ALBUM REVIEW: Net Prophet – Plattenbau
Corporate post-truth band PLATTENBAU are back with their third album Net Prophet. The record, self-described as ‘unforgiving’, continues to explore themes in relation to corruption that follows too much power and a world where technology goes too far to the point where humanity is stripped away. Even without knowing the context, listening to the record already gives you the vibes of a dystopian future – as if you’ve stepped into a soundtrack for a sci-fi horror film where you feel constantly on edge, yet remain intrigued throughout.
Opening with Lochtenberg Monologue, no time is wasted with the themes PLATTENBAU are going for as listeners are greeted by deep bass that builds in intensity before dark sound effects join in, creating that sci-fi mood. Then we hear phone beeps and an unfocused conversation of a foreign language that has you wondering what’s going on when deep theatrical vocals come in, almost in a spoken-word style. You don’t fully know what’s going on, but you’re fascinated all the same.
Things then go in a quirky direction with Best Western that opens with a funky bass rhythm joined by guitar feedback. So, one could easy imagine a light-hearted song, but no! The vocals come in and shift the tone of the whole track from funky to suddenly dark and monotone yet still in a catchy way.
With this record, things can go either one of two ways. Either they can come across as fun and upbeat, such as in Cloaking Love that has a calm vibe slightly juxtaposed with a bouncy chorus and bridge, and AR-15 that manages to make dark pop synths sound funky alongside catchy lyrics that one can easily dance along to, yet there’s something always there that adds a sci-fi-horror edge so you can never really take it easy.
But on the other end of the spectrum there are songs that refuse to hide away from their dark nature, like A New Dawn that is a stunning blend of dark industrial rock and psychedelic guitar that is then back with electronic vocals and synths that only leaves you in awe, which is also similar to We Got Time that builds an unsettling atmosphere as you wait for everything to collide together, yet nothing happens, but the repeating of lyrics “we got time” reinforces the idea that things may still happen later.
Net Prophet is an intriguing record that might appear strange at times but its main themes are clear throughout. Even in the moments that are most unsettling you find yourself in awe at the genre-breaking compositions that PLATTENBAU have created here.
Rating: 7/10
Net Prophet is out now via Dedstrange Records.
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