18. March 2025
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Media Review

Andreas Dorau – Wien

Florian Buechtingby Florian Buechting

Andreas Dorau - Wien

Andreas Dorau - Wien
4.8

Rating

 4.8/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Typical Andreas Dorau style
  • Very versatile range of songs
  • Nice dedication to Vienna

Andreas Dorau is back with a new album. On 14th February 2025 (Valentine’s Day…), he is releasing his new album Wien. The title is nothing but the German / local name of Austria’s capital Vienna, which Dorau is dedicating the whole album to. I had to have a listen to this one.

 

Andreas Dorau – About The Artist

Andreas Dorau is  German electronic pop artist, who was born on 19th January 1964 in Hamburg and nowadays also lives there. He is looking back to 14 studio albums. However, his career is dominated by two songs. In teenage years, he released Fred vom Jupiter, which peaked 21st in Germany and 13th in Austria and was a core track of the Neue Deutsche Welle sound in the early 1980’s. In 1997, a remix of his song Girls in Love became a Top 10 hit in France. I dedicated a Songs of my Life post to that song. In preparation for his latest album, the 2024 Im Gebüsch, I also shared a post about my favorite Andreas Dorau songs. In May 2024, I featured an Andreas Dorau concert in Essen.

 

Andreas Dorau – Wien – Track by Track

The thirteen song album lasts 40 minutes. There is also a a bonus edition with eleven additional songs.

1. 45 Lux

45 Lux was the single release, which more or less came in parallel to the announcement of the Wien album. The song is a typical Andreas Dorau song, which is coming with a catching rhythm, made to dance to the vibes and driven by synth sounds and groovy bass lines. The lyrics are Dorau-alike as well: they feel a bit of simple, but finally, the German artist manages to tell his story in that way. This time, he taking you on a nightly walk through the Austrian capital, dedicating the opener to the street lanterns there.

2. 431 42

In Österreich wurd’ fast alles besungen,
jeglichem Thema ein Lied abgerungen

(“In Austria, they sung about almost everything
A song wrung from any kind of topic”)

Andreas Dorau did not necessarily visit a lot of places in Austria and finally wrote songs about it. Some songs emerged from travel guides and other sources. A perfect example is 431 42, which is the number of the Austrian crisis line (which should, in fact, rather be “(+)43 142”, by the way…). 431 42, diese Nummer hat er immer dabei – “431 42 – he always has this number with him”. A song about being lonely and having mental issues – this is also part of Dorau’s view on Vienna.

3. Vienna Sur Mer

The third song becomes a bit of quirky in the context of the album. Vienna is definitely not close to the sea – but Andreas Dorau is doing a summer vibe track out of this metaphor. The song even comes with some political references. A very imaginative song with cool pictures, which leads to a very enjoyable listen.

4. Runde um Runde

One of the most famous sights in Vienna is the historic Wiener Riesenrad (Vienna Ferris Wheel) at the Prater Park. For Dorau, who is acrophobic, it is not the most pleasant thought to see the Austrian capital from the very top. This is what he puts into Runde um Runde, “Round after Round”. At least, I can calm him down: a typical trip there is just one full round. Nonetheless, the storytelling is a typical Dorau-style one with a hilarious touch.

5. Ich kann nicht schlafen

Neonlicht an der Fassade
Flackert und blinkt
Alles ist ungerade
Es flackert und blinkt
Zu meinem Fenster rein
Es ist viel zu hell
Ich schlafe nicht ein

(“Neon lights at the veneer,
Flickering and blinking
Everything is odd
It is flickering and blinking
Through my window
It is too bright
I don’t fall asleep”)

The album also features everyday stories – like lying in a hotel and not being able to fall asleep. That’s exactly what Ich kann nicht schlafen is all about. Especially the chorus of this song is leading to a catching listen.

6. Alles ist gleich

Alles ist gleich – “Everything is the same” – the song is having a psychotic touch and moves away from the Vienna themes and rather touches a general touch. Andreas Dorau is a typical “love it or hate it” artist – but this song is pushing that thought to another level. I feel he perfectly put this mental struggle into sounds in a masterful way and love that track. It may also be disturbing, though. If you feel the same, the artist at least already pointed you to 431 42. 

7. Tourist

Ich bin nur ein Tourist ohne Ahnung wieso dieses oder jenes so ist – “I am just a tourist without knowing why this or that is like it is”. In the seventh track of Wien, Dorau takes the typical role of a tourist in any city out there. A slightly slower song, which comes with a nice and easy melody.

8. Verbautes Haus

Du bist eins der Häuser, die jeder schnell vergisst (“You are one of the house, which everybody quickly forgets”). This song is about a Verbautes Haus, an “Obstructed House”. The melancholic and slow song is in focus of the eighth song of this album. Which feels like a triviality for many visitors, is a special place for Dorau, which finally leads to a special listen on the record. I like it.

9. Hinter Jalousien

Hinter Jalousien (“Behind Blinds”) starts with a keyboard melody, before the sound changes to the typical synth pop style. The song is about that you simply do not know what is happening in all the houses which you cannot look into. Ich bin in einer Stadt, deren Namen nur vier Buchstaben hat (“I am in a city, whose name just has four letters”) – even here is a reference to Wien / Vienna. If you like Andreas Dorau late 1990’s works, this one might be a treat for you as well.

10. Der Regen in Wien

The tenth song is about “The Rain in Vienna”. While most visitors see “bad” weather as not too positive on a city trip, Andreas Dorau points out positive aspects. Dirt, bad thoughts are washed away. He turns this image into a nicely flowing track.

11. Mädchen mit Herz

In the eleventh track of Wien, Dorau is singing about a “Girl with heart”, who is standing in front of a grey wall. Like in previous songs, however, the interesting random meeting did not lead to any social contact – and now he is struggling that.

12. Lass uns spazieren gehen (feat. Stefanie Schrank)

Cologne artist Stefanie Schrank already supported Andreas Dorau on his 2024 Im Gebüsch tour. For Lass uns spazieren gehen (“Let’s have a walk together”), they are joining forces again (however, Schrank is in the credits for several songs of this album). The song has a typical Kawaii synth sound and suits the sound of both artists very well.

13. Wolfgang von Kempelens Sprechmaschine

Wien is not only closing with its longest track, but also the – likely – most unique one. The song is dedicated to Hungarian inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen and his most famous invention, the 1791 speaking machine. Von Kempelen (or Farkas Kempelen in Hungarian) was also very active on the Vienna Hofburg and finally died in the nowadays Vienna. The song is majorly driven by a spoken description of the machine, supported by backing rhythm and sounds.

 

Andreas Dorau – Wien – Spotify

Here is Wien on Spotify:

 

 

Andreas Dorau – Wien – Track by Track

I really love the development Andreas Dorau took the last years. With Wien, he is back on the top of his work, on the same level like he wrote music in the late 1990’s. Dorau has its own style, but the album is versatile, funny, simple, rhythmic – and just fun to listen. One of my favorite albums by the Northern German!

Favorite Song: Vienna Sur Mer

 

Andreas Dorau

Here are all postings related to German pop icon Andreas Dorau:

 

Vienna on Flyctory.com

Here are all my postings related to Vienna in Austria:

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