Oberer Totpunkt – Totentanz (Album – Danse Macabre Records)
Genre/Influences: Industrial, EBM.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: German formation Oberer Totpunkt has been active for several years now. They don’t exactly release new albums on a regular basis, “Totentanz” being their first album in five years and the sixth opus in their history.
Content: “Totentanz” features 16 songs mixing Industrial and EBM. Driven by aggressive bass lines, industrial driven guitar playing and EBM influences, “Totentanz” also has something Punkish. Bettina Bormann sings a half sung half spoken way, sometimes a bit whispering like and nonchalant.This work reminds me of KMFDM mixed with EBM.
+ + + : “Totentanz” is without a shadow of a doubt the most accomplished and successful work by the German band. I like the global sound approach resulting in a perfect and powerful balance between Industrial and EBM. There are several great songs featured. I’ll mention “Dia De Los Muertos” (previously released as a single) for its empowering Industrial sound. Other cuts like “Jetzt Oder Nie”, “Die Krieger”, “Rien Ne Va Plus” and “Unterer Totpunkt” have an extra EBM touch on top and are all worth to discover.
– – – : Oberer Totpunkt took me by surprise and I don’t see real minus points. The title song isn’t the best cut but that’s not really a point.
Conclusion: A modern Industrial release and a sexy alternative to the typical ‘German Neue Härte’.
Best songs: “Dia De Los Muertos”, “Jetzt Oder Nie”, “Die Krieger”, “Rien Ne Va Plus”, “Unterer Totpunkt”, “Oberer Totpunkt”, “Totentanz”.
Rate: 9.
Artist: https://totpunkt.com / www.facebook.com/TOTPUNKT
Label: www.dansemacabre-group.de / www.facebook.com/dansemacabrerec
Listen to “Totentanz”:
About Oberer Totpunkt
Oberer Totpunkt is a German-language electronic project from Hamburg, formed in 2006 by vocalist and writer Bettina Bormann and drummer and composer Michael Krüger. The project name refers to the top dead centre position of a piston in an engine. The duo combine dark electronic production, industrial and EBM elements and traces of rock with German spoken-word vocals, placing them in the Neue Deutsche Todeskunst lineage.
The debut “10 Grad vor OT” appeared in 2007 on Brainsmash Records and was reissued by Danse Macabre in 2009. “Erde ruft” followed in 2009, “Stiller Zoo” in 2010 with a thematic focus on fairy tales and myth, “Desiderat” in 2014 and “Neurosen blühen” in 2017. Live, the duo perform on their own or with additional musicians on guitar, bass, keyboards and performance, among them Sebastian Rack, Denis Scheither, Christiane Schmidt and Reaktor4.
“Totentanz” is the sixth studio album and closed a five-year gap. Side-Line covered the first single in November 2021, when Oberer Totpunkt launches first single, ‘Dia De Los Muertos’, from all new album ran, and the band discussed their working method in the ‘Click Interview’ with Oberer Totpunkt in July 2022. The record went on to appear in Side-Line’s Top 25 albums of the year 2022. In January 2026 the project gathered live-tested material on a compilation, reported as Oberer Totpunkt unites live-tested catalogue on 19-track compilation ‘Feuer’.
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