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Artist: 39 CLOCKS Title: Pain It Dark Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "The Bureau B label reissues the first album by Hannover, Germany duo 39 Clocks, originally released in 1981 by No Fun Records. Many a wild tale has enriched the history of 39 Clocks. For example, the time they went on stage with vacuum cleaners and circular saws instead of guitars, the LSD inside their heads having erased all memory of how to play their songs. Or the time when they were expelled from the Documenta, because Joseph Beuys was aggravated by their music. Then there was the angry member of the audience who attacked one of the band members with a knife on stage. Not forgetting the concert in a cavernous aircraft hangar where the amps were turned up so loud that by the end of the show, not a single spectator was left. Sounds music magazine duly confirmed it the "Concert of the Month." The great thing is that every one of these stories is true. Christian Henjes (aka C.H. 39) and Jürgen Gleue (aka J.G. 39) as 39 Clocks were one of the most provocative bands Germany has ever produced; pop scholar Diedrich Diederichsen described them as the best German band of the 80s. The Clocks took shape in 1979, turning their backs on punk and inventing "Psycho Beat," the self-styled counterpoint to the burgeoning German new wave scene, the NDW. Their music can be seen as a futuristic, definitively urban, German form of U.S. 60s garage punk, with a referential nod to New Yorks Suicide and The Velvet Underground -- sparse and gritty garage chord progressions, hypnotic rhythms (invariably emanating from the beatbox) and deadpan English lyrics delivered with the heaviest of German accents. The 39 Clocks pushed back the borders of experimentation with their barely-tolerable live improvisation and atonal meanderings, lower than lo-fi, with a tinny beatbox that tested the resilience of their listeners to the full. Despite some shaky success, geographical and mental shifts brought about their eventual split in 1983. This CD reissue contains a previously-unreleased bonus track and a 12-page booklet illustrated with a wealth of rare photos featuring liner notes by ZickZack record label founder Alfred Hilsberg." -Bureau B |
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Artist: CLUSTER Title: Cluster 71 Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $16.00 |
| "Originally released on the Philips label in 1971, Bureau B reissues Clusters eponymous debut full-length album. According to The Wire, Cluster 71 is one of the "One Hundred Records That Set The World On Fire." Very few albums from Germany can lay claim to this honor. This album is a mere three untitled tracks and was quite an ordeal for untrained ears at the time of its release, yet the album pointed the way forward like no other electronic opus. Clusters previous incarnation was a trio named Kluster. A change in direction and musical differences moved Dieter Moebius and Hans-Joachim Roedelius to split from their third member, Konrad Schnitzler, in 1970. The following year, as well as playing live, they recorded their first album, Cluster 71, in publisher Ralf Arnies Star Musik Studio in Hamburg. Here they first met Conny Plank, who would himself become a legend. They remained close friends until his death in 1987. Early Cluster music was new -- new in the sense that it did not continue any tradition, instead laying the foundations for a future tradition. The duos utter renunciation of conventional harmony and rhythm, their embracing of near total aural abstraction, confident use of noise, rigorous live electronic improvisation and a positive mind-set tuned to winning rather than losing -- these were all factors in Clusters innovative trailblazing of 1971. For want of a better category, Cluster 71 was classified rather inappropriately and incorrectly as "cosmic." Few recognized Cluster for what it was -- the synthesis of pop music stripped of embarrassing glamour and so-called serious music without intellectual constraints. Moebius and Roedelius took the liberty of raiding both disciplines to perfect their musical concept. A common enough practice today, but akin to a palace revolution in 1971. So it is that three pieces of electronic music meander and pulsate through Cluster 71, with no beginning and no end. Clusters music is free and open in all directions. There are sounds, noises and structures to be heard on this album which would become ingrained in the electronic pop music of the 1980s and 1990s. Cluster had taken the first step into the future with Cluster 71. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: CLUSTER Title: Curiosum Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
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"LP version with color inner sleeve and liner notes by Asmus Tietchens. Originally released on Sky Records in 1981, Bureau B reissues Clusters Curiosum -- the sixth duo collaboration between Dieter Moebius and Hans-Joachim Roedelius. Curiosum was to mark a departure to pastures new. Little did they know that this would be their last release for the next nine years. Curiosum was launched into an atmosphere of musical turbulence. Electronic sounds had become commonplace in pop music and the voice of Cluster could barely be heard through the noise of a new generation of music. Curiosum is a decidedly tranquil, almost melancholy album -- quiet being the operative word, as Cluster slipped out of the limelight. It was recorded in rudimentary fashion in Austria, now home to Roedelius. This is Cluster music at its most serene, a sense of profound humility running through the seven tracks of the LP. It says a lot about the state of mind of the two musicians, allied to the fact that this was the first time they chose to mix outside of Conny Planks studio where, in the past, the finishing touches had been applied. Roedelius and Moebius laid their cards on the table for all to see, offering up Curiosum as an honest, unadorned selection of tracks, free of artifice and preconception. The album represented a return to the virtues of their early work (when Cluster was written with a "K"), random and spontaneous. Curiosum is nothing if not a curiosity, wholly resistant to the cacophonous zeitgeist of the early 80s, stripped down and keenly focused on perfect shapes. This is Clusters swan-song to the past." - Bureau B.
