This is already the fourth studioalbum of Diorama. The band around Torben Wendt is getting better and better. The music is more complex than on previous albums and moves more towards melancholic synthpop. The sound is however more organic than on the previous two cd’s and goes somewhat back to the first cd Pale. The real hits lack on Amaroid as in that there are not many songs that really stick out above the rest regarding accessibility and hitpotential. Yet Amaroid has some strong songs. ‘Logic Friends’, ‘Friends We Used to Know’, ‘Prozac Junkies’ and the fantastic heavy ‘The Girls’ are the most clear examples of this. Unfortunately it is also noticeable that Diorama does not always convince. A little magic lacks sometimes to really keep interesting despite the fascinating sound sculptures. Luckily this is mostly compensated by the strong vocals of Torben, who goes even further with his voice on Amaroid. All in all i find this a decent album, especially since it is more grown up and better than before. Then, it is not a real problem that there are less hits on it.

Grade: 7.5

text: TekNoir