Erato is a Belgian wave / gothic band that has been around since 1993. They have had some changes in personnel and sound over the years. The band describes their own music as ‘bat rock’, which calls to mind an association with the bat cave sound of the 1980’s. This is only partly true. Erato’s music is a blend of 80’s wave and goth rock with electronic influences. With their mix of electronic drums, synth lines and guitar parts they could easy appeal to a broad (gothic) audience.
Their demo cd The Irreplaceable One proves this. The 8 tracks on this demo bridge the gap between old and new style gothic music. While certain songs are more rock orientated and others are more electronic they fit together pretty well.
The best songs are “The Irreplaceable One” which starts out with a 80’s Cure like drum and evolves into a goth rock song with strong electronic undertones. Like the other songs this one has good vocals that can be both powerful and subtle.
Another good track is “Hush Me II”, a wave and goth rock influenced song with a Christian Death feeling to it. “Nice Talking” and “Towards The Light” are more based on electronic sounds instead of the guitar. These songs reveil some electro influences and make these song somewhat more dance orientated.
Together these songs, and the others on the disc, make up for a good demo. Erato has found a sound of their own and can only develop further within it. I won’t be surprised if this isn’t the last we hear of this band.
