''The Hyperion Machine'' is the tenth studio album by the Luxembourgish music act

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, released on 12 August 2016 by

Trisol Music Group The Trisol Music Group, GmbH (or Trisol), is a German business group and record label headquartered in Dieburg. Owning multiple sublabels, they specialize in producing musical works pertaining to darkwave, dark folk, gothic rock, dea ...

Release

released ''The Hyperion Machine'' on 12 August 2016. It was Rome's tenth studio album in ten years.

Reception

'' Laut.de''s Toni Hennig said ''The Hyperion Machine'' breaks with Rome's last few records by not being a historically themed

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. So ...

, but it addresses some of the same subjects. These include the treatment of Jews and political opponents by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

in the songs "The Secret Germany (For Paul Celan)", which references Paul Celan's "

Todesfuge "" (Deathfugue) is a German language poem written by the Romanian-born poet Paul Celan probably around 1945 and first published in 1948. It is one of his best-known and often-anthologized poems. Despite critics claiming that the lyrical finesse an ...

", and "Die Mörder Mühsams", which is about the

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessari ...

Erich Mühsam Erich Mühsam (6 April 1878 – 10 July 1934) was a German-Jewish antimilitarist anarchist essayist, poet and playwright. He emerged at the end of World War I as one of the leading agitators for a federated Bavarian Soviet Republic, for whi ...

. Marco De Baptistis of ' described the historical and literary references—which include

Louis-Ferdinand Céline Louis Ferdinand Auguste Destouches (27 May 1894 – 1 July 1961), better known by the pen name Louis-Ferdinand Céline ( , ) was a French novelist, polemicist and physician. His first novel '' Journey to the End of the Night'' (1932) won the '' P ...

and the novel ''Hyperion'' by

Friedrich Hölderlin Johann Christian Friedrich Hölderlin (, ; ; 20 March 1770 – 7 June 1843) was a German poet and philosopher. Described by Norbert von Hellingrath as "the most German of Germans", Hölderlin was a key figure of German Romanticism. Pa ...

—as romantic, ghostly and hallucinatory. Hennig described the album as musically divided in two halves, where the first has simple arrangements and the second is "more exciting" and uses

ambient Ambient or Ambiance or Ambience may refer to: Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgrounds * Ambient music, a genre of music that puts an emphasis on tone and atmosphere * ''Ambient'' (album), by Moby * ...

techniques. The Swedish newspaper ''

Dagens Nyheter ''Dagens Nyheter'' (, ), abbreviated ''DN'', is a daily newspaper in Sweden. It is published in Stockholm and aspires to full national and international coverage, and is widely considered Sweden's newspaper of record. History and profile ' ...

'' brought up the collaboration with Thåström, who appears as a guest vocalist on the song "Stillwell" and has his song "FanFanFan" covered by Rome as a bonus track. The critic said the

neofolk Neofolk, also known as apocalyptic folk, is a form of experimental music blending elements of folk and industrial music, which emerged in punk rock circles in the 1980s. Neofolk may either be solely acoustic or combine acoustic folk instrumen ...

on ''The Hyperion Machine'' has some similarities to Thåström's music, as well as to

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian singer, songwriter, poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor. Known for his baritone voice and for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, C ...

and the "late industrial blues" of

Einstürzende Neubauten (, 'Collapsing New Buildings') is a German experimental music group, formed in West Berlin in 1980. The group is currently composed of founding members Blixa Bargeld (lead vocals; guitar; keyboard) and N.U. Unruh (custom-made instruments; perc ...

. Sara Berg of ''

Nöjesguiden ''Nöjesguiden'' (Swedish for "the entertainment guide") is a Nordic free-of-charge young adult monthly magazine, available in the major cities in Sweden, which was established in 1982. It is also published with similar format In Finland under t ...

'' described the album as "

americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

post-rock Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation ...

, polished

growl Growling is a low, guttural vocalization produced by predatory animals; producing ''growls''. Growling or growl may also refer to: Sounds * Death growl, the dominant singing style in death metal music * Stomach growl, or borborygmus, noise produ ...

and dystopian melodies"; unfortunately, according to Berg, it has a "martyr-solemn sound" which makes it seem self-pitying. De Baptistis wrote that the album combines Rome's later influences from

Jacques Brel Jacques Romain Georges Brel (, ; 8 April 1929 – 9 October 1978) was a Belgian singer and actor who composed and performed literate, thoughtful, and theatrical songs that generated a large, devoted following—initially in Belgium and France, l ...

and

Léo Ferré Léo Ferré (24 August 1916 – 14 July 1993) was a French-born Monégasque poet and composer, and a dynamic and controversial live performer, whose career in France dominated the years after the Second World War until his death. He released so ...

with the

martial industrial Martial industrial is a syncretic offshoot of industrial music characterized by Noise music, noise, dark ambient atmospheres, neofolk melodies, dark wave tunes and Neoclassicism (music), neoclassical orchestrations as well as the incorporation ...

elements of the band's early releases. He said ''The Hyperion Machine'' is more varied than Rome's previous records and that the guest appearance from Thåström turned out successful, hoping to see more collaboration between him and Rome. Hennig said the melodies, rhythms and mood alone make the album worth listening to, but the lyrics add another depth and make it a ''

Gesamtkunstwerk A ''Gesamtkunstwerk'' (, literally 'total artwork', translated as 'total work of art', 'ideal work of art', 'universal artwork', 'synthesis of the arts', 'comprehensive artwork', or 'all-embracing art form') is a work of art that makes use of al ...

''.

Track listing

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hyperion Machine 2016 albums Rome (band) albums