CD, Black Rain, 2005
www.supreme-court.tk
Hailing from Chemnitz, Germany, Supreme Court Hail are the brainchild of Kay Hartel (ex DavaNtage vocalist) and this is their first release on the Black Rain label, following a self-released album named Endzyklopadie.
I’m afraid to say that this release is typical of modern teutonic EBM in that it is derivative and bland in the extreme and only aspires to be the sum of its influences rather than building on them. Lyrically the album treads a well worn path and the familiar tirades against authority and religion are present (both subjects that have been done to death) and the vocal delivery is monotone in the extreme. I found that my favourite track on the disc was the instrumental “A.L.S – S.L.A” which, considering I’m not really a fan of instrumental tracks on EBM albums, says an awful lot. Initally I was pleased that at least this album didn’t have typically distorted vocals (a la Black Rain’s sister label Noitekk) but I can’t help but wonder if that would have been an improvement.
Other stand out tracks on the album would be the ones that incorporate guest genre vocalists in the shape of Rexx Arcana and Felix from Feindflug. The former contributes to “Mass Media Murder” which is an up tempo dancefloor anthem complete with catchy newsreel samples and Felix guests on “Terror Chat” which is a standout by default as it does not feature Supreme Court’s original vocalist.
I don’t doubt that this album will have its fans as, after all, bands keep churning out albums like these, so someone must be buying them. Just don’t let it be you. Hopefully the forthcoming collaboration with Feindflug will be a considerable step up from this release.
[3/10]
— Michael Hinchliffe