The release of LOVE A's third album was a while ago, but I don't want to withhold my judgment on the band's fourth record from Trier, Cologne, and Wuppertal.
The first three albums “Eigentlich“ (review at: http://www.ramtatta.de/s/reviews/f/details/id/3849/), “Irgendwie“ (review at: http://www.ramtatta.de/s/reviews/f/details/id/4165/), and “Jagd und Hund“ (review at: http://www.ramtatta.de/s/reviews/f/details/id/7312/) quickly established a large fanbase for the band. The band's sound and lyrics are more punk than Tocotronic (were they ever punk?), more concrete than Die Sterne, poppier than Front, and more unwieldy than Terrorgruppe. They could best be described as Supernichts (RiP) with a high school diploma.
The ripped-out lyric line “...probably sounds pretty weird and it surely is.” fits quite well when you listen to this band without any prior knowledge.
Ambitious music, somewhat punk, somewhat rock, and somewhat poppy strumming. The lyrics, while reminiscent of the Hamburger Schule, do not reach the self-indulgent punks from the Alster due to their uncompromising nature and healthy mindset. Here, there is no whining or wallowing in self-satisfaction; instead, the whole encompassing nonsense is dissected, admittedly with demanding lyrics. LOVE A prefer to use a scalpel rather than a club, but they can handle the latter quite well too. A good upbringing doesn’t mean you can’t say “shit.”
So now the fourth album. Overall, not much has changed. It’s as if the songs of the album reflect what the band offers: “Nothing is New.” Upon repeated listening, it becomes apparent that it’s somewhat darker compared to the previous albums, both musically and lyrically. It almost sounds like the band members are going through a world or existential crisis. Midlife crisis? Or do I just relate better to the lyrics because I can understand them very well?
Dear psychologists, take this and explain it!
Why write lyrics like “Treeps”? Schizophrenia, world-weariness, depression...
“Sonderling” settles accounts with life, which many live because it is expected of them or simply because they resign themselves to it without alternatives. Such beautiful words like “Bausparzwang” come out of it. Lyrically, it reminds one of “Das war ihr Leben” by Terrorgruppe, but it is broader and more sinister.
“Löwenzahn” is neither funny nor has anything to do with Peter. Rather, it has to do with Rommel, the dissatisfaction of Germans, and the weather.
LOVE A continues on their path consistently. “Nothing is New” is, like the other albums, a dissection of society. However, they do not say what should happen with the sores.
