Avaritia

The first release from this North-German duo was remarkably successful for a debut. Right across Europe Avaritia gained compilation appearances, interviews in some major music magazines, masses of positive reviews and dance-floor exposure, especially in England.
With Pulse, Avaritia continue from where the last CD left off: extended by new influences and dynamic song-writing. This release is blessed with clear structures, euphoric lead and dirty rhythm-guitars and pumping bass. The powerful and expressive voice of female vocalist Dorit adds a unique dimension - making the sound very British - Avaritia avoid following cheap trends. Melodic, driving rock-music with tons of catchy tune potential.

The band's last release was recorded and produced entirely in England – this time they headed into the renowned Alien Style-studio in Bremen (Germany), where Rolf Kirschbaum (who's produced such legends as The Sound and The Chameleons) gave a powerful and modern sound to the production.

Tracklist:

1 – And Here They Are Again
2 – Days Like This
3 – Summer’s Gone
4 – To Preserve And Never To Forget
5 – Hour-Glass
6 – Strangers
7 – Your Inability

Examples:

And Here They Are Again
Days Like This
Strangers

Reviews:

Moving Hands
Avaritia „Pulse“
7 of 10 points
This is the debut album of the German constellation Avaritia. All the music is made by Mathias Dopp, from Passion Play, and Dorit Karstedt handles the vocals. The music has a classic guitar goth sound to it, but still they make it sound fresh, and innovative in a way. But of course they use guitar, bass and drum-machine. I find that many goth bands sound a bit daft, they work so hard on sounding cool it comes back at them. But then again, I don’t really know if it is correct to categorize Avaritia as a goth band. But it doesn’t matter, the music is good and that is what counts. And I do really enjoy listening to this record, the vocals are great, albeit the pronunciation isn’t perfect. But I find a certain charm in the way Dorit handles the lyrics, written by herself.
In my opinion there is one track that really outshines the other six, “Hour-glass” is one of the best tracks I’ve heard this year. I have a feeling it will be something of a torment for my friends during this summer. In the words of Avaritia, “everybody has to listen to this melody”.
/Fredrik Hörström

Starvox.net
A debut album from a new band from Germany, although you may recognise one of the people involved. Matthias Dopp is the bass player in Passion Play - this is his own band. Avaritia is a duo; Matthias does the music and Dorit Karstedt the vocals, although there's a bassist (the enigmatic Zwigg) on board for live work. If you've ever wondered what happened to that classic guitar-goth sound - the kind of stuff the March Violets used to do, or perhaps All About Eve before they went all hippy on us and started playing folk festivals - wonder no more. This music is alive and well and living in the heads of Avaritia. Now, that doesn't mean that Avaritia a retro band: quite the reverse. Pulse has a freshness about it that's entirely 2003. But you can tell where the band are coming from. They're definitely graduates of the old school. There are seven tracks of nimble, guitar-driven gothic rockers here, ranging from the urgent, forceful 'And Here They Are Again', upon which several layers of guitars jostle for supremacy, to the almost country-ish stroll of 'Summer's Gone', which almost sounds like vintage Mekons. 'Strangers' is a slow-building spiral, while 'Your Inability' has some neat, delicate, touches of guitar underpinned by dramatic, slashing, chords. Dorit's singing is relaxed, effortless. She never strains for a note, or finds herself in difficulties when the vocal melody heads into uncharted territory. She sounds completely at home in the songs, and it's actually quite rare to hear that kind of easy confidence in avocalist. So many singers these days are only just getting away with it; to encounter a singer who has a certain no-fuss assurance is less common than it should be in these troubled times. Avaritia has the feel of a guitarist's band. In every song the guitar is always the principal instrument. The bass keeps itself at a respectful distance from the swirling guitars, quietly going about its bottom-end business and allowing the guitar sound to assert itself. The guitar is organic, chiming, gritty, physical, a dominant presence in the mix. By contrast, the programmed drum sound is immaculate and precise: the drum machine never lets you forget that it *is* a drum machine. The chik-chik-chik hi-hat sounds squeaky clean, as if it had been scrubbed and laundered before being allowed out to play, and when a vintage drum roll effect comes up in the intro to 'Hour-glass' I was transported back to the mid-90s when such drum-machine driven bands as Vendemmian would sprinkle these effects throughout their music. I'd like to hear a fully organic Avaritia line-up: I think a human drummer would beef up the rhythm section and give the band that vital sense of grit in the gears which the polished drum programs don't really provide. But for all that, if you're hungry for a fresh take on a classic sound, here's a band which proves that old-school gothic goodness never dies.
Uncle Nemesis