After 29 years of existence and twelve albums, the Bavarian band FSK
(= Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle; it's the term for the German "Voluntary
Self Regulation of the Movie Industry") remains one of the favourite acts
of German magazine "Spex". FSK explored new wave/post wave, jodel,
polka and instrumental post rock, but on their eponymous new album they
strike a new note. Formally more orientated towards songs and
lyrics, "Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle" transforms the digital beats of current
R&B (Missy Elliott, Neptunes) into a sort of handmade concept. The basic
beats of drummer Carl Oesterhelt interlock the manually hammered drum pad
sounds by Thomas Meinecke. Beneath this complex rhythm structure lies Michaela
Melián's reduced bass playing, complemented by Justin Hoffmann's
Yamaha DX 7 Synthesizer sounds and Wilfried Petzi's guitar wizardry,
which may remind you of bossa nova, glam and krautrock.
Alec Empire ranks among the most established German DJs
of the international dance scene. Alexander Wilke, born in 1972, was
socialized by the Berlin rave scene, then he caused a stir with his group
Atari Teenage Riot. Since the band had split up, Alec Empire made
a name for himself as an immensely creative and productive artist of the
dancefloor scene who covers as solo artist (or with his own band) a wide
range of styles, be it digital hardcore, techno, breakbeat or acid house.
His name can be found on hundreds of albums as Alec Empire emerged also
as a sought-after remixer for Björk, Rammstein, Mogwai and Thurston Moore
(to name just a few)!
For more than fifteen years, Pram rank among the most interesting bands
in the British independent scene. Since the early nineties the bizarre, airy-fairy
mavericks from Birmingham refine their musical universe, situated
somewhere between avantgarde and pop, experiment and rock, radicalness and harmony. Their sophisticated arrangements captivate with colourfulness and imagination. Pram's weird soundscapes form a quirky collection of curiosities with a lot of charm. In addition, there's the visual aspect: filmmaker Scott Johnston has produced for every Pram song a video clip or a filed visual ambience. Pram's music has been often described as "dream pop" and Scheer's local paper "Schwarzwälder Bote" called their performance as "one of the highlights" at last year's Klangbad festival. If justice existed in the pop business, Pram would be as huge as Radiohead
long ago.
Under the sparkling surface of Burnt Friedman's electro pop, exciting sounds keep on seeithing. Since the beginning of the nineties, the Cologne-based electronic musician (whose real name is Bernd Friedmann) proved himself as innovative mixer and programmer in various projects. Today he belongs to the most high-profile artists in the German electronic scene who has gained recognition abroad as well. In 2001, he teamed up with Can-drummer Jaki Liebezeit - an ideal line-up for this kind of futuristic dance music. Liebezeit is a sophisticated groove master, one of the few veterans of the krautock era who never stop refining their style. The three albums released by Friedman/Liebezeit ("Secret Rhythms 1 - 3") show how Liebezeit has turned more and more into a drumming shaman who plays the rhythms of the 21st Century with a trance-like magic.
Dälek is a radical hip hop duo from Newark, New Jersey, and comprises
MC Dälek (vocals) and producer and sound wizard Oktopus. Their
uncompromising style stays true to the underground ethics of hip hop
as music of resistance from the black ghettos. MC Dälek puts his verses
over dark atmospheric grooves and samples which refer to two different
sources of inspiration. On the one hand, Dälek follow the heritage of the
black forefathers of rap like The Last Poets, Gil Scott-Heron and Afrika
Bambaataa. On the other hand they show their eclectic taste in scooping up
the tradition of noise rock from Faust to Einstürzende Neubauten to
My Bloody Valentine. In 2004, Dälek released their album
‘Derbe Respect, Alder’ on the Klangbad label. This collaboration between
Dälek and Faust caused a stir because it really went beyond the general
understanding of hip hop.
