Short Reviews [Manuel Schmid und Marek Arnold - 2022 - "Ziele"]

This is the second album from the duo of Manuel Schmid (vocals, keyboards), and Marek Arnold (keyboards, programming, saxophone, vocals). I have been following Marek’s career for some years now through bands such as SSTTGD, Toxic Smile and others, and it is safe to say I am a huge fan of much of what he does as he brings his keyboard and saxophone skills to play in songs which invariably are highly commercial and so much fun to listen to. Marek was also a founder of Cyril, which were built out of Gabria, and I smiled when I realised that Denis Strassburg (bass), Ralf Dietsch (guitars), and Clemens Litschko (drums) were all here as guests. It even includes current Cyril drummer Manuel Humpf, while Manuel joined that band in time for their last album, ‘Amenti's Coin - Secret Place Pt. II’, meaning only Larry Brodel is missing so perhaps it of little surprise that Marek informs me they have played some of these songs with Cyril. This album contains many elements which long-time followers of Marek’s bands will find very familiar indeed, although there they are moved more into the commercial pop rock field. Manuel has a wonderful vocal style, incredibly melodic, and the result is something which can feel somewhat lightweight at times yet is also wonderfully compelling. It is enjoyable the first time one plays it and only gets better the more time it is listened to. A special mention must also be made of Peter Rasym, as his fretless bass on “Fremder Strand” is so beautiful and delightful that it almost takes all the attention away from the rest of what is taking place. Some may find this album a little too into the more commercial stylings of progressive music than they are happy with, while given the vocals are all in German that also may be off-putting to some, yet I found this an absolute delight. Marek loves doubletracking his sax and keyboards in a way which confuses the ear (is it one instrument or two?) and in Manuel he has a perfect foil in the way they work together. This may not get nearly as much attention as some of Marek’s other releases but is well worth uncovering and a worthy addition to his canon.