I’ve to admit that the evolution in sound is absolutely impressive. Red Cell clearly reveals great writing skills in electro-pop music. Songs like “(We’ll Never Have) Another Moment”, “Lucid” and “Search” are accomplished songs mixing melancholic atmospheres with delicate sound treatments. I also like the complementarity lead- and backing vocals.
– – – : It all is a question of taste, but the earlier dark-electro side of Red Cell impressed me much more than their electro-pop transformation. Don’t get me wrong, this is a fully enjoyable work, but I’m especially missing a kind of climax on most of the songs.
Conclusion: “Endings And Beginnings” is an appropriated title for a band that strikes back after a hiatus of 8 years and with a ‘new’ sound. Let’s now hope that they will not get back into a new hibernation of years before striking back.
Best songs: “Lucid”, “(We’ll Never Have) Another Moment”, “Search”, “Past The Pale”.
Rate: (7).
Band: http://redcell.nu / www.facebook.com/redcellmusicLabel: www.progress–productions.com / www.facebook.com/progresspro
Advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations we have not put up a paywall, and we refuse to add annoying advertising, so we need to ask for your help. Side-Line’s independent journalism takes time, money and hard work to produce, and we do it to push the artists we like, who are equally fighting to survive.
I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.
