SCHIZOPHRENIA

In my passion as a fan of progressive music, I have rarely seen a band surprising me with a new album that could compete with one of their earlier releases, even after decades. Indeed! Pink Floyd was one of those bands. Of course also Porcupine Tree and later Steven Wilson as soloist. As well as Anathema, Riverside and Pineapple Thief. But of course all this still has to do with the personal taste of each listener. That's how I feel with the German project SHAMALL, which is about the multi-instrumentalist Norbert Krüler. Starting out as a DJ, he quickly discovered his passion for composing and producing his own music and created his own corner in progressive rock with friends. I have to say now that I own all his albums and therefore I have followed the career and development of this artist for a long time. But this is another story. Anyway, for me personally it is clear that already the previous album "Turn Off" is a must in every CD collection. The same can be said of his latest work "Schizophrenia".

"Schizophrenia" is the title of SHAMALL's latest album, and the main theme deals with the passive and ignorant attitude of a world that is isolating itself more and more. A world which notices the growing problems but reacts indifferently and pretends it's none of their business. Many different interpretations of the theme are sung in 12 of 22 Songs by Norbert Krüler and Anke Ullrich, who is now singing on the meanwhile third album, professionally and passionately, sometimes demanding and aggressive. The other titles - and these are a large part of this release - consist of instrumental tracks, elaborate intros and interludes. Exceptionally versatile guitar solos by guitarist Matthias Mehrtens are in no way inferior to the playful keyboard solos in length, versatility and playing quality. Solos that often develop into fireworks and are stopped by enormous brass instruments. The passion and expression of this release is extraordinary, but at this point i do not want to make a detailed review of the individual tracks, because everybody feels that differently. That's why I concentrate myself mainly on the playful and sound-technical changes - that I think should be mentioned - in relation to the previous albums. First of all the style hasn't changed. For me, thank god !!! and the quality of the sound is exceptionally good. I love this kind of music. For me this Album is more sophisticated and thrilling. Krüler knows how to capture his view and emotions in music. And once again uncompromisingly, as if there was only his feeling and not the expectations of his listeners, he presents us a work that we have to like as it is. His undying preference for Moog sounds is all around us and the (once again) double album doesn't lack epic and pathos either. A lot of his tracks have an epic length combined, as if we had nothing else to do but listening to Shamall. If you would compare Shamall with a feature film or TV series, then Shamall would be the "Game of Thrones" type. Unimpressed by whether anyone could get bored, Norbert Krüler, with the help of his long-time companions, passionately rolls out what he thinks he has to tell. With a total length of 150 minutes, you need timeI to enjoy this album. I for my part did it and i love it