| German Import | After ten studio and two live albums and more than 100 songs for their 20th jubilee, the release of a 'best of' album might have been expected, but instead of that Lacrimosa surprise us with the double album Schattenspiel ('Shadowplay') on which they present to their audience for the first time fifteen unreleased recordings from the past 20 years. And as if that weren't enough, they have added two brand new songs, composed just for this release.

Reaching a 20 years jubilee is surely not ordinary. And it is even more extraordinary if you bear in mind that all these years Lacrimosa have never signed a deal with a major record company despite a huge commercial success, with top ten positions in the charts of various countries. Artistic freedom has always been the top priority for the band.

In addition to their cultural success, several artists from rock, pop and classical music name Lacrimosa as a source of inspiration. Thus the duo of the German Tilo Wolff and Finnish Anne Nurmi became the co-founders of musical styles such symphonic rock and gothic metal and belong to the most important alternative music groups worldwide.

Schattenspiel starts with the presentation of the first and so far unheard musical steps from the year 1990. Then Tilo and Anne open their private archive with exclusive recordings from the following years and end their journey with the latest productions that can be currently heard from them. And what are we going to hear? I have to admit, rather exceptional recordings! Who would have thought that a band that is essentially known as a rock band had begun their career with pure electro numbers like "Schuld und Sühne" and "Seelenübertritt" (both 1990). The original version of "Schakal" (1994) is particularly surprising. The song officially released in the same year is known as one of the first gothic metal songs ever, though this version doesn't sound like it at all! The classical elements and the bombastic intention can be divined though the guitars which seem inspired by punk rock while the drums have electronic roots. This combination surely needs getting used to but exactly this makes it pretty charming.

Especially worth mentioning are the new titles "Sellador" and "Ohne Dich Ist Alles Nichts" which are almost opposites. While the former revives the band's electronic roots, combining these with classical and rock elements, the latter is full of the strong and large emotions that this polemical but always consistent band are known for.

Overall Schattenspiel is an informative and touching double album which impresses with its courage of being no 'best of' but instead an intimate view into a fascinating musical world that cannot be compared.