Katarzyna NINa Górnisiewicz | Detailed or mini-review submissions: song, EP/album | Suggest an artist

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Zeistencroix - Stranger (song review) |self-released, Stranger, 2013|

When you have a band with an original name, chances are you'll be noticed. Some may break their tongues trying to pronounce Zeistencroix (seemingly referring to German, Dutch or French). However, it's great to be visible in the world of the Internet ruled by search engines where algorithms decide about a brand's 'to be or not to be'.

Zeistencroix is an American band founded by singer and guitar player Orlando Draven along with a guitarist Jack Akopan in Los Angeles, CA in 2011. Basically speaking, the duo combine their skills into a mixture of tunes full of catchy electronica and soft guitar riffs.
Without a shadow of doubt, "Stranger" has major potential for an everlasting hit. If you're looking for an awesome single for your radio, podcast or TV channel, don't look any further. "Stranger" is a winner thanks to smooth arrangements, memorable and danceable melodies, a Depeche Mode-like romantic softness and an electro-darkwave feel. It's mostly an electronic song, but there's also a swift guitar riff taking the melody even higher and touching both the ears and souls of the listeners. The riff - a truly uplifting tear-jerker - appears in the most desired spot of the composition.

The song's length is ideal for radio-play. Less than 4 minutes of enchanting rhythms makes you want to play it over and over again. Of course, anything repeated too often will become less interesting. Until then, you'll probably spin the song a few more times as well as share the news about the band with your friends.

On the technical level, the song mixing, mastering and overall production are very well done. What's usually very important in any composition - the volume of the vocals - sounds just perfect; the drum beats don't sound too pushy and background synths don't steal the melody, either. All arrangements are brilliantly put in the right places and every instrument as well as each hook can be clearly heard.

Aside from powerful music, "Stranger" delivers a message of desire. The lyrics speak about a casual romance, a night spent with a stranger in an apartment. The narrator's sex is not specified, though. There's such a genre as 'sex music', and you can easily fit "Stranger" into that group thanks to lines such as: "Come now let's burn the flame, feel the desire, lose yourself, release the fire of your skin, unleash your lust consume the sin" which are skillfully aligned with the track's sensual atmosphere. In addition, lyrical rhymes match the song's rhythm very well.

So, are you interested? You need to know more? The latest news is that Zeistencroix have been working on an album called Stranger during the last few weeks. You can track their updates about its progress on both the band's Facebook profile and their official website.

(Katarzyna 'NINa' Górnisiewicz, Fabryka Music Magazine, September 8th, 2013. Proofreading: Mike 'Vesper' Dziewoński)

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