Loch in der Welt

This release was one of dozens presented by a German music magazine to a panel of judges, all performers from a variety of genres. Without going into detail about what the other records were, suffice to say the Fink CD received one of the best overall ratings, despite some of the English judges not being able to understand the lyrics. Once upon a time it was expected for German bands to sing in English, but that passed out of style somewhere in the late '90s, and on this release all the songs are sung in German. They are delivered zestfully with arrangements highlighting the fat, clear sound of instruments such as dobro, trap drums played with brushes, and, of course, plenty of guitar. So maybe these musicians have an identity problem — witness the group's unflattering name and the identifying of members by first name only in tiny, fuzzy print. They certainly have confidence when it comes to playing, as the tracks were all recorded live in the studio. The finale stretches out to nearly 10 minutes, but what the group is really about is short, radio-length songs smacking of country and folkie roots mixed with punk energy. It is more of a movement than an original formula, but it certainly works. Arrangements come together with a common emphasis on not overdoing anything. Vocals are good and blend well with the overall band sound.