"Changes," the title of Unplaces' new album, couldn't be more apt. After all, change in all its facets not only inspired the album concept, but also made itself felt in other ways for the band from Bochum and Hanover. Recently separated from their previous band name, NRT, the name change itself is perhaps the most obvious change—but only by a limited margin.
Even more striking in this context is the completely new approach to songwriting, which led frontwoman and main composer Dorette Gonschorek down entirely unfamiliar paths. While in the past the songs were created piece by piece over a long period of time and completely independently of one another, this time the focus was on the bigger picture from the outset. Therefore, "Changes" is a musical and lyrical unity, based on a sophisticated dramaturgy.
The trio playfully combines unobtrusive guitars with passionate vocals, rolls soft keyboard carpets over mechanical drum stencils, and interweaves wave, rock, and post-punk with cautious pop elements into a diverse spectacle of lighthearted melancholy. The lyrical component of the 14 tracks, however, critically approaches the chosen themes, questioning meaning and self-determination in times of mediatization, information overload, globalization, and consumer pressure. How can one keep pace with the constant change in society? Or, better yet, in the words of the title track:
What are changes for? The answer can be found between the lines of "Changes."
1. Utopian Dream
2.Exhaust
3.Changes
4. The Left Behind
5.Lost In Space
6. Such a Shame
7. Reset
8. Downshifting
9.Insight
10. Mister Bot
11 Freedom
12. Pseudo-Reality
13. Against Ourselves
14. Open End
