Admittedly, the debut 'Cuban Ballerina' I was at that time neglected. It was only later I discovered its beauty. The more I was impressed by the last year's EP 'Little Brother'. I quote for fun even from my own review: 'What have conjured up here Jack (ex-One Man Army) and Chicken (Fat-mailorder Wizard), animated to dance and party, makes you forget the autumnal rainy days and comforting about the present too early nightfall of time, but also raises the desperate demands, why is not the whole album Enjoy gibt'denn the shape curve of the band increases with this small work clearly upwards. '
A year later. The weather is the same. Only the band seems somehow replaced. The CD wanders in my car radio, the first piece of 'X' sound. A reggae number that can not decide whether she wants to be intro or full piece. My brother in the passenger seat, I have the trio in front of boarding touted big, wrinkles her nose and says the bass riff reminded him of the depraved to Fußballgegröle song by The White Stripes. Hmm. The rock 'Modern Muse', previously already available for download, is the actual launch, followed by crisp Punk Rocker 'Nothing running through my brain'. Like both songs and song provide technical points of the previous releases, but still bothers me a little, I do not know what. The next song dabble a little to himself, until it goes click at a time with me, I shall hear, inevitably and hang in a line of text remains, which is eingemantelt musically so simple, but so awesome that even the strongest storm they no longer can blow out my brain: 'A cruel world, a cruel, cruel world'. And in fact I think I have realized how 'African Elephants' works!
Pushed back to the start I skip time 'X' who really do not like it, and start at track 2 my journey again: The guitars, only slightly distorted, almost clean. The bass, little threatening or rolling, but the foundation laying. The drums, very calmly, no whipping snare or thumping base. The singing, clearly in the foreground, not always straight. And suddenly I feel, DEAD TO ME would just rehearse and I were doing. You are very close to me. Not a big fuss, all quite spartan. I suddenly think of THE CLASH and am of the opinion, the guys had last year no other album is as 'London Calling', as they already 'A Day Without A was' sing and puts a smile on my lips because I mean thesis confirms see. Suddenly the RAMONES look around the corner and DTM intone 'Dear Henry' (does that mean really what I read here as a German?), Until finally again this great 'Cruel, Cruel World' creeps into my ears and I at once would like to hear in connection Tomte, although I does not expect that DTM Thees and his pals from Hamburg.
From this time I had decided to try to 'African Elephants' see good. And with each run I discovered more songs that the record could be a gem, as the much too short 'I dare you' or the charmingly casual 'Tierra del Fuego'. Again and again these three words: 'A cruel world, a cruel, cruel world'. Oh, the world is beautiful :-)