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Artist: CLUSTER Title: Grosses Wasser Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
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"LP version. Formed in Germany in 1971 when Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius left Conrad Schnitzlers group Kluster, Cluster can be counted among the most important protagonists of the electronic avant-garde. Some credit them with having invented ambient music, others as pioneers of synthesizer pop, while to others they are firmly embedded in the Krautrock universe. There is some truth in all of these notions. Although Cluster and "rock music" are seldom mentioned in the same breath, their early works in particular are marked by a lack of structure and futuristic, cold soundscapes typical of the Krautrock variation known as "kosmische." Recorded and released in 1979, Grosses Wasser was Clusters fifth album as a duo. The cover art is the first indication of minimalist tendencies, reflecting the concentration, transparency and maturity of the content, almost like chamber music. While nothing is left to chance, each of the six Cluster pieces effervesces with a certain joie de vivre, providing ample scope for artistic spontaneity. Grosses Wasser was recorded at Paragon Studio, which had been set up by Peter Baumann (Tangerine Dream) not long before. Baumann had set aside plenty of time for the recording sessions, enabling Cluster to experiment with sequencers for the first time and explore some of the most up-to-date (for that period) studio gadgets on offer. Moebius and Roedelius made intelligent, measured use of the latest paraphernalia without being overwhelmed by it. New technology was deployed with an exactness designed to refine their sophisticated and fully-developed musical ideas. More than ever before in Clusters history, acoustic elements can be heard, with the dulcet tones of Paragons Steinway grand piano taking center stage. Electric bass, guitar, percussion and voice are all embraced. Consequently, Grosses Wasser is anything but a solely electronic album. It is, however, one of those rare LPs whose musical substance transcends its age, never sounding outdated. Grosses Wasser is the first in a series of 23 albums to be reissued by Bureau B, comprehensively documenting the superb electronic/ambient/Krautrock history of the Hamburg label, Sky Records, from whom the material has been licensed. Cluster (in their various guises) will feature heavily in the series (solo albums as well as collaborations with Brian Eno, Conny Plank, Gerd Beerbohm, Mani Neumeier, etc.). Printed inner sleeve includes liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B
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Artist: D.A.F. Title: Produkt Der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
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"Bureau B reissues the first Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft album, originally released in 1979. True D.A.F. connoisseurs will, of course, be aware of the early phase of the Düsseldorf-Wuppertal combo. But most fans of the subsequently world-famous duo may well be taken aback when confronted with their debut album: forceful synth bass sounds, snappy rhythms, Gabi Delgado and leather all conspicuously absent. In their place, pure instrumental, unstructured noise-rock, played by long-haired and moustachioed types. A band can barely have undergone a more extreme metamorphosis. Gabi Delgado joined the band (hitherto comprising Robert Görl, Kurt Dahlke/Pyrolator, Wolfgang Spelmans and Michael Kemner), before the band discarded the name of YOU and christened themselves Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft. And he was also on board for the first recording sessions at Studio 56 in Mühlheim. Disappointed with the results ("too close to Schlager," the band thought) and "less than happy" with Delgados vocals and lyrics (as Pyrolator, responsible for electronics, noted), the group dispensed with Delgados services. Yet the creative will was undiminished: "We really wanted to make a record. All the Düsseldorf bands -- Male, Mittagspause -- already had an album out, everyone except us," and with the singer now gone, an instrumental album was the only option. In the wake of the studio debacle, the decision was made to take the recording into their own hands. A tape machine and two microphones were set up in Wolfgang Spelmans living room and ten days of unbounded improvisation ensued. And thus it was completed, Produkt der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft: 22 tracks, ranging from 19 seconds to three minutes in length. The influence of Can is clearly audible. Considering the fact that other prominent noise-rock bands such as Chrome, Flipper or even Sonic Youth recorded similar music at a much later date, this "product of Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft" should certainly be recognized as a pioneering work. Possibly even the first noise-rock album the world had seen or heard. Was the world ready for such brutal, nihilistic sounds in the late 1970s? The world of record companies was not. Unable to find a label, D.A.F. proved to be not only pioneers of noise, but also pioneers of DIY. They found help from the local bank, with Pyrolator putting up his car for credit amounting to 3000 Marks. A logical step, as he was already running a cassette label called Warning Records (later becoming Ata Tak). Produkt Der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft was the first LP on the label and was given the catalog number WR 01/LP/1979. Sales were so good that Pyrolator was able to pay back his loan quickly. Housed in a digipak with liner notes, rare photos and memorabilia." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: D.A.F. Title: Produkt der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
