you know those few perfect songs that sound like the two great lovers are enjoying their desperate and passionate one last kiss whilst the world is falling apart behind them? now imagine if a band made seventeen songs like that… Germany’s take on ’90s emo is both intriguing and mesmerising. Cerulean (a.k.a. Pilots in Paris) are definitely not an exception to either of those rules. what separates this magnificent band from the others already posted on my blog might be how clean they sound. it’s still raw and passionate ’90s emo, but the production is quite clean, though still somewhat more gritty. while the diverse and highly dynamic drumming shines through crisply enough, the guitars sometimes are the definition of twinkly ’90s emo, but other times it proves more than capable of producing furious riffs, revealing the production as not *too* clean. not by miles. it sometimes passes into the same Hüsker Dü and Sugar-like territory as Christie Front Drive did on the Anthology record, though without being as obviously tied to ’80s alternative in their sound. Cerulean sound more like The Pennikurvers, Ribbon Fix, Ethel Meserve and The Pine. most of all it sounds like Mineral’s “Sadder Star”, with the nervous and angst-ridden vocals over the washing explosion of melody that completely encompasses every feeling or mood that this style of emo should. consequently, the only real weakness of this discography is simply that it’s way too short. while being well over eighty minutes, it’s like it’s over right after you’ve pushed play. despite every track being highly distinct from one another; despite it’s epic greatness, it’s over all too soon. you simply can’t get enough of this intriguing and mesmerising German emo. a truly magic album not comparable to anything else. a deeply confessional, emotional and personal record that tells a beautiful story that needs to be heard to be believed. you need this. a lot.