The Flight [Lux] - Edge of Dawn

Edge of Dawn are a new duo on Dependent, although a lot of people will be familiar with one member of this new group. The unknown member (for now…) is programmer Mario Schumacher who has teamed up with vocalist Frank Spinath, better known by many for his work in Seabound. This two track sampler is a precursor to the upcoming 9 track EP.

The Flight [Lux] tells the story of Witali Kalojew, a Russian who lost his wife and two children in a mid-air collision where errors by Swiss air traffic control were at least partially responsible. One and a half years after the accident, the air traffic controller on duty that fateful night is found murdered in his home in Switzerland, the victim of multiple stab wounds. Kalojew is arrested in a hotel just a few blocks away.

This story is actually true, although the spelling of the name is different in the news reports I read. The actual crash in 2002 was down to problems with the collision detection systems in SkyGuide, the Swiss air traffic control system, and although there was only one person (the murdered man) on duty that night, he was not aware of any problems on the systems he was watching and seemingly did his utmost to prevent the crash. Unfortunately he seemed to become the focus of Kalojew's anger and yet more tragedy unfolded.

The track itself is a very catchy track with harsh insistent synth motifs, very club-like. Spinath's vocals are a mix between whispered industrial and spoken vocals. The music and vocals work well together and this is going to be a popular song across the genre in my opinion. The second track is a remix by the band themselves, although in truth probably by Schumacher alone (but who cares…), and is a much more fulfilling track. The percussion and drum patterns are much more varied and more synth is added to the mix to flesh it out a bit more.

I'm looking forward to the EP proper and then the album next year…

This review originally appeared on www.synthpop.net in 2005