To Rococo Rot (the name is a palindrome) make up brothers Robert und Ronald Lippok from Berlin and bass player Stefan Schneider (also known as Mapstation) from Düsseldorf. The trio's first performance took place in 1995 at an exhibition of Ronald Lippok's lithographs. Henceforward, the group got quickly the reputation as one of the most original German electronic bands and they attracted worldwide attention. Meanwhile, To Rococo Rot are signed artists of Domino Records and thus label mates to the likes of Franz Ferdinand and The Artic Monkeys. Nevertheless, the music of To Rococo Rot remains different. Instead of a clean, high gloss sound, the threesome prefers slightly eroded aesthetics. "We're looking for a way to use electronics more spontaneously", says Robert Lippok. So, at first, you hear hissing and bleeps until a creaking beat enters the soundscape. Then a singable melody joins the mix which grows to a heavy dance groove when drummer Ronald Lippok plays his kit in an ecstatic manner. Cult-DJ John Peel was one of their biggest fans.
LaBrassBanda clear out the repertoire of music for brass instruments and abandon every shopworn score. What's left is a peppered mixture made out of the best brass traditions of the world. New Orleans funk mingles with ska from Jamaica, the high-speed of Balkan brass meets the passion of Mexican mariachi and ends up straightly on powerful Alpine folk music. You hardly find any other contemporary brass band that's so full of verve like LaBrassBanda. The five musicians from Upper Bavaria took the initiative in 2007 and updated the instrumentation. They've added a powerful rhythm section to the traditional trumpet, trombone and tuba. Now, propulsive drums and prominent bass grooves fuel the fiery melodies. There's no note way off, no entry is missed. Listening to such relaxed and likewise virtuosic and sweeping brass sounds is absolutely exceptional. And LaBrassBanda really know how to party all over!
The versatile music szene of Brooklyn makes one of the main focuses at
the current Klangbad festival. Alongside the chamber ensemble Till by Turning
and the nu-folk-duo Christy & Emily, the group Oneida is also based in
this borough of New York. Kid Millions (Drums, Vocals), Bobby Matador (Orgel, Vocals), Baby Hanoi Jane (Bass, Vocals), Showtime (Gitarre, Vocals) and "Snaps" London (Orgel) make up the band which was founded in 1997. Their fascination for vintage analogue
keyboards is reflected in a genuine sound which oscillates between prog,
krautrock and psychedelia.
Dieter Moebius is quite simply a legend in German rock music:
a krautrock pioneer! Since the late sixties he has been a member of the
influential improvising electronic group Cluster (who turned into the
band Harmonia during the mid seventies when Neu! guitarist Michael
Rother joined them for three years). Cluster were precursors of electronic
ambient music. Dieter Moebius and Hans-Joachim Roedelius shared this
passion with Brian Eno with whom they recorded several records.
Beyond that, Moebius had released a number of albums together with
legendary studio wizard Conny Plank in the eighties. As solo artist,
he has appeared with hypnotic soundscapes which can also be heard
on his current album "Kram", released by the Klangbad label this June.
A very popular Danish band who mingles ingredients of classical music, glam rock, new wave and prog rock just to create an absolutely delicious menu. In short: finest pop music! The Sparks and Supertramp may be the creative forefathers of Oh No Ono who was listed by the NME as their "New Favourite Band" in 2007. Kristoffer Rom (drums), Aske Zidore (guitar, vocals, samples), Malthe Fischer (vocals, guitar), Nis Svoldgaard (bass) and Nicolai Koch (keyboards) have just released their second album "Eggs" which a critic described as "extremely danceable, extremeley listenable, extremely good!"
This Parisian band offers breezily airy tunes, carried by the light-hearted
vocals of the two female singers. But they can be different, too, and then
Lapin Machin sound like the grandchildren of The Velvet Underground.
VU's biggest merit was, as is well known, to reduce the three beat music
chords to just one. Now, the trashy French low-fi-folk-punk of Lapin Machin
rumbles full of relish: here's a clanging cardboard box drum kit, there's a
whining ukulele and all-around you can hear the keyboard whimper
and squeak.
Jasmina Machina could be described as sensible fay whose music is obviously related to the current nu- and acid-folk movement. The soft melodies and thoughtful lyrics written by the Berlin based Australian musician evoke dreamy moods, comparable to the quieter side of CocoRosie. Accompanied by herself on piano or acoustic guitar, she sings her original elegies with an elf-like voice. Her first solo album, "The Demolition Series", has been released on the renowned German label Staubgold.
