,,DAUMENBRUCH''

This is so far the last modern studio release from Faust, which makes it quite bittersweet. I doubt this is their LAST last album, hell for all we know next week might give us another album from the band. Faust is wildly unpredictable, which is why they are so charming. The only thing consistent is that they've been putting banger after banger out ever since the 2009 release of C'est com... com... compliqué, barring a few exceptions, with them peaking quite strongly with Fresh Air. So, five years after, and in a new decade, they decided to hit the studio once again, but this time a bit differently...

,,Daumenbruch'', or just Daumenbruch if you rather not include the ,, & the '', is a showcase on how to collaborate right on your krautrock projects. In my Disconnected review I mentioned that Faust wasn't quite fit for collaborative efforts, but as it seems I am quite wrong on this assumption because Daumenbruch shows a very mature lining within the Faust discography in how they decided to handle shared projects. This time their experiment was to record some rough mixes of the three tracks here, and send them out to a couple of their friends from other groups, and have them mix these tapes, before mashing them into three separate tracks for our listening pleasure.

I think what makes this whole idea work so well is that these artists are more in line with what Faust was trying to create ever since their debut (fitting since this album's cover is very similar to that one). Sure, dälek and Nurse With Wound did have a clear fondness for Faust as shown through their own works, but I feel like having members from groups like Einstürzende Neubauten and Stadtfischflex helps a lot more with their vision, as their own visions line up like a puzzle. And guess what, it shows quite well within the first track, being this massive, creepy jam that feels both entirely Faust, but still has the elements the other artists wanted to try out. Nothing overpowers, or underpowers anything in conjunction, creating for a near perfect fusion between Faust and the greater world.

There is also a clear sense of enjoyment found within these tracks, as shown by how clean, crisp, and stylized each song is in production value. I can feel the joy these artists must've felt, which is something I love to hear within my music. You know, strangely this all reminds me of Earthside's Let The Truth Speak and how that album handled their collabs. I guess I am just a sucker for when musicians work together well.

My favorite track off here has to be Border River. It is a perfect send off for this record, being this 18 minute soundtrack to some avant-garde apocalypse, and it is so enriching and juicy that I feel like I am on another planet whenever I hear it. It ending with a cacophony of sounds is also just a French, or in this case, German kiss on this whole record; A perfect encapsulation on what came before.

If I had one thing to say that this album gets wrong, however, it'd probably be that this feels like a diet Faust Wakes Nosferatu. I know, I compare a lot of albums to it, but I think that album does a lot of things right in such a good amount of time that I cannot help but try to compare and contrast some things with each other. Daumenbruch has a lot of the same vibes and technicalities that Nosferatu had, and they certainly did them well, but I feel like Nosferatu's raw atmosphere, quieter suspense, and the longer direction makes it the superior album. I also think the track listing being so little, despite the massive tracks present, does show a problem in the meat of this album. I love these big tracks, a lot in fact, but I think Faust albums work best with some smaller tracks thrown in for good measure, which I think, if this album did have such things, could be a secondary masterpiece to Nosferatu, but alas I feel like I have to bump the grade down a smidge.

This record certainly is a testament in the power Faust can have, and with more people to boot it just becomes a grand ol' time. Highly recommend this one, obviously, and it is indeed a treat for anyone who is more into the abstract sides of krautrock music. We just have one more Faust record left, so let's finish things off right and well.

Best tracks: Weisse Schokolade, Border River

Worst tracks: N/A