Symbols (album)

The tenth studio album by German industrial band KMFDM, titled with a string of five unpronounceable, non-alphabetic symbols and commonly known as Symbols,[1][3] was released on 23 September 1997 by Wax Trax! Records.

Symbols
Studio album by
KMFDM
Released23 September 1997 (1997-09-23)[1][2]
Studio
Genre
Length56:34
LabelWax Trax!/TVT
Producer
  • KMFDM
  • Chris Shepard
KMFDM chronology
Xtort
(1996)		 Symbols
(1997)		 Adios
(1999)
Singles from Symbols
  1. "Megalomaniac"
    Released: 1997
  2. "Anarchy"
    Released: 1997

Background

Recorded in Seattle, Washington, Symbols marked the introduction of Tim Skold. While his contribution to this album was as a guest, he would become a full-fledged member for Adios and Attak. Sascha Konietzko, the frontman of KMFDM, said the title had no special meaning, and was just an idea for a title the group had very early on, before a single album had been released.[4] En Esch said the idea for the album title came from the symbols used for curses in comic books.[5] The symbols appear in the printed lyrics of "Down and Out"; the corresponding point in the song is covered with a censor-like beep in the song, and is replaced with "(SYMBOLS)" on the official KMFDM lyrics archive.[6]

Release

Symbols was released on September 23, 1997.[1] "Megalomaniac", "Anarchy", and "Leid und Elend" were included on the soundtrack of the video game Test Drive 5. "Megalomaniac" was also featured in the film Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, and was the first single from its soundtrack.[7] "Anarchy" appeared on the European version of the soundtrack to the 1998 film Lost in Space.

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Chicago Sun-Timespositive[8]
CMJ New Music Monthlyno score[9]

Andy Hinds of Allmusic gave a mixed review, calling some of the band's ideas repetitive while praising the programming.[1] He also commented that the band keeps its sound fresh by bringing in new contributing artists for each new album, and noted the presence of Tim Skold and Nivek Ogre. He called the production top quality and the album "a fine place for newcomers to start," but said that Symbols offers people that have been following the band few surprises.[1] Kevin Williams of the Chicago Sun-Times called "Megalomaniac" an "incredible, irresistible opener" and said the album "could result in a KMFDM takeover of electronica."[8]

"Stray Bullet" received significant media attention after the Columbine High School Massacre because the song's lyrics were posted on the website of one of the shooters, Eric Harris.[10] The song was also in the background of one of the videos posted by Pekka-Eric Auvinen on YouTube prior to the Jokela school shooting.[10]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Megalomaniac"
6:07
2."Stray Bullet"
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Konietzko
  • Schulz
5:32
3."Leid und Elend" ("Sorrow and Misery")
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Konietzko
  • Schulz
6:10
4."Mercy"
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Schulz
5:00
5."Torture"Nivek OgreKonietzko7:04
6."Spit Sperm"Raymond Watts
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Schulz
4:46
7."Anarchy"Tim Skold
5:35
8."Down and Out"
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Schulz
6:40
9."Unfit"Watts
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Schulz
6:01
10."Waste"
  • Konietzko
  • Travis
  • Esch
  • Konietzko
  • Rieflin
  • Schulz
3:39
Total length:56:34

Personnel

References
  1. Hinds, Andy. "Symbols Review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 12 March 2010.
  2. "KMFDM History on April 4, 1997 from archive.org". KMFDM Inc. Archived from the original on 8 April 1997. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  3. "Discography - Symbols". KMFDM Inc. Archived from the original on 8 March 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  4. Rule, Greg (1999). "KMFDM". Electro Shock!: Groundbreakers of Synth Music. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 9780879305826. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  5. Iwasaki, Scott (5 December 1997). "Punk, wave, even Zappa helped shape KMFDM". Deseret News. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  6. "Lyrics: Down & Out". KMFDM Inc. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  7. Bendersky, Ari (15 October 1997). "Mortal Kombat Getting Ready To Annihilate America". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
  8. Williams, Kevin (9 November 1997). "KMFDM pours on industrial-strength rock". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 13.
  9. Reighley, Kurt B. (December 1997). "KMFDM, ['Symbols'] — Wax Trax!/TVT". Reviews. CMJ New Music Monthly. No. 52. pp. 49–50. Retrieved 23 May 2018 – via Google Books.
  10. Torma, Sami (7 November 2007). "Nine die in Finland after YouTube post". Reuters. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
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