Labels: Koenich Sound/Time As A Color Records
Formats: Tape
Release Date: 09 Jun 2020
Tracklist:
1. Silver
2. Silence Is...
3. Rivet
4. The Fall Of Hames
5. Coastlines
6. Continuance
7. Tease
8. Director's Cut
9. Candlelight Revolution
10. Underground City Of The Dead
11. Raw Speech Scatter (Featuring JK)
I couple of weeks ago I featured a tape release by German solo indie/emo band Koenich. The tape was sent to me by Franz Kindermann of Koenich Sound. Franz also sent me this tape, which features eleven compositions built around rock and it's various forms, as well as acoustic music. It was recorded/produced and released by Koenich Sound in June of this year, and has been distributed with the help of Time As A Color Records.
Temple is essentially a solo project and with that in mind, you’re gonna be treated to different styles and moods throughout. The intro song ‘Silver’ is a good old classic rock solo over the top of a steady rhythm section. It’s short and leads to ’Silence Is…’, which is both dramatic and tragic in it’s delivery. Choral and melodic, with layered clean vocals that bring to mind Queen. It’s not a rock opera but it does have that feel, though it’s not over the top.
As with other releases that Franz had produced, Pond Of Remembrance is very clean and clear and ‘Rivet’ embodies that with slick rock in the first half before giving way to something a little funkier in the second. What follows is the folk-inspired/grunge rock song The Fall Of Hames, which features traditional woodwind as well as crunching guitars.
The grunge continues on Coastlines’ and a familiar voice provides vocals, as Marc Sesto adds his tones to the album (as he did on ‘Silence Is…’ and ‘The Fall Of Hames’ previously). His vocals are really soothing even with their slightly grittier tones, alongside Franz’s lighter singing. The music is still light and not overpowering.
Marc once again lends his pipes to ‘Continuance’, which is very much a modern take on grunge with the added darkness created by The Cure back in the day. It’s quite a proggy song too, with different movements and off-kilter sections, which will please many. The acoustic guitar that was so prevalent of Koenich’s tape, makes an appearance on ‘Tease’ alongside what sounds like accordion accompaniment. It’s a nice clash of styles and it works really well.
From the sublime to the ridiculous with the bizarre rock n roll song ‘Director’s Cut’, which is at odds with the songs that it follows. That said, it’s well played and is maybe somewhat of a breather between Temple’s more serious songs. ‘Candlelight Revolution’ is filled with funk and a healthy groove, while still capturing the rock influence that the project has. That influence still undeniable here.
Penultimate song ‘Underground City Of The Dead’ is the longest song on Pond Of Remembrance and as such, it’s also the one with the most experimentation. It goes from gentle folk rock to something akin to industrial/punk within a couple of minutes. It’s entirely instrumental and would sound great amongst the soundtrack to an action movie or video game for sure. From that to probably the heaviest song on the album and the hardcore-punk of ‘Raw Speech Scatter’, featuring JK (if anyone can tell me who JK is, that would be great). This song was well worth waiting for if you wanted something heavier.
Overall this album has everything and is a bit all over the place because of it. That said, it’s excellently played and delivered with a really varied palette of musicianship. This should appeal to a lot people who read this blog, so take a punt if you want something out of the ordinary.
You can stream and purchase Pond Of Remembrance via Temple's bandcamp below:-
Temple - https://www.facebook.com/Temple-Music
