AcCult II is out now from German progressive metal act Vanden Plas, their second acoustic album for Frontiers Music Srl.
Several tracks have sailed out as singles, most recently ‘Boat On The River‘, about which keyboard player Alessandro Del Vecchio commented: “As a big Styx fan, I was very happy to see that ‘Boat On The River‘ was included, and I could play one of my favourite songs from one of my favourite bands. It’s an easy song to listen to but tricky and very cool to play, which makes it an interesting choice, and I’m sure people will dig what we did to it!”
Guitarist Stephan Lill explained how the album came to life: “When we released our first acoustic CD, AcCult, in 1996, it was special to us in many ways. For this release, we arranged songs from our debut album, Colour Temple, into new acoustic versions. And we did the same with songs by other artists or bands that didn’t necessarily fit our usual musical style. Ever since that release, we’d always had it in the back of our minds to produce another acoustic CD at some point. But then came tours, more regular CDs, many theatre productions we were involved in, and time flew by.
“When Frontiers approached us with the idea of another acoustic CD, we knew that we had the time needed for it, and with the right songs, it could work. And we can now say, it worked out. We stuck with the concept of the first AcCult CD, and so AcCult II once again features acoustic versions of Vanden Plas songs, as well as two cover songs: ‘Nothing Else Matters‘ (Metallica) and ‘Boat On The River‘ (Styx),” he continued. “We are more than happy that, exactly 30 years later, we can write the next AcCult chapter. And all Vanden Plas fans can look forward to a truly extraordinary release.”
Building on the innovative concept that first reimagined tracks from their debut Colour Temple in a stripped-down, unplugged setting, this new release revisits select songs from their extensive catalogue with fresh acoustic arrangements, offering fans a completely new perspective on the band’s music.
The album showcases the band’s current lineup of Andy Kuntz (vocals), Stephan Lill (guitars), Andreas Lill (drums), Torsten Reichert (bass), and Alessandro Del Vecchio (keyboards). Plus there’s a guest appearance from Supertramp‘s John Helliwell playing saxophone on the album’s closing track, ‘You Fly‘, adding a unique, melodic touch to the finale.
The full tracklisting is: ‘Far Off Grace‘, ‘Holes In The Sky‘, ‘The Ghost Experiment‘, ‘Boat On The River‘, ‘Healing Tree‘, ‘Postcard To God‘, ‘Nothing Else Matters‘ and ‘You Fly (ft. John Helliwell)‘.
Discussing previous single releases, Stephan Lill said: “‘Postcard To God‘ is probably one of the most important songs in our band’s history. It has defined our sound since the mid-2000s, much like ‘Rainmaker‘ did in the 1990s.
“A Vanden Plas concert without this song is practically impossible; it’s an absolute fan favourite. The fact that it’s possible to record this song as an acoustic version shows that you can rearrange and perform a song in different ways if the foundation is right.”
While Andy Kuntz said of the album’s opening track: “The single ‘Far Off Grace‘ exemplifies the unpretentious, pure, and at the same time artistic, multifaceted acoustic expression of all the songs on AcCult II. They say you can recognise a good song when it works even in a stripped-down version. Compared to the studio version first released in 1999, however, this interpretation opens up many new avenues of understanding.
“It allows the song’s once bombastic beauty to blossom in the virtuosic interplay between Stephan Lill’s exquisite guitar work, Alessandro Del Vecchio’s shimmering grand piano, and Kuntz’s vocals, ranging from sensitive to ecstatic, only to then be driven by the unbridled power of an exceptional band, with Andreas Lill on drums and Torsten Reichert on bass, to a hypnotically intensifying, furiously breathtaking finale. This is far more than an acoustic version of a song; it is the ultimate reinvention of a classic in its own light.”