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"Bureau B reissues the first Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft album, originally released in 1979. True D.A.F. connoisseurs will, of course, be aware of the early phase of the Düsseldorf-Wuppertal combo. But most fans of the subsequently world-famous duo may well be taken aback when confronted with their debut album: forceful synth bass sounds, snappy rhythms, Gabi Delgado and leather all conspicuously absent. In their place, pure instrumental, unstructured noise-rock, played by long-haired and moustachioed types. A band can barely have undergone a more extreme metamorphosis. Gabi Delgado joined the band (hitherto comprising Robert Görl, Kurt Dahlke/Pyrolator, Wolfgang Spelmans and Michael Kemner), before the band discarded the name of YOU and christened themselves Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft. And he was also on board for the first recording sessions at Studio 56 in Mühlheim. Disappointed with the results ("too close to Schlager," the band thought) and "less than happy" with Delgados vocals and lyrics (as Pyrolator, responsible for electronics, noted), the group dispensed with Delgados services. Yet the creative will was undiminished: "We really wanted to make a record. All the Düsseldorf bands -- Male, Mittagspause -- already had an album out, everyone except us," and with the singer now gone, an instrumental album was the only option. In the wake of the studio debacle, the decision was made to take the recording into their own hands. A tape machine and two microphones were set up in Wolfgang Spelmans living room and ten days of unbounded improvisation ensued. And thus it was completed, Produkt der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft: 22 tracks, ranging from 19 seconds to three minutes in length. The influence of Can is clearly audible. Considering the fact that other prominent noise-rock bands such as Chrome, Flipper or even Sonic Youth recorded similar music at a much later date, this "product of Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft" should certainly be recognized as a pioneering work. Possibly even the first noise-rock album the world had seen or heard. Was the world ready for such brutal, nihilistic sounds in the late 1970s? The world of record companies was not. Unable to find a label, D.A.F. proved to be not only pioneers of noise, but also pioneers of DIY. They found help from the local bank, with Pyrolator putting up his car for credit amounting to 3000 Marks. A logical step, as he was already running a cassette label called Warning Records (later becoming Ata Tak). Produkt Der Deutsch-Amerikanischen Freundschaft was the first LP on the label and was given the catalog number WR 01/LP/1979. Sales were so good that Pyrolator was able to pay back his loan quickly. Printed innersleeve with photos and notes by Carsten Friedrichs. 180 gram." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: DER PLAN Title: Geri Reig Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. Geri Reig is Der Plans debut album (originally released in 1980), but not their first release. An EP, recorded with the aid of an Electric Memo dictation preceded Geri Reig. But the band is not very keen on reissuing this early work. Why did they call themselves "Der Plan," actually? "A concept which has something to do with the capacity of people to think and shape their future" as Plan member Moritz Reichelt, alias Moritz R®, once explained. Der Plan at that time comprised Moritz Reichelt, Frank Fenstermacher, Robert Görl and Chrislo Haas. Their music was menacing, fragmented noise rock, still with guitar and drums, but far removed from the typical (rock) music of the period. When Görl and Haas departed (to form DAF), guitars and drums also disappeared from Der Plan. New on the team: Kurt Dahlke alias Pyrolator. This was the line-up which recorded Geri Reig in Reichelts Düsseldorf office with a two-channel tape machine. Geri Reig is a punk album in the truest and best sense. New, threatening and, at the same time, humoros. While other bands of the era stamped with the seal of "punk" played a faster and harder version of 1950s rock and roll or 1960s garage rock, Der Plan, like a handful of contemporaries such as The Residents or Throbbing Gristle, not only rejected traditional song structures but jettisoned the whole instrument list. Thats punk for you! Allied to a deep aversion to rock music and the cliché that goes with it, was the wish to create something of their own. And Geri Reig is certainly idiosyncratic: fragments and songs, raspy and fragile, melodies and interference, ambient sounds up front in the mix. Fine in theory and -- rare though it may be -- excellent in practice. And it just gets better: the album was well-received. Moritz R®: "As if everyone had been waiting for it."" -Bureau B. |
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Artist: DER PLAN Title: Normalette Surprise Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. 