State Of The Union – Indupop (CD Album – Infacted Recordings)
Genre/Influences: Electro-pop.
Background/Info: State Of The Union strikes back with its 5th official album. Driven by the creative strength of Johann Sebastian the American electro-project doesn’t exactly release new album at regular basis. “Indupop” is the first album since “My Time Away” (2014). “Indupop” was preceded by the “Mindless”-EP.
Content: “Indupop” sounds in the vein of what we’ve been used to hearing from State Of The Union. It’s a delicate electro-pop creation, which sounds sweet and melodic. The vocals are perfectly matching with the sound. Things are starting to get more interesting in the second half of the work. Next to the already familiar “Mindless”-song, the songs seem to be more catchy. The work features 10 songs plus a “Bonus Remix” from “Beacon”.
+ + + : If you like the sweet and melodic electro-pop exposure of this band “Indupop” will bring you exactly what you might expect. It’s a well-crafted opus featuring several noticeable cuts. I like the delicacy of the arrangements with a special mention for “Beacon”. But the song that caught my attention also is the most atypical one from the work. I refer to “Womb”, which reveals some duality between refined arrangements and bombastic passages. This is a more industrial-approach of electro-pop.
– – – : I can’t say that I was taken by surprise. State Of the Union holds on its influences and global approach in sound. The point is that the initial magic has been a bit lost throughout the years and that the first half of this work left me a bit indifferent. I’m missing a bit more power and especially conviction.
Conclusion: If you always have liked State Of The Union and you don’t care for innovative elements in their sound you for sure are going to like this album although I would be surprised to hear you say “Indupop” is the best one from their career.
Best songs: “Womb”, “Mindless”, “Beacon”, “Beacon – Bonus Remix”.
Rate: (6½).
Artist: www.facebook.com/StateOfTheUnionOfficial
Label: www.infacted–recordings.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Infacted–Recordings/124099254321690
About State Of The Union
State Of The Union is a Los Angeles electronic industrial and futurepop project fronted by Johann Sebastian, with drummer Jimmy Nimra contributing to past studio releases. The project’s prior full-length, “Impendum”, came out in 2004.
State Of The Union signed to Infacted Recordings and released the digital EP “Mindless” in November 2018, followed by “Indupop”, its fifth album, and the digital EP “Industrial Slither / Remixes” in early 2019, then the EP “Bad Flower” in 2020.
The project went quiet for three years before Johann Sebastian returned with the singles “Purgatory” in August 2023 and “Lifeline” in October 2023, and most recently “When Daylight Dies” in October 2026.
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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.
