A number of reviews of "Reflections & Refractions" are reproduced below.

Darklife, Germany.

Riding high the hot wave of acclaim generated by their last album, The Shadowline (see review in Darklife Nr. IX), Libitina unleash a collection of reworkings and remixes of titles from their back catalogue: Reflections & Refractions. Now, remixes and reworkings are a field leading often artists to fall flat on their premises, but this is not the case here for Libitina who have seamlessly integrated appropriate electronic elements to permeate their dark tunes, both with and without the helping hands of the remixers. They had already made a clear move towards electronics with The Shadowline and Reflections & Refractions shows that the path is well traced to establish themselves as a staple act for the new generation of goths with "technology and soul". Key point is that Libitina, rather than trading themselves for electronics at all costs or for the weak cyber trend, maintain their blueprint and get it very well embellished with beats and synths. What hit me most though, about Reflections..., is that it is comparable to a live performance, as in the song sequence, the seamless shift of moods and so on. Well, I've never seen the band live, so I'm just speculating here, but I can easily imagine a live show with the "Reflections… soundtrack". Contributing remix artists are Inertia, K-Nitrate, Swarf, Manuskript, Synthetic and Sins of The Flesh, a very well respected line-up making this album a great candidate for the collection of a quite wide range of goth-electro followers and very well tailored to club play as well.

Review by Gianfri.

ADDRESS: Darklife Fanzine, Marienburgerstr. 33, D-10405, Berlin, Germany.

Gothic Paradise, USA.

After three full-length albums that have received positive press reviews all over the world, it seems fitting this remix album is released. The band has turned over several of their tracks to other artists and remixers to make their own unique mixes. What we have here now is fourteen tracks with a wide variety of approaches and twists on the originals. Selections are included from all three previously released works and so it seems well balanced in a "best of" sense. Like many remix albums, we're presented overall with themes ranging more along the electronic and EBM genres. While the basis for all of the tracks are in the Gothic-related genres, most mixes have a nice touch with the electronic edge added to them. These range in styles from the harsh and distorted remix of "Valediction" by Terrorfakt to the more laid-back elements combined to create the "The Eyes Have It Mix" of "Fragility of Self". The better remixes seem to be the solid EBM/Industrial oriented tracks such as the "Swarf Remix" of "A Higher Unity" and my personal favorite from Shadowline "Mea Culpa (Libitina vs. Inertia Penitent Remix)". These two remixes feature pounding dance beats, heavily layered synths and the vocals seem to blend well with this style. While I love the music and pounding anthemic style of the "Terrorfakt Remix" of "Valediction" which starts off the album, all of the vocals are taken out except for the title repeated throughout. This same thing happens with my favorite track from Weltanschauung, "Farewell My Love". The original is a bouncy and fun track, changing tempos a couple of times and delving into the fun post-punk, deathrock sound with shifting styles and vocals. The remix is definitely fun too, but the vocals are limited to "Please let me go..." and "...I love you so..." repeated over and over in a vocoded manner. The robotic vocals and the fast beat when it kicks in is bouncy and will move you like the original, and I guess that's why it's called a "remix", because this one is definitely "mixed" in a very unique way. With a total of fourteen tracks, it's nice to not hear too many repeated like has been the case with some other remix albums I've heard in the past. There is really only one track that's repeated, "Dirt I Cannot Wash" including the "Calm in a Piranha Remix by Pretentious, Moi?" and the "Maculosus Mix". Both versions are up-beat with the latter really sticking to the original style and instrumentation with just a little bit of an edge added in the electronics. The bottom line is that if you enjoy this group, I really think you'll still like this album. You may have to be open to the electronic-oriented music more than usual, because it's definitely a shift from their normal styles. However, there are some good remixes here, so it should also broaden the fanbase and those that enjoy the electronics a little more can enjoy something new here.

Grave Concerns, USA.

They thought it was so good they reviewed it twice... or something!

"A new remix collection from U.K. goth rockers Libitina that offers various interpretations from their last three albums. W/out sacrificing much of the raw, gloomy edge of the originals, a lot of the songs seem to have gotten just that right push over the edge w/ beefy ebm beats that's sure to please the current club scene. Positive stand out's include "Mea Culpa [Libitina vs. Inertia Penitent mix]", "Farewell My Love [Wet Dream mix by Sins of the Flesh]", "Colours Revealed [Inertia mix]", "All that I have ever Lost [Kitchen mix]", "Painted Whiter than White [Spiro Agnew mix]", "Diomedean Exchange [K -Nitrate mix]", & "Fragility of Self [The Eyes Have It mix]". Despite this being a remix album, Libitina doesn't fall short on providing plenty of variation from experimental noise drones, edgy electronica, to sultry electro synthpop; Strongly recommended to dj's & club fiends."

Review by Marcos.

"Reflections & Refractions is a follow-up remix album for England's Libitina who has started becoming very popular if you have not noticed already. This remix album also offers songs from past Libitina albums now with the new singer's voice. One the things I said in the past about Libitina was that their music was meant for the dance floor and they must have listened because this is a very dance friendly CD. When I first started listening to this CD and heard the Terrorfakt mix of "Valedictions," I have blown away. What an awesome industrial mix. This is aggressive and I don't about you but it made me what to dance. I was shocked when I heard this on this new CD, but at the same time I was so happy! What an entrance this song makes on this remix CD. At this point I am not sure what to expect next? "Dirt I cannot Wash," now has more of gothic style with thick bass and guitar. This is a strong remix with plenty of industrial, gothic and electronics pushing its way through the remix by "Pretentious, Moi." You can hear another remix of this song that has more of darker electro feel. Wow, another impressive song. Ok, onto "Mea Culpa Libitina Vs. Inertia. This is an explosive track with more EBM structure and less Industrial. So, who won? Well, I think both of these guys did awesome. I am now stunned with how good this is. Now comes Swarf, ! and "A Higher Unity" This is pure EBM, I mean pure! This is one of the best club beats I have heard in a long time. This song also has added guitar which is a great mix which was not expected at first with the EBM clubby beat starting things off. Other tracks that really impressed me were: the remix of Shibboleth by another great gothic rock band from England called Syntheic. This track had anthem like feel and was driven more by guitars then electronics. This is a great remix effort by the band. I was able to get into many of the tracks. There were a few that did not go over well with me, but the others make up for that. Definitely check this out!

Review by Julie Johnson.

Kaleidoscope, UK.

'The result is an album full of potential dancefloor hits, but also some great gems that throw a whole new light on some of the songs- Swarf take the classic 'A Higher Unity' to Ibiza for a dancefloor shuffle, whilst Pretentious, Moi? slow down 'Dirt I Cannot Wash' and paint some nice dark colours over it, and Sins Of The Flesh do some amazing things to 'Farewell My Love'! Of course, the band themselves do some nice things with their own songs... my own favourite 'All That I Have Ever Lost' spring to mind amongst others- ensuring that their fans don't have to worry about the album being too radically obscure! This is a terrific album in its own right, and whilst I would still recommend 'Shadowline' as the first taster of Libitina, this provides a very satisfying dessert!"

Review by Mike.

ADDRESS: Kaleidoscope, 8 Wises Lane, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME10 1YN, UK.

Read the following reviews on-line in full:

• Gothic Paradise, USA.
• Grave Concerns, USA.