Dein Schatten is a new project by a guy named Dieter Bornschlegel, who I believe is active in the German music scene for about three decades now. In this period he played in numerous bands, and he has tried about every musical style imagineable. This new project aims at a place in the EBM/gothic crossover scene, somewhere between Rammstein and Joachim Witt. The music is rather accessible, clearly meant for chart success.
I must admit that I don’t like this album at all. The theatrical, spoken vocals (in German) are indeed Witt-like, but also make me think of the late Falco. A dramatic track like ‘Trane der Seele’ can’t really be taken seriously. A few guitar sounds can be heard on the album, but the music is mostly electronic. Some songs rock a little more, like ‘My name is Lucifa’. The beats are catchy, but rather monotonous and get boring after a few songs. The sound of Dein Schatten seems to be attractive at first hearing and capable of potential commercial succes. But I really think most compositions are too simple. The lyrics are also full of cliches. There must be a market for this album though, since most (German) reviews I read about it are very positive. For me it doesn’t work though. The first single of Dein Schatten, ‘Woanders sein’, is present on this album in two versions. Well, I don’t think they are that ‘anders’ than many other acts around.