Kommando XY- Welcome to Gestrikland

Artist: Kommando XY

Album: Welcome to Gestrikland

Date: 8/31/09

Reviewer: Robert Eaton

“Welcome to Gestrikland” is an album of 10 songs of martial-sounding industrial that will sound familiar to fans of bands like Liabach. Kommando XY hails from Gavle, Sweden. If the album’s ten tracks lack slightly in polish, that lack is made up for.  The band matches a guttural vocal delivery, lyrics not in English, and minimalist Nitzer Ebb-like programming. It’s a time-honored formula, one that has been made good use of, and is not likely to disappear any time soon. This is not at all to say that “Welcome to Gestrikland” is a retread over too-familiar territory, by any means. It’s refreshing, if anything, to hear  good floor-stomping music which also seems to have a sense of humor as well. Points of the album certainly are a match for the material’s inspirations. It’s worthwhile to take the trip to “Gestrikland,” as it were.

            “Genesis Does” just slams in a really brutal and relentless way, even if what can be deciphered of the lyrics is really pretty ridiculous. (“Genesis” seems to refer to the video-game system popular in the states during the 1990’s.) “Kvinner” moves along at a frenetic pace. Vocalist Jocke M.’s snear almost visible in the vocals he delivers.  Unfortunately, the song ends abruptly, and without much development. “Vargavinter” is slightly more melodic then some of the other tracks, at least during interludes between verses. This isn’t an album where a band is showing a great deal of range.  The band simply is what it is. However, for a lot of old industrial fans, that’s enough. Kommando XY hits right on the head of what made a lot of the classic industrial acts that they list as influences great.

            Kommando XY states the themes for their music as “masculinity, booze, and life.” If that’s your sort of thing, with a lot of screaming in Swedish, and aggressive Nitzer Ebb sounding programming, this album is more than worth checking out. This is the sort of album that you may find yourself chanting along to, even though you’re not ever sure what you’re saying. 

Check out the band: http://www.myspace.com/kommandoxy