1980 the zeitgeist played into the right hands. And who held the aces? In Bureau Bs game, Moritz R®, Frank Fenstermacher and Pyrolator aka Der Plan. Tired of convention and full of enthusiasm, they encountered an audience who felt just the same. And with record companies too ponderous to sign up Der Plan, the wonderful Ata Tak label was born of necessity. Normalette Surprise is the second album by Der Plan, released in 1981, a good year after their Geri Reig debut. It is immediately recognizable as a Plan album, yet Normalette Surprise does contain a few, well, surprises. The first number, "Leb doch," is a brilliant pop song. One can say many (good) things about Geri Reig, but it does not contain any pop songs. "Leb doch" is built on a captivatingly taut rhythm, sub-cooled vocals and German lyrics. Hang on a minute, taut rhythm, sub-cooled vocals, German lyrics? Yes exactly -- Der Plan drew up the blueprint for what would soon become known as "Neue Deutsche Welle" -- the German New Wave. Although, "blueprint" sounds a little too benign. It was more like a big bang. Moreover, there was something new about it. Or rather, something old. Bizarrely, Der Plan were introduced by their American artist friends, including the controversial elocutionist Boyd Rice, into the amazing world of the German Schlager, a colorful universe of the absurd awaited exploration. "Kleine Schlager-Revue" and "Sie hat mich verlassen" are the clearest indications of this newfound passion on Normalette Surprise. Hence, Normalette Surprise presents the full range of attributes which would define Der Plan and the Ata Tak label: electronics and Schlager, noise and pop. And Der Plans protagonists succeeded -- unlike so many -- in their mission of creating something original, something of their own." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: DIN A TESTBILD Title: Programm 6 Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Few bands of the German post punk/new wave era can lay claim to "cult" status, but Din A Testbild most certainly can. Formed in 1978 by Mark Eins and Gudrun Gut, the combo played a significant role in defining the avant-garde music of Berlin and were among the pioneers of electro-clash, long before the genre even existed. In the year they started out, Din A Testbild played at the opening of the legendary Berlin underground club S.O. 36 and in 1980 they appeared at Hamburgs first "In Die Zukunft" (trans. "Into The Future") festival, organized by Alfred Hilsberg. "Abfall/Garbage," their first single, is emblematic of the entire West Berlin music scene from 1978-1982. The group also participated in the seminal "Geniale Dilletanten" event at the Tempodrom in Berlin (1981). Their contribution to German underground cinema and the art scene cannot be captured in a few simple words. Such is the measure of the cult and legend of Din A Testbild. Exactly 30 years after the release of their debut LP Programm 1 on Klaus Schulzes IC record label, the Berliners have picked up the thread of their album series with Programm 6 in 2010. Mark Eins is joined by long-term members Nutty Norman and Ralf Zimmermann, as well as Axel Brand, plus guest musicians Gerrit Meijer, the legendary Berlin guitarist of the band PVC and vocalist Bettina Schoch. Din A Testbild aim straight for the dancefloor on Programm 6: driving bass lines, hypnotic grooves, dark harmonies, mechanical sounds, expressive shouts. All given an extra-special flair through the sporadic intervention of industrial instrumentation such as Meijers metal-machine guitar or Nutty Normans chaoscillator and, on occasion, even through Schochs rousing vocals. The album plays without a pause -- Din A Testbild weave an intense, danceable, electronic, expressive aural collage. "Digital Sound Art" is the name the band give to their "acoustic backdrop for the third millennium," a concept which should not hide the fact that analog instruments are very much at play here, with trash guitar to the fore. Mark Eins has this to say about his music: "Its not a question of melodic arcs, but of acoustic perception and entertainment on the highest plane. Its about the challenge, not the standard. Self-discovery, not self-affirmation in a modern, intelligent world. Fun and enjoyment for body and soul, without esoteric pretensions. Art is entertainment is pop." -Bureau B |
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Artist: DORAU, ANDREAS Title: Arger mit der Unsterblichkeit Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "In 1988, in a club in Munich, German pop legend Andreas Dorau heard a kind of music which was completely new to him. He remembers it like this: "While we were producing Demokratie, acid house kicked off. It hit me right between the eyes. It was the most incredible thing for me!" Things really took off shortly afterwards, when somebody in England came up with the notion of looping and editing recorded music by other bands. Dorau: "You could pick out your favorite passages from a song, choose the best of the 50s, 60s and 70s and build more or less the perfect song." Endless possibilities! Production techniques were also advancing apace. In 1991 a sampler capable of sampling two minutes cost around 300 Deutsche Marks. Just a few years earlier, such a device would have set the buyer back 10,000 Marks. And so Ärger mit der Unsterblichkeit (Trouble with Immortality) was fashioned in the living room of Doraus new musical companion, his congenial partner Tommi Eckardt. Eckardt played in a band by the name of Die alternativen Arschlöcher (trans. "The Alternative Assholes") and would later find international fame as one-half of the pop duo 2raumwohnung. A new era, a wonderful time. Dorau: "Our rave rigmarole left live audiences nonplussed. Once the album was released, I was seen as some kind of sick character." Others have been tarred with the same brush, have they not? Often, all too often, the best. Includes two bonus tracks." - Bureau B |
