Parting is never easy. It ain't easy to leave behind a long-time lover. It ain't easy to say goodbye to a good and fruitful decade. And it surely ain't easy to bury a band, especially if it has been as glorious as German Indietronica showcase combo Monomatik. The Cologne based musicians released some of the finest music in the intersection of Pop, Rock, Dance, and Electronica. Their 'weapon of choice' in all the years since their first EP 'Sefton Park' back in 2004 has always been iD.EOLOGY, one of the finest netlabels around, which shares the bands' roots in the pulsing media capitol at the Rhein.

Monomatik demised after their fabulous 2008 release 'But We Made it So Far', but the dust has settled, and two-thirds of the band has decided to go on together. But not everything changed: Feran and Asbo Kid asked iD.EOLOGY to be the label behind the very first album of their new project Ghazed again, and the name of these first musical vital signs comes under the equally optimistic and sarcastic comment 'We'll Turn Into Gold'.

And they added a third member to their sonic collaboration again: Entertainment For The Braindead is indeed a very well-known name for everyone who has been following the netaudio scene over the last couple of years and hasn't had his head in the sand. It's a wonderful and interesting chance to hear Julia Kotowski's enticing voice in a totally different musical environment, far away from the former folk-esque songwriting on her solo releases.

The best things happen by accident, as we all know, and this unusual, but top-class combination proves to be one of the most positive surprises of this year - not only in netlabel-ism. The powerful, massive drum works, the heavily distorted guitars, the partly raw vocals, combined with the ethereal voice of EFTB, positively remind me of the glory days of Phillip Boa And The Voodooclub, sometimes claimed to be the inventors of what we call Indietronica today. Although the production is full of pressure and satisfies with a very present sound, Ghazed was very clever not to polish every note and beat to its ultimate as they have done on their Monomatik releases. This leaves the album in a very raw, almost pure state of production, and the overall sound of the album enormously benefits from that decision.

'We'll Turn Into Gold' is already one of the best releases of this year without the slightest doubt, and it deserves every attention it'll get. So download it, play it (loud!), and spread the word. Can it get any better? For me, it already doesn't have to ...

Gahzed - We'll Turn Into Gold | Gahzed on MySpace