With their 10th studio full-length, Dual, classically-educated composer and pianist Ernst Horn and vocalist extraordinaire Alexander Veljanov ingeniously contrive to blur the fictional lines drawn by editorial gatekeepers in a conceptual double album, which connects both full-lengths by a double reference.
Half of the double album consists of 10 new songs that DEINE LAKAIEN have crafted with particular artists or songs in mind that have been important for the duo's musical evolution. These sources of inspiration are made clear on the second album of Dual, which features 10 amazing cover tracks that range from Cat Stevens' classic 'Lady ' via Jacques Brels melancholic La chanson des vieux amants to Kate Bush'sSuspended in Gaffa and the surprising choice of the Linkin Park song My December. Each of these renditions has been lovingly translated into the Germans' unmistakable soundscape.
First CD, the new tracks:
Because of Because starts with the classic mix of electronica and classic instruments, whilst AlexanderVeljanov sings in his well-known way. It’s clear that after all these years they are still avant-garde and ahead of their time as they craft strange music that resonates and gives you goosebumps whilst it’s hard to put into a niche and that’s exactly the aim! Sick Cinema starts with some percussion that remind me of Senegal or is it rather Morocco? You know those gigantic metal cups or is it rather a balaphone (like a xylophone). The eclectic touch and the repeated voices recorded over and over to create a chaotic sound is very typical for Deine Lakaien. In Your Eyes is a piano minded track, with a bit of electronics in the start. It’s a slow starter, building up and going back to the start and so on … The machine’s sound very familiar with the cult sound of Deine Lakaien. Snow sounds o so fragile and almost ready to be sung a Capella. It’s one of those songs who can shut a complete audience (at least if they are well educated). It’s beauty! I also adore the moment where the strings are activated and take over the sound of the song. Happy Man starts with a high tempo and a slice of an eclectic feel with an industrial / electro touch and a magnificent voice that sounds very fragile but yet strong and blooming. Run mixes their own sound with a retro ’80 touch. It’s hard to tell what song is hidden behind this one. The avant-garde touch has been kept intact here. Somehow I rather start to think about the Tin Machine song called Run. Les Oiseaux sounds like a very difficult song to bring, whilst the music is still typical for Deine Lakaien, but singing in French is not easy for Alexander, however it’s not the first time. Unknown Friend has already been launched and sounds really well, with an old school Deine Lakaien touch. I like the vocals and the more fragile part of the song, whilst the electronics sound really cool and modern. Qubit Man starts with a Wagnerian touch: lot’s of bombast and a deep voice accompanied by strings. Later on the electronics take over and gives it a very eclectic/chaotic touch (for a short while). The playing with voices on repeat one after the other is also into this one. Last song on this regular CD is Someone To Come Home To: a melancholic and romantic slow track with a haunting feel and a need to sing along during the chorus. The piano part is also great. It’s a nice end, nothing bombastic but still very good!
Second CD, the song that inspired the new tracks:
Because The Night (Patti Smith/Bruce Springsteen) is a nice cover version, for sure since the original is really well known. They changed it into one of their own songs with their own instruments. Just check the original and you’ll see that you can’t recognize much of the original sound.
Spoon (honestly, I had to call in help from Deine Lakaien to discover the original of this one and this is the answer I got: "Spoon" is a song by German Krautrock legends Can) is one of the lesser known tracks for me. The lyrics sound pretty simple, whilst the music builds up slowly and gets now and then a bit into a bombastic explosion.
The Walk (The Cure) is for me the track I know the best (as a fan of The Cure). It’s a bit strange that they picked out this poppy track and expected something darker and more into a depressing feel. Once again they change the song completely and only leave the lyrics untouched and that is rally a huge risk, but they did a great job and I think this might be a huge hit once they can perform it on stage!
Dust In The Wind (Kansas): the original was a huge commercial hit and feels a bit strange to be covered in this version, but the melancholy works really great. I really adore this new version and the complete new approach too!
Suspended In Gaffa (Kate Bush): I love Kate Bush and here they clearly choose a lesser known song and rework it once again into one of their own. The vocals nicely sound pretty deep, whilst we all know Kate Bush could go pretty high with hers. It has some kind of a circus feel, just miss the clowns popping in and out. The song has a funny feel in this version.
La Chanson des Vieux Amants (Jacques Brel): Brel was a great singer, singing about a lot of things taken from real life and being a bit of a rebel against politicians and rich people as he was a simple man enriched by a marvellous voice and always going so deep that he was always sweating when he was singing. This version almost sounds like the original and comes really close to the original feel too. It’s a sad song and the old piano sounds renders it well. This one really feels like they could produce a whole album of Brel’s song and go tour around the world with it! Well done!
Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden): is a classic track from the 90’s in full grunge modus. This version changes it into a cold wave track with a bombastic feel and lots of melancholy. Love it!
Lady D’Arbanville (Cat Stevens): sounds better then the original and sounds more as if written by Deine Lakaien. One of the reasons of that is the fact that they rewrote the music and just kept the lyrics and thus did a great job (hence: once again)!
Song Of The Flea (Lew Sibirjakow / Mussorgsky, sung in Russian). I also found an English version from 1928 sung by Peter Dawson and a version sung by Emmanuel List and another one by Feodor Chalipin from 1900. The fact that the roots of this song go so far into history means that they also listen to very old tracks and that some still influence them. I don’t think it was hard to create new music for it. The result is pretty funny and almost clownesk. The song also reminds me a bit of Bertolt’s BrechtsBaal and David Bowie’s version of it (Moon of Alabama). It’s an old school cabaret song and fits nicely to the sound of Deine Lakaien, but I’m not sure if many fans will be pleased with it (it’s very experimental, but hey that’s just what they usually do and thus totally not commercial).
My December (Linkin Park) must have been a big surprise for a lot of fans and that is always nice. Their version is typical for Deine Lakaien and stays close to the original version, but adds a few instruments!
Well, after all those years our special duo keeps on searching for a more avant-garde touch and don’t mind mixing music from 1800 with 2021. Just look at the artists they cover and you know enough! Not many artist would dare to do the same and yet keep their own sound. With this they come very close to David Bowie, except that his albums are mostly different from the past ones and here they keep their own sound and just add some little things. The only thing I didn’t always get was the link between both CD’s, so I focussed on the music and had my part of the fun listening to it and checking the original tracks of the cover versions!