In the sound of The Nightingales one can still hear that they arose from
an original punk band called The Prefects. Comparable to The Fall, the
music of this Birmingham band still breathes the spirit of the post punk
era. Their sound rumbles tumultously and has stayed wild, raw and
dissonant. The songs of The Nightiongales, carried by the wide awake
vocals of charismatic front man Robert Lloyd, radiate an overwhelming
energy. In the eighties, they ranked among the favourite bands of John
Peel, for whom they had played several radio sessions. At the end of
that decade The Nightingales split up, just to reform five years ago.
Today, The Nightingales are more energetic than ever: they tour
permanently through Europe and the US and have recently released
a praised album (called "Insult To Injury") on the Klangbad label.
Vedette is the name of an experimental electronic trio whose members come from
Salem (a city in the U.S. state of Massachusettes; not the German city with
the famous boarding school!) and Berlin. In the nineties, singer Neil Carlill
was a founding member of British indie-rock group Delicatessen. Today,
he's a member of three different American projects (5 Little Elephants,
Me Me the Moth, Shoosh). Together with his Berlin friends Jayrope
( a "live-electronic audiotic" who writes, plays and produces) and
Manuel Stagars (he composed many ambient albums and participated
in art installations in Europe and America), he creates fascinating
electronic sound collages. Currently, they work on their second album
full of further sound discoveries and dadaistic stream of consciousness
lyrics in downbeat tempo.
The Saxon quintet Playfellow from Chemnitz stands for emotional
lead vocals and unagitated rock music, but from time to time, they
set their imaginative melodic songs into bombastic arrangements.
Toni Niemeier (lead vocals & guitars), Katharina Mey (bass, piano,
vocals), Tom Herberger (drums), André Dettmann (keyboards) and
Robert Lässig (Gitarre) master their instruments remarkably and they
prove knowing a wide spectrum of styles.
Self-taught musician, Arnaud Rivière practises free improvisation, playing solo, in groups and through collaborations, since the late 90s. Using a rudimentary electroacoustic device built around an Electrophone (turntable) repaired (numerous times), a prepared-mixer and some microphones / sensors, many electronics that need manipulation, to make it brief.
Please note: Arnaud Riviere will play a second gig on sunday, see timetable!
François Cambuzat (guitar & voice), Chiara Locardi (bass & voice) and Jacopo Andreini (drums ) make up the French-Italian avant rock band L`Enfance Rouge (= The Red Childhood). Inspired by DNA, Sonic Youth, Swans and Shellac, they create a forthright and powerful sound between rock, noise and hardcore. And they have always some surprises in store: their recent album was astonishingly recorded in Tunesia together with musicians of the Orchestre de la Rachidia! At klangbad they will perform their show with tunesian guests on stage.
The Brooklyn based duo made up of Christy Edwards and Emily Manzo
writes its own songs carried by sensitive harmonies and minimal instrumental
backings (generated by an organ, an electric guitar and a lot of reverb).
Their beautiful slow and mid tempo tunes assimilate influences from acid folk,
alternative rock and avantgarde soundscapes. Christy & Emily were one of the
big surprises of last year's Klangbad.
Who would have thought that even chamber music exists at Klangbad festival?!
The female quartet Till By Turnig comes from Brooklyn, New York, and consists
of Erica Dicker (violin), Amy Cimini (viola), Emily Manzo (piano, courtesy of "Christy & Emily") und Katherine Young (bassoon) . The ensemble will perform a programme of pieces written by young composer Jessica Pavone, a disciple of jazz avantgardist Anthony Braxton. Dreamy melodies and gentle moods, sometimes on the edge of atonal terrain, conjure an American modernity where folk music has also its place.
Transmitter were founded in 2000 in Hannover. Today, the band consists of
Englishman Jeff Ogle (Voice, percussion), Mo Heidrich ( programming & syntheziser) and, live on stage, drummer Stefan Bielesch with whom the Transmitter
grooves turn out to be even sharper. The band stands for a thrilling mixture
of techno, indie pop and hip hop. Subtle Arrangements, snappish beats and
screechy hardcore riffs generate an energetic ambience for Jeff Ogle's rap vocals.