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Artist: DORAU, ANDREAS Title: Blumen Und Narzissen Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "If it had been up to Andreas Doraus teacher, "Fred Vom Jupiter," his biggest hit, would never have seen the light of day. The 16 year-old Dorau wrote the song during project week at school and his tutor was of the opinion that the composition was therefore the intellectual property of his institute of learning. Luckily, the teacher in question didnt get his way. And, as they say, the rest is history. In the year 1981, the small, cool Düsseldorf label Ata Tak first released "Fred Vom Jupiter" as a single, selling 20,000 copies in the space of a few months, followed up by the Blumen Und Narzissen LP. It is a strange album, for the most part conceived and executed by a 16 year-old on a family holiday in the mountains. And what is even more extraordinary: it was successful. For Blumen Und Narzissen was a pop album, and when one considers the time (1981) and place (FRG) of its creation, then nothing would have appeared to have had less of a chance of success than a pop album in Germany. The mainstream charts were led by the Smurfs and Ernst Mosch, bars and discos resounded to the sound of Deutschrock and blues, while beyond the mainstream, well-meaning tree-huggers and punks ruled the roost -- two marginal groups whose seriousness was a bore. A tiny niche was occupied by Doraus soulmates, the likes of Der Plan, Palais Schaumburg et al, but in this very niche they were destined to remain. Blumen Und Narzissen is -- even decades later -- a great album. Dorau had actually planned on issuing not just the one single on Ata Tak, but ten further singles, each on a different independent label he admired. Thus Blumen Und Narzissen sounds just like that: a collection of singles. "Nordsee," "Junger Mann," and "Tulpen Und Narzissen" certainly had the potential to become hits. Connoisseurs will note parallels to the golden years of pop: singles, a girl group (Die Marinas), a passion for style. And now? Not much has really changed. The German charts continue to showcase an equally gruesome parade of local talent. And because good pop music is good pop music, Blumen Und Narzissen has found and will continue to find fans both at home and abroad. Both strange and contrary, Blumen Und Narzissen sounds neither old-fashioned nor 30 years old. On 180 gram vinyl with a printed innersleeve with photos and liner notes." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: DORAU, ANDREAS Title: Demokratie Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "German new wave (Neue Deutsche Welle, NDW) reached its peak in 1983. In the public eye, Andreas Dorau was considered an important representative of NDW. But the sensitive artist had no desire to be thrown in the same basket as the terrible monstrosities of what had become a commercially exploited trend. Not that he felt any closer to the contemporary "underground" music of the day. "All far too dark. I didnt want to have anything more to do with music. Back then underground music wasnt allowed to be melodic. The dominant belief was: melody = stupid. And I wanted melodies." Dorau turned his back to the music business and moved to Munich and took his film studies seriously. Until one day, Ata Tak founder Moritz Rrr called him up and asked Dorau if he fancied an informal exchange of ideas with artists from Berlin, no strings attached. He did fancy it, and slowly but surely, he began to have fun again with music. At the same time, Dorau amassed a formidable record collection, largely from the 1960s. And so names like The Left Banke, Van Dyke Parks and The Move rotated on his record player. The idea to make a new album dawned on him gradually. Dorau recorded, discarded material, wrote lyrics, overdubbed, arranged, discarded more material. So, he would rearrange, one track after another, so on and so forth. It was clearly a painstaking process. Says Dorau: "I wanted to create pop music, as far as possible without guitars, simply different." Baroque pop/Roy Wood/Michael Nyman/melodies/no guitars, or thereabouts/electronics/Mayo Thompson also gets in on the act: an interesting mix! Includes two bonus tracks." - Bureau B |
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Artist: DORAU, ANDREAS Title: Die Doraus & Die Marinas Geben Offenherzige Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| ...Antworten Auf Brennende Fragen. "After the success of his debut album Blumen Und Narzissen (1981), featuring his "Fred Vom Jupiter" hit, German new wave/pop upstart Andreas Dorau was urged by his new record company, Teldec, to come up with a sophomore effort as soon as possible. To bridge the gap, Dorau first released a single entitled "Kleines Stubenmädchen," a jaunty number with amusing lyrics and a professional, radio-friendly production. But Dorau had not reckoned with the sensitivity of the censors: the humorless sexism detector ruthlessly raised the alarm amongst the radio stations. Those making the decisions at Teldec had the odd idea of asking Dorau to record an apology or explanation on cassette for radio programmers to play either before or after the incriminating song. Dorau could have filled a whole cassette to clarify the subject, perhaps even upholding a claim to artistic freedom. But -- doffing his cap to the spirit of punk -- Dorau naturally rejected the suggestion. A shame. Teldec lost interest in Dorau and the album was released on CBS -- minus "Stubenmädchen," of course. A far greater problem loomed, however: the musical landscape of the Federal Republic of Germany had changed since the release of Blumen Und Narzissen. Major record companies had radically commercialized what Alfred Hilsberg had once benevolently termed "Neue Deutsche Welle" (NDW)/German New Wave (thinking of bands such as Fehlfarben, Der Plan, D.A.F.). They remolded rock bands into new wave bands, wrote idiotic ditties and had clueless jumping jacks and jills perform them. One can imagine that Dorau did not exactly jump for joy when he realized he was about to be lumped in with the rest of them. The relationship between Dorau and his sophomore work was clouded from the word "go." And it still is. Although it is actually a really good record: from the psychedelic lyrics of "Polizist," "Sandkorn" and "Texas" to beautiful observations of daily life ("Feierabend"), the music meanders its way through snappy pop, bossa nova, exotica, disco and new wave. A certain, unique strain of psychedelia courses through the whole album, detectable in the cover, the lyrics and the instrumentation. Of course, theres a world of difference between Die Doraus Und Die Marinas Geben Offenherzige Antworten Auf Brennende Fragen (trans. "The Doraus And Marinas Give Openhearted Answers To Burning Questions") and the "idiots of NDW." But try explaining that to the man on the street. By the way: "Kleines Stubenmädchen" is included on this re-release as a bonus track, along with three others. On 180 gram vinyl with a printed innersleeve with photos and liner notes." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: FEHLFARBEN Title: Ein Jahr (Es Geht Voran)/Feuer An Bord Format: 7" Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $16.00 |
