Lacrimosa’s dark universe begins precisely with this album. Einsamkeit is the first true manifesto of the project Tilo Wolff founded alone; a starting point where heavy pianos, echoing vocals, and the continuous introspection of a young artist merge. At that time, Lacrimosa was still entirely a solo effort: Tilo, born in 1972, a German-Swiss artist, composed the music, played the instruments, and handled the production. The rawness, sharp melancholy, and diary-like feel of the album are a direct result of this solitary creation.
The melancholic clown-like figure on the cover — Lacrimosa's signature Harlequin — finds its identity for the first time here. This figure is not a cheerful clown; it is a symbol that embodies the dual laughing and crying faces of baroque theater, expressing human inner conflicts. It can be considered Tilo Wolff's alter ego. Just as Lacrimosa’s music is dramatic, introverted, and possesses a theatrical aesthetic, the Harlequin is the visual counterpart of this emotion. In a sense, Einsamkeit is not just an album, but a stage depiction that for the first time unveils the curtain to Tilo's inner world.
Musically, the album is far from the orchestral gothic metal era the band would later enter. Here, the coldness of darkwave, the fragility of gothic romanticism, and the dim room atmosphere created by minimal keyboards dominate. Violins are not yet grand; guitars are not flashy; everything builds a narrow, dark space around Tilo’s voice and the piano. Just like its name: solitude.
We have a rare copy, limited to 1000 pieces in 2023:
https://thecamelrecords.com/products/lacrimosa-einsamkeit-lp-album-ltd-re-whi-mint-m?variant=44353458831499
