And One’s latest album, Aggressor, is a return to the minimalist pop sound of their previous records.  The lyrics aren’t particularly deep or thought-provoking - subjects include dead tulips, airplanes, and the color black - but deep thought is not the purpose of this album.  No, the purpose of this album is to pack crowds of black-clad club kids onto the dance floor, and in that regard it succeeds admirably.

Discounting the instrumental intro and outro pieces and the darkly comedic “Tote Tulpen,” there isn’t a track on this album that doesn’t fit perfectly into the flashing strobe lights and thumping electronic bass of today’s EBM/industrial club scene.  In my experience, the stand-out tracks are “Schwarz” and “Fur Immer,” but looking at playlists from around the world it’s obvious that other DJs have had similar success with other tracks off the album - “Sternradio” seems to be particularly popular, though I would have put it a little below “Krieger” and “Fersehapparat,” personally.

If I have any criticism of Aggressor, it’s that it’s a little too “classic And One.”  There’s not a lot to distinguish the tracks on this album from each other, or from previous hits such as Panzermensch and Deutschmaschine.  The one exception, as I noted earlier, is the bouncy-but-sinister Tote Tulpen, an infectious pop dirge about a profoundly dysfunctional relationship.  Good times.

So, would I recommend buying Aggressor?  Well, for people who enjoyed And One’s last few albums, I’d say go for it - these are the same club friendly synthpop anthems And One has been cranking out for years, and they’re as good as they’ve always been.  The band has also paid a lot of attention to the flow from one song to the next on this album, so it works just as well for grooving along in the car or living room as on the dance floor.  For those few club djs who haven’t already gotten their hands on it, though, Aggressor is a no-brainer.  This is one of very few albums almost guaranteed to pack the floor from the first time it’s played, and it’s sure to become a highly requested club staple.

Tracklisting
1. Kein Anfang
2. Schwarz
3. Krieger
4. Sternradio
5. Speicherbar
6. Fehlschlag
7. Fur Immer
8. Einstieg
9. Strafbomber
10. Fersehapparat
11. Tote Tulpen
12. Kein Ende

Current Band Members
Steve Naghavi: lyrics, vocals, programming, keyboards, machines
Chris Ruiz: Vocals, drums, keyboards, programming, dancing
Gio van Oli: keyboards, drums

web: andone.de (German)  www.andone.uk.co (English)
email: steve@andone.de

11/14/04