Refined sounds and electro experimentalism with quiet female vocals are waiting for us from this pre-release of the first Neulander album. Formed in 2002, one half of the Neulander duo isn't new to musical experiences. In fact, Adam Peters has got a long career as producer. He also did the orchestral arrangements for Echo & The Bunnymen and produced Siouxsie & The Banshees, Triffids and Lloyd Cole to name few. Korinna Knoll is originally from Austria and she met Adam in New York in a salsa bar on the lower east side of Manhattan. SMOKE + FIRE is their first full lenght release as previously they released only a 10" "Sex, God + Money" which was a sort of anticipation of the album as it was containing four out of ten songs of this CD. Musically they remember me a sort of clash between My Bloody Valentine (because of their mid tempo songs, tense but never fast), Lush and Human League. With this reference points, because of my my tastes, I'd give them five stars but I feel something is missing. Korinna's voice sometimes lacks of pathos and Adam's mimal arrangements aren't enough to keep up my enthusiasm. For example the ballads "Just There", "Sometimes" and "People's Love" have got the same atmosphere and to be honest are a little tedious. Tension is missing and I definitively prefer tracks like the opening "Sex, God + Money", "Girl Out Walking" (which is also also a kind of ballad but with a certain tension which intrigue me), "Flying", "Blue Party" or the "Schauspieler"'s experimentalism. I can say that I'm saving half of the album and is my humble opinion that with a little more power this would be a good one...