Fassade (English: Facade) is the seventh album by German duo Lacrimosa released on 1 October 2001 by Hall of Sermon and Nuclear Blast.

Fassade
Studio album by
Released1 October 2001
StudioImpuls Musicproductions, Hamburg
GenreGothic metal
Length52:55
LabelHall of Sermon HOS 7840, Nuclear Blast
ProducerTilo Wolff
Lacrimosa chronology
Elodia
(1999)
Fassade
(2001)
Echos
(2003)

Themes

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Whereas the previous album, Elodia, centered on love, Fassade's theme is that of a lonely individual feeling overwhelmed by society,[1][2] exemplified by the central song, Fassade, divided into three Sätze (movements), and the album's artwork. There are also sounds between symphonic gothic metal and funeral doom metal rhythms and patterns, as seen in Fassade's different parts.

The album's cover shows a crowd of men and women identically dressed in what can be assumed to be grey (the album's cover is in greyscale), emotionlessly watching three women wearing gothic lingerie parade down a catwalk. Every single individual in the audience has his or her head wired to the person next to them, implying that they are all part of a hivemind. The only person present other than the models and the audience is Lacrimosa's trademark clown, standing in a side door. The back of the album's cover shows that the back wall of the theater has fallen away, revealing nothing but fog and the top of a skyscraper.

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Exclaim!favorable[1]
Sonic Seducerfavorable[2]

Fassade received positive reviews from the Canadian Exclaim! magazine as well as from the German Sonic Seducer. Exclaim! noted that the German vocals added to the overall "doom and gloom atmosphere" but was reluctant about the fact that all songs seemingly end too abruptly.[1] The Seducer marked a surprisingly intense singing by Tilo Wolff and concluded that both singers Wolff and Nurmi would demand much attention from the listener.[2]

Track listing

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No.TitleEnglish titleLength
1."Fassade - 1. Satz"Facade - 1st Movement9:16
2."Der Morgen danach"The Morning After4:17
3."Senses"Senses6:03
4."Warum so tief?"Why So Deep?9:11
5."Fassade - 2. Satz"Facade - 2nd Movement5:34
6."Liebesspiel"Loveplay4:38
7."Stumme Worte"Silent Words5:57
8."Fassade - 3. Satz"Facade - 3rd Movement7:44

Personnel

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  • Arranged By, Orchestrated By, Producer – Tilo Wolff
  • Mastered By – Helge Halvé
  • Orchestra – Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg
  • Recorded By [Recordings Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg] – Michael Schubert
  • Recorded By, Mixed By – JP Genkel
  • Text By, Music By – Anne Nurmi (tracks: 3), Tilo Wolff (tracks: 1, 2, 4 to 8)

Charts

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Chart (2001) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[3] 20
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[4] 31

References

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  1. ^ a b c Wolanski, Coreen (2002). "Lacrimosa Fassade". Exclaim!. No. 2. Retrieved 22 November 2011.
  2. ^ a b c Abresche, Thomas (2001). "Lacrimosa – Fassade". Sonic Seducer (in German). No. 10. Archived from the original on 5 April 2012.
  3. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Lacrimosa – Fassade" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts.
  4. ^ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry.