Schultz – Black Magic Party (Album – Hermès Records)
Genre/Influences: Industrial, electro-metal.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: French formation Schultz strikes back with a new full length. The last year released album “Shot Of Pain” definitely was their best and most accomplished work to date. “Black Magic Party” reveals ten new songs released for the very first time on Hermès Records.
Content: If you’re a little bit familiar with the sound of Schultz, the album wont have many surprises The main difference with their previous work is the guitar playing which all sounds like having being empowered. This work sounds a bit more metal-driven, but electronic treatments are still there. The vocals are matching with the furious expression of this work. That’s an aspect that even comes through in some of the female backing vocals.
+ + + : The magic of the previous work was the harmony –or complementarity, between guitar and electronics. Well, the best songs of this new work are the ones made with the same formula. “I’m The Drugs” and “Black Out” both reveal the best out of Schultz. I like this furious composition, which is mixing industrial- and metal music. Another song worth to mention is “My Cat Loves Satan”, which is driven by enraged fem ale vocals, but I also like the sphere hanging over this song. There’s something malicious here.
– – – : Schultz remains driven by their influences, but I regret there’s less harmony between the guitar and electronics like on their previous work. All the tracks are also pretty short (under the 4 minutes) and that’s a pity especially for the best songs.
Conclusion: If you like good-old industrial guitar/electro, this album will catch your attention. It’s pretty entertaining, but can’t compete with the excellence of “Shot Of Pain”.
Best songs: “I’m The Drugs”, “Black Out”, “My Cat Loves Satan”, “Demons In My Computer”.
Rate: (7½).
Artist: http://schultzmusic.fr / www.facebook.com/SchultzIndustrialMetal
Label: www.facebook.com/hermesrecords
About Schultz
Schultz started in 2002 as the solo project of Franz Schultz. In 2006 performer VDREY joined for a fetish-event art performance and the collaboration grew from there, with VDREY giving her final concert with the project in 2014. Schultz released the six-track album “Raw Fucking Power” in 2017, the same year the band was invited to open for Dirk Ivens and Clan Of Xymox at a local festival, which brought guitarist GuitarFox and dancer Sandy Dynamite into the line-up. VDREY subsequently left, and Schultz has continued as a trio of Franz Schultz, GuitarFox and Sandy Dynamite. The band released the album “Shot Of Pain” via BLC Productions in 2019, which Franz Schultz described in a Side-Line Click Interview as “a kind of new start”. “Black Magic Party” is the project’s first release on Hermès Records.
Support Side-Line
More people read Side-Line than ever, and there is still no paywall and no advertising. Readers pay for it instead - from $5 a month.
Why we ask
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.
Handled by PayPal.
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.
