Seabound: album reviews and ratings

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Reviews & Recommendations

	Seabound

Artist Listing:

S - Z

Line up:
Frank Spinath (lyrics, vocals, programming)
Martin Vorbodt (programming, sound)

"SEABOUND is 100% electronic music that might fit into the « future pop » genre. What is essential for us is balancing contradictions : e.g., to combine harsh and strong electronic sounds and melancholic melodies. Lyrically we want to take our listeners on a journey into the mind, i.e., we offer very personal insights into the human psyche. The lyrics deal with obsession, doubts, anger and fear. At the same time there is an underlying desire for fulfillment in the songs, a quest for love. I'd say that SEABOUND has many facets for the listener to explore, similar to a good movie like « Angel Heart » or « Matrix » that you can watch repeatedly, yet still discovering new elements. At the same time you will have to listen. Only then you will get the subtle messages and the twists that make multi-level universes so much more interesting than flatlands."

-- Frank, Seabound (from Elegy No 16 interview)

Seabound Discography - Album / CD Reviews

½ 2001: No Sleep Demon
"Everybody was blasted away by the talent they displayed on their 'Travelling' debut single and I can guarantee you that this full length album will now propel Seabound on the forefront of the future-pop elite. In only 10 songs, the German duo gives the perfect demonstration that a newcomer band can reach highlights with a first record. (...) On 'No Sleep Demon' they reveal a very colourful palette of emotions they are able to translate through up-beat high-impact danceable tunes as well as through deep smoother melancholic synthetic songs with the same perfection. Alluring clear expressive vocals benefit from a nicely polished production work, intricate and intelligent song arrangements constructed around challenging contrasts and carrying melodies. As usual for newcomer bands, it will be easy to compare Seabound with artists like Covenant or yet VNV Nation, but one should be very narrowminded not to recognise that this band has a unique approach of music and lyrics and definitely brings something special to this electronic music movement.
(...) A masterfully accomplished album reaching peaks on pearls like Smoke, Hookedor yet Travelling."

-- side-line No.36

½ 2004: Beyond Flatline
Tracklisting: 01.Transformer 02.Contact 03.Soul Diver 04.Digital 05.Poisonous Friend 06.Separation 07.Torch 08.Go International 09.Watching Over You 10.Icarus

"With their 2001 debut 'No Sleep Demon' the electro-pop duo of Martin Vorbodt and Frank Spinath surprised an unsuspecting community with a strong album blending synthpop and industrial music. 'Beyond Flatline' is no different. While most bands in the genre nowadays bank on high BPM future-pop, this record stears clear of those clichés; it displays mature songwriting, clever and witty lyrics, with both clean as well as treated vocals when needed, and driving percussions, lifting synthpop to a new level. 'Beyond Flatline' is what you would expect from more seasoned veterans of the scene like Covenant.
The track Digital is industrial S&M at its best, beating Die Form at their own game: / I took her to the forest, I tied her to a tree, I took all the photos, Digital candy, For people like you and me /. Separation is an all too short Depeche-class track. Go International is Covenant from A to Z, a hybrid between Go Filmand We Want Revolution. Poisonous Friendand Transformer, with their catchy choruses, are perfect candidates for spinning at your local underground club.
Another solid album from an up and coming talent. Kudos to Seabound!"

-- DJ Avalanche, musicfolio.com, 1/04

¾ 2006: Double-Crosser
Tracklisting: 01 Scorch The Ground (version) 02 The Promise 03 Doubleplusungood 04 Sapphire 05 Domination 06 Every Last Grain 07 Castaway 08 October Song 09 Traitor (extended) 10 Breathe
Bonus Ltd CD: 01. The Promise (mix by Olaf Wollschlger) 02. The Promise (mix by Eskil Simonson/Covenant) 03. Asymmetry 04. Scorch The Ground (mix by Rotersand) 05. Poisonous Friend (Hymn mix by Olaf Wollschlger)

"With their new output ‘Double-Crosser’, Vorbrodt and Spinath emphasize the atmospheric soundscapes and deliver an album that is often calmer and more melancholic than its predecessors. (...) Background to the album 'Double-Crosser' are the different motives for human deception and betrayal – no matter if they are of social, financial or sexual nature. And as complex as this topic is, as complex is 'Double-Crosser'. You’ll find catchy club tracks as well as melancholic ballads and soundtrack-like instrumentals. Common for all tracks is the brilliantly and complex elaborated electronic compositions. The songs are never one-dimensional – Seabound loses the sterility, from which a lot of other bands in this genre suffer, due to the sometimes harmonic-melancholic and sometimes very dark but always dynamic chant of Frank. With that diversity in their music, Seabound created their own fan base. And all those fans will be very satisfied with this album. No one else than Covenant mastermind Eskil Simonsson offered his help for this album. He produced and mixed the songs Scorch the Ground and Castaway. Furthermore you find a Covenant mix on the bonus CD of the limited edition. One thing is for sure: with this album , Seabound will enlarge their fan base because the band found their own niche between Electropop and EBM. They set new benchmarks in both genres."

-- Jörg Uhlenbruch & Daniela Vorndran, reflectionsofdarkness.com, 10/06

2009: When Black Beats Blue (Rareties)
Tracklisting: 01. Breathe (HECQ) 02. The Promise (Club) 03. Domination vs. Bound (Mindless Faith) 04. The Attic 05. Scorch The Ground (Forma Tadre) 06. Torch (Monozelle) 07. Breathe (Acretongue) 08. Hooked (Radical Alt. Vocal) 09. Soul Diver (Remix) 10. Contact (Haujobb) 11. Domination (Die Form) 12. Watching Over You (Live SF)

Release date: February 3, 2009

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Recommended Links:

Seabound's official website
Seabound on myspace