Having disbanded in January '99, after 14 years, KMFDM was actually an important part of the industrial scene of the 80s and 90s. Retro actually began as a project by their record label in 1996, designed as a promotional tidbit for radio stations/journalists to induce coverage of their then-unreleased album Xtort. Word got out that there was a "greatest hits" album available, and the copies were snatched up like hotcakes by the music media types. Two years later, someone decided that it would be a good idea to release Retro to the general public, and so mote it be.

The songs from each album are bunched together, allowing for a little continuity, but they're not in chronological order by release date. Neither end of their career is well-represented, with the band choosing to focus mainly on their peak years of 1992-1995 (which makes sense, since it was originally a promo item for a '96 release). Unlike its predecessor, Agogo, Retro does not include any rarities or unreleased tracks, making it redundant for hardcore fans. For someone new to KMFDM, however, it's a good place to start because it weeds out a lot of the filler that characterized the band's output. As an overview of a prolific group's entire lifespan, Retro does its job fairly well. Even as a regular album, it's better than most of KMFDM's offerings: it is concise and there are variations from track to track. Admittedly, this isn't something I'll listen to every day, but it's a good cheap way to introduce yourself to a long-lived industrial band without having to sit through hours of their worst tendencies to meander through pointlessness.

Review by C. LeRoux

Review date: 07/2000

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