If you can speak German or feel adventurous, then this will reward you with some cheery, modern Pop Rock.
This is, for the most part, chart-friendly German Pop Rock. Hailing from the Wendland area in the east of Germany, the band have been around since 2004 and scored a Top Thirty album in their homeland. Not being a German speaker means the lyrics don't make much of an impression on me, although they do cover personal and universal themes. However, like a blind person whose other senses become more well-tuned and sensitive, being freed from the lyrical aspect means you can hear the machinations of the songs better; there's no denying there are good harmonies and well-structured songs that have the dynamics designed to lift the spirit on each and every chorus. If you're looking for a comparison, I'd plump for Orson as they have that ability to make Pop records that sound like an organic band and not just people behind the mixing desk, which is becomingly increasingly rare in the world of Pop. The album also features a full and modern production which makes this great upbeat, driving music for the autobahn.
The cover displays a rocket blasting off and you could see this is an apt metaphor for all the songs, as no matter how each one starts off, be it the rocky 'Rückenwind' (Tailwind'), the Pop Punky 'Sommerferien' ('Summer Holidays'), the synth Pop of 'Mein Erstes Lied' ('My First Song') or, on one occasion, the Classic Rock sounding 'Wird Sie Mich Sehen' ('Will She See Me'), they all engage the engines in time they get to the choruses to power off with big and uplifting hummable melodies that take you up into a space inhabited by a plethora of bouncy Pop Rock hooks. 'Wenn Alles Zerbricht' ('When Everything Breaks') has a whopping hook and 'Athlet' ('Athlete') rocks with more abandon than the other tracks, and more songs like this would entice even more Rock fans to their party. The language barrier will stop many from investigating this release and band, but if you can speak German or feel adventurous, then this will reward you with some cheery, modern Pop Rock.
Duncan Jamieson