''Tekkno'' is the sixth studio album by German

metalcore Metalcore (also known as metallic hardcore) is a fusion music genre that combines elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. As with other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use of ...

band

Electric Callboy Electric Callboy (formerly known as Eskimo Callboy) is a German electronicore band formed in Castrop-Rauxel in 2010. They take a more relaxed approach to the genre, and are known for their comedic songs, live shows and videos. History Early r ...

. The album was released on 16 September 2022 through

Century Media Records Century Media Records is a heavy metal record label with offices in the United States, Germany and London. In August 2015, Century Media was acquired by Sony Music for US$17 million. Background Century Media was founded by Robert Kampf and Oli ...

. It is the band's first album to feature Nico Sallach as the band's clean vocalist and their first since they changed their name from Eskimo Callboy to Electric Callboy.

Background

On 22 December 2021, the band announced that they were removing old songs from all platforms due to offensive lyrics and that they would be changing their band name. On March 9, 2022, the band announced their new name, Electric Callboy from now on. The band changed the word 'Eskimo' to 'Electric' because it can be seen as a derogatory name for the Inuit and Yupik people in Alaska. They subsequently re-released the artwork from their previous albums with their new name.

Release and promotion

On 3 September 2021, the band released the lead single, "We Got the Moves". On 3 December 2021, the band released the second single, "Pump It". On 6 December 2021, the band submitted "Pump It" into the German national selection for the

Eurovision Song Contest 2022 The Eurovision Song Contest 2022 was the 66th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Turin, Italy, following the country's victory at the with the song "" by Måneskin. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and h ...

, but ultimately were not included in the final list of participants. In December 2021, the band announced that they would be going on a United States tour with

Attack Attack! Attack Attack! is an American metalcore band from Westerville, Ohio, originally formed in 2007 as Ambiance, later changing their name. Attack Attack!'s first release, an independent EP titled ''If Guns Are Outlawed, Can We Use Swords?'', was ...

from October to November 2022. On 8 April 2022, the band released their first song under their new name, "Spaceman", featuring rapper

Finch The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...

. On 15 April 2022, Electric Callboy announced ''Tekkno'', which was released on 9 September 2022. On 8 July 2022, the band released the fourth single, "Fckboi", with the American metalcore band

Conquer Divide Conquer Divide is an American rock band whose members are from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada, with one former member coming from Serbia. History 2013-2017 The band was formed in Michigan by guitarist and songwriter Kriste ...

. On 19 August 2022, the band released the fifth single, "Hurrikan". The release date for the album was changed to 16 September 2022. In the following week, they had to postpone their UK/France Tour as well as cancelling their participation on the US Level-Up tour with Attack Attack! due to their singer Nico Sallach having a jaw and middle ear infection. On 21 November 2022, the band released a music video for "Mindreader".

Composition

''Tekkno'' has been described as

, pop, electro,

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s ...

, and

pop metal Pop metal (sometimes conflated with or used interchangeably with glam metal) is an umbrella term for commercial heavy metal and hard rock styles which feature prominent pop music elements such as catchy hooks and anthemic choruses. It became ...

. ''Tuonela Magazine'' described the album as a "mash-up between

Eurodance Euro-Dance (sometimes referred to as Euro-NRG, Euro-electronica or Euro) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s in Europe. It combines many elements of hip hop, techno, Hi-NRG, house music, and Euro-Disco. This ...

-inspired tunes and brutal

djent Djent () is a subgenre of progressive metal characterised by its use of off-beat and complex rhythm patterns. Its distinctive sound is that of high-gain, distorted, palm-muted, down-tuned strings. The name "djent" is an onomatopoeia of this s ...

-sprinkled riffs. According to ''Hysteria Mag'', "Fckboi" leans into a

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...

sound, while utilizing alternative rock and

trap A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research. Trap or TRAP may also refer to: Art and entertainment Films and television * ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...

elements. Nicholas Senior writing for ''New Noise Magazine'', noted "

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

styles" on "Neon". "Mindreader" and "Parasite" mix the band's metalcore and

rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mus ...

sound. "Mindreader" opens with an "atmospheric

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

/synth intro". The song "Hurrikan" starts off with German schlager and switches to

deathcore Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore breakdowns. While there are some precursors to the concept of death metal fused with met ...

Reception

''Tekkno'' received generally positive reviews from critics. Nicholas Senior of ''New Noise Magazine'' stated, "Tekkno appropriately feels like a rebirth for the famed ravecore pioneers. A new name, a renewed sense of style, and clearly they were having as much fun as possible when making this." Writing for ''

Sputnikmusic Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...

'', Trey noted improvements this album made in comparison to the band's previous work stating, "Each album since Crystals had been increasingly bland and uninspired, while at the same time neutering the heavier elements of their past; Tekkno fixes all of that...huge breakdowns, brilliant pop choruses, modern and old-school electro, metalcore riffs, and a large dose of escapist fun." Paul Brown was positive towards the album's mix of

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...

and

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

and called the album "wacky, unpredictable and...one of the funniest releases in recent years." Nick Ruskell of ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...

'' was less positive towards the different elements the band uses stating, "the disparate elements of the music are all so brightly coloured that often they refuse to mix...the novelty is stretched so far that it's hard to see past it."

Commercial performance

''Tekkno'' entered the

German albums chart The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...

at No. 1 in the week after release, the highest ranking any record of Electric Callboy achieved.

Track listing

Personnel

Electric Callboy * Kevin Ratajczak – unclean vocals, keyboards, programming, production * Daniel "Danskimo" Haniß – lead guitar, production, mixing * Pascal Schillo – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, production * Daniel Klossek – bass guitar, backing vocals * David-Karl Friedrich – drums * Nico Sallach – clean vocals Guests *

– "Fckboi" *

– "Spaceman" Additional personnel * Conquer Divide – production ("Fckboi") * Daniel Großmann – production ("Spaceman") * Christoph Wieczorek – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 2022 albums Century Media Records albums Electric Callboy albums