Station Echo – Control Voltage (Album – Infacted Recordings)
Genre/Influences: Indie-Pop, Electro-Pop, Pop-Rock.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: Station echo is a French formation active since 2013. This year they signed to Infected Recordings unleashing the successful EP”Say you’re Sorry” followed by the official debut album “Control Voltage”.
Content: Station Echo deals with a well-crafted mix of Electronics and guitar. The sound comes closer to Electro-Pop and pure Indie-Pop, reminding me of formations like IAMX and Placebo. The album takes off with the familiar EP-title song and moves on with 10 more songs featuring other potential EP-title tracks. There are a few softer passages while the last part of the album features 1 song in 3 chapters.
+ + +: Station Echo took me by surprise unleashing a mature and accomplished production. Even if the sound isn’t completely new and you sometimes recognize a clear link with IAMX and even Placebo, this work reveals a few outstanding cuts. Next to the already mentioned “Say You’re Sorry” the biggest potential hit is “You’re Wrong”. This song is driven by a terrific bass line and an irresistible lead, but it also reveals a great balance between guitar and synths. Another noticeable cut is the somewhat harder and guitar driven “Guilty” featuring an elevating chorus.
– – – : The final part of the work features the song “The Magic Place”, which is composed of 3 parts/tracks. It’s not that bad, but rather sounds like an anticlimax compared to the global album.
Conclusion: “Control Voltage” is a surprising album revealing a band with a huge potential. Station Echo seems to be a great French hidden secret that has been now revealed thanks to “Control Voltage”.
Best songs: “You’re Wrong”, “Say You’re Sorry”, “Guilty”, “Spasmodic”.
Rate: 8.
Artist: www.stationecho.com / www.facebook.com/stationecho
Label: www.infacted-recordings.de / www.facebook.com/pages/Infacted-Recordings/124099254321690
About Station Echo
Station Echo is a French electronic band formed in Lyon in 2013. Discogs lists two releases under the name, both from 2021: the EP "Say You’re Sorry" and the album "Control Voltage", issued by the German label Infacted Recordings on CD and in digital formats. No earlier commercial release is documented under the Station Echo name.
Bandcamp carries the record on the Infacted Recordings page as "Control Voltage (Special Edition)". Side-Line has not covered the band outside this review, so the album discussed above stands as their first documented full-length.
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