| "Officially licensed exact repro of this 1982 single, originally issued on EMI Electrola. Fehlfarben were formed in 1979 from previous members of Mittagspause, D.A.F., S.Y.P.H., Der Plan, and other musicians from the Düsseldorf punk scene. In 1980, they released Monarchie And Alltag (Monarchy And Everyday Life), an album recognized as one of the most important German-language rock records. The single "Ein Jahr (Es Geht Voran)" would be their only hit single, and was, in fact, disliked by the band members themselves, who had initially produced its slick disco groove more in jest than seriousness." -Bureau B |
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Artist: GURUMANIAX Title: Psy Valley Hill Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "LP version. Mani Neumeier has always relished working with the most diverse of musicians. That was the case in Guru Guru days, and it is very much the same today. For his latest project Gurumaniax, he teamed up with his old colleague Ax Genrich (Guru Guru guitarist from 1970-75) and the bass player Guy Segers (doyen of Belgian avant-garde rock, founder of the key band Univers Zero). So: experience, virtuosity and professionalism to the power of three. Neumeier had been wanting to get something going with Genrich for some time. Indeed, they had shared the stage together on a number of occasions in recent years. Their last session together in the studio, however, took place around 35 years ago. The death of Guru Guru founding member Uli Trepte (track 8 is dedicated to his memory), only served to strengthen Neumeiers resolve. As he points out, who knows for how long either Neumeier himself or Genrich will be able to play their instruments with the same degree of virtuosity which they command today. Still, while the pair of them are blessed with such rude health, feeling not a day older than 50, Mani was determined to give it everything one more time with his old colleague and record the results for posterity. Neumeier and the bassist Guy Segers got to know each other a good year earlier, when they played an improvised gig together with Makoto Kawabata (Acid Mothers Temple) and Daevid Allen (Gong) at the Zappanale Festival. They hit it off immediately, making Segers a logical choice for the Gurumaniax project. Four days in the studio, three at the mixing desk and the psychedelic diamond was finished. Some song fragments already existed, but most were spontaneous creations of the triumvirate in the studio. Recalling classic Guru Guru highlights such as UFO (1970), Hinten (1971) and KänGuru (1972), the trio launched themselves freely into improvisation, channelled through their psychedelic/progressive/avant-garde rock terrain of choice -- others call it Krautrock. There is even a direct reference to their second LP: the track "Spaceship Memory" is, as the name suggests, a musical descendant of "Spaceship" from the year 1971. And just in case you missed it: the project name is the sum of its members names: Guru+Mani+Ax." -Bureau B |
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Artist: HARMONIA Title: De Luxe (Immer Wieder)/Monza (Rauf Und Runter) Format: 7" Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $16.00 |
| "Officially licensed exact repro of this 1975 single, originally issued on Metronome. The sweet, hypnotic melodies and the monotonous beats by Michael Rother (Neu!), Hans-Joachim Roedelius (Cluster) and Dieter Moebius (Cluster) and the repetitive lyrics, "immer wieder ... rauf und runter..." make up this Krautrock/electronica classic." -Bureau B |
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Artist: KLOSOWSKI & PYROLATOR, A.K. Title: Home Taping Is Killing Music Format: LP + CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $23.00 |
| "Home Taping Is Killing Music is the first and only LP by Pyrolator (Ata Tak label operative and member of Der Plan) and tape loop tinkerer Arnd Kai Klosowski. The result: whimsical, raw sound experiments from the early days of sampling technology. Originally released in 1985 on Ata Tak/WR 30. It was in the mid-1980s when the unsuccessful blues guitarist Arnd Kai Klosowski realized that the DJ was the star of the show in the discotheque: not the music and not the musicians. He then asked himself: "What if it were possible to create something new, a mix of recorded and live music which could be switched on and off intermittently?" Klosowski built himself a mixing desk with eight inputs, plugged-in microphones, called up a few people and they improvised their hearts out. "I dont know what they played, exactly. But I do know that it simply didnt work," Klosowski recollects. And then he remembered the tape loop experiments he had worked on as a teenager. So he got back to inventing, tinkering, and soldering. The first recordings made with this new, homemade tape loop device found their way to ZickZack label boss Alfred Hilsberg, who decided to release an album. All he needed was a producer. At this point, Pyrolator finally enters the scene, a musician (as a member of Der Plan, for example), producer, and Ata Tak label operative. Similarities in the working practices and musical leanings of Pyrolator and Klosowski are there for all to see, or rather to hear. Both were interested in collage, obscure music, and technical innovation. They went into the studio together and recordedHome Taping Is Killing Music. The original plan was to issue the album on Hilsbergs ZickZack label, but it actually came out through Ata Tak. Why was that? Pyrolator: "We felt that the album was far better suited to Ata Tak, and so we came to an agreement with Alfred that we could release the record." Klosowski adds another significant detail to this explanation: "Pyrolator had to invest more time and work than anticipated. He had imagined it all to be somewhat easier. I lacked experience in studio technology, so Pyrolator had to bear the brunt of that. Two worlds collided, that of a trained musician and my own. We overshot the studio budget by some distance." The Klosowski album produced by Pyrolator thus became a joint Klosowski/Pyrolator album, with Ata Tak the logical label choice. Home Taping Is Killing Music is a rough diamond from the pioneering era of sampling technology. True, the Emulator 1 already existed and was used extensively, but the tape machine which Klosowski designed and constructed could play considerably longer loops and samples than the E-MU Systems product. And so it was that salsa trumpets and Gregorian chants were heard side-by-side, railway noises aligned with Cambodian music and gospel met Bavarian yodeling. At no time did technology become an end in itself: it always served the melody, the beat, the element of surprise. In short, it was in the service of listening pleasure. Comes on 180 gram vinyl with a CD copy of the entire album." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: KLOSOWSKI & PYROLATOR, A.K. Title: Home Taping Is Killing Music Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Home Taping Is Killing Music is the first and only LP by Pyrolator (Ata Tak label operative and member of Der Plan) and tape loop tinkerer Arnd Kai Klosowski. The result: whimsical, raw sound experiments from the early days of sampling technology. Originally released in 1985 on Ata Tak/WR 30. It was in the mid-1980s when the unsuccessful blues guitarist Arnd Kai Klosowski realized that the DJ was the star of the show in the discotheque: not the music and not the musicians. He then asked himself: "What if it were possible to create something new, a mix of recorded and live music which could be switched on and off intermittently?" Klosowski built himself a mixing desk with eight inputs, plugged-in microphones, called up a few people and they improvised their hearts out. "I dont know what they played, exactly. But I do know that it simply didnt work," Klosowski recollects. And then he remembered the tape loop experiments he had worked on as a teenager. So he got back to inventing, tinkering, and soldering. The first recordings made with this new, homemade tape loop device found their way to ZickZack label boss Alfred Hilsberg, who decided to release an album. All he needed was a producer. At this point, Pyrolator finally enters the scene, a musician (as a member of Der Plan, for example), producer, and Ata Tak label operative. Similarities in the working practices and musical leanings of Pyrolator and Klosowski are there for all to see, or rather to hear. Both were interested in collage, obscure music, and technical innovation. They went into the studio together and recordedHome Taping Is Killing Music. The original plan was to issue the album on Hilsbergs ZickZack label, but it actually came out through Ata Tak. Why was that? Pyrolator: "We felt that the album was far better suited to Ata Tak, and so we came to an agreement with Alfred that we could release the record." Klosowski adds another significant detail to this explanation: "Pyrolator had to invest more time and work than anticipated. He had imagined it all to be somewhat easier. I lacked experience in studio technology, so Pyrolator had to bear the brunt of that. Two worlds collided, that of a trained musician and my own. We overshot the studio budget by some distance." The Klosowski album produced by Pyrolator thus became a joint Klosowski/Pyrolator album, with Ata Tak the logical label choice. Home Taping Is Killing Music is a rough diamond from the pioneering era of sampling technology. True, the Emulator 1 already existed and was used extensively, but the tape machine which Klosowski designed and constructed could play considerably longer loops and samples than the E-MU Systems product. And so it was that salsa trumpets and Gregorian chants were heard side-by-side, railway noises aligned with Cambodian music and gospel met Bavarian yodeling. At no time did technology become an end in itself: it always served the melody, the beat, the element of surprise. In short, it was in the service of listening pleasure." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: KLUSTER Title: Klopfzeichen Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram vinyl version. Imagine finding a message in a bottle, forty years after it was dispatched. That is what it feels like when you listen to Klusters Klopfzeichen for the first time, mysterious, hard to decipher, a relic of a time long since passed. The handwriting is archaic, barely legible, the complex contents only falling into place when examined through the light of historical context. Klopfzeichen is an incredibly important release for the time in which it appeared (1971), an extraordinarily significant document. More than anything, the three messengers Konrad Schnitzler, Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius formulated a radical claim with Klopfzeichen: anarchic, unlimited freedom of art and music. Klusters music may have aged, but their message has not. That the recording session happened at all is, curiously enough, due to a church musician, a man one would then have described as extremely progressive. Oskar Gottlieb Blarr not only made it possible for these musical enfants terribles to work in Düsseldorfs Rhenus Studio, he also orchestrated the release of Klopfzeichen shortly afterwards through the Schwann Verlag, a publisher closely associated with the church, on their own record label, AMS Studio (subtitled "Werkraum für neue Kirchenmusik"/trans. "workspace for new church music"). This "ecclesiastical" affinity is probably the reason for the strongly-committed political and religious texts spoken over the music on the A-side. Kluster lyrics they are not, and they sound a little strange today. True to their understanding of artistic freedom (Joseph Beuys was undoubtedly an influence), Kluster improvised with all sources of sound they could lay their hands on: guitar, bass, cello, flute, drums and various other pieces of equipment not usually intended for musical use. None of them could profess to be an expert on any of the instruments. They were brilliant dilettantes, a decade before the concept was invented. Electronics? No sign of them. The budget did not stretch to synthesizers or anything of that ilk. That said, a certain Conny Plank was on board as sound engineer for the early recordings. He added an apocalyptic character to Klusters menacing and chaotic music. Klopfzeichen was the most radical album of the early German pop music avant-garde by a country mile. Its sounds and noises had nothing in common with the sequencer-generated electronic music emerging from Berlin or Düsseldorf. Kluster music was Angstmusik, the music of fear. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: KLUSTER Title: Schwarz (Eruption) Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $22.00 |
| "Comes on 180 gram vinyl and includes download card for the album. The official Konrad Schnitzler discography lists Eruption, released in 1971, under the title Schwarz, as the first Schnitzler album. In actual fact, Eruption is the third and final LP by the group Kluster, following Klopfzeichen (BB 110CD/LP) and Zwei Osterei (BB 111CD/LP). The line-up printed on the labels leaves no room for doubt. Unlike the two previous albums, Eruption was not issued by the Schwann Verlag, but by the band on its own, hence the task of financing the record fell to the participants. Roedelius and Moebius, however, were either unable or unwilling to get involved in this risky business. Without further ado, Schnitzler decided to cover the cost of pressing up 200 LPs which he would bring out under his own name. This historical "error" has now been corrected: Eruption is a Kluster album. Seen alongside Klopfzeichen and Zwei Osterei, Eruption is a different beast altogether. The total absence of lyrics, to begin with; the music is music, nothing more. The listener revels in a pure symphony of sound, its dramatic artistry holding his attention until the very end. And that is the second major difference to the first two LPs. Whereas their furious intensity sounded almost brutally improvised, Eruption appears clearly structured throughout, musical freedoms notwithstanding. Kluster take their time in developing spontaneous ideas here, they get loud and then, for lengthier periods, go quiet, suggesting at times a sense of absolute emptiness, followed by outbreaks of dark anger. The possibilities opened up by live electronics were thrillingly exploited to the limit. And yet there is undeniably a method in the music. In the course of their many live concerts, Kluster had learned to use instruments and electronics constructively, reaching the zenith of their musical powers of expression on Eruption. Kluster disbanded after Eruption. The album is a revealing document of a band striving to stretch the musical spectrum during the early 1970s, and indeed, how capable they were of doing so. Moebius and Roedelius went on working together as Cluster, and Conrad Schnitzler (now with a C) began developing his own vision of electronic music, a project he continued assiduously until his death (2011). Still, all three had their roots in Kluster -- incredibly powerful roots. And Kluster have never ceased to be hugely fertile ground. May their creative inspiration never run dry." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: KLUSTER Title: Zwei Osterei Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
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"180 gram vinyl version. Zwei Osterei is the second half of a recording session which took place on a single day in November 1970. Klopfzeichen is the first part. Yet the uncompromising Zwei Osterei surpasses the earlier Klopfzeichen album by some distance in terms of its harsh noisiness and near brutal sonic attacks. Everything that was left of the revolutionary verve of the late 1960s seems to have been distilled into this music with a burning glass: aesthetic destruction to liberate the mind and ears for utopian designs; the definitive coalescence of art and pop into something completely new; unbridled musical freedom, coupled with a love of noise. Zwei Osterei is all of this. How unsettling Klusters music must have been for the professional avant-garde of the period (music journalists, critics etc.). Kluster turned pretty much everything associated with so-called progressive pop music on its head. No song structure, no rhythm, little more than muffled pulsation. No heroic poses, no transfigured gestures on stage. This attitude, or rather anti-attitude is particularly in evidence on track two of Zwei Osterei. Still no electronic instruments, just guitar, drums and non-musical sonic sources as Kluster unleash a sound spectacle which anticipates the industrial artists who emerged some years later. Conny Plank played a pivotal role as sound engineer with the relatively limited studio equipment available to him. His meticulous reading of the bands intentions led to the creation of pure, electroacoustic music -- loud, violent, real-time improvisation. Shrill feedback, tape echo loops and layers of sonic cascades dominate this section of the album. This was no longer psychedelic, nor "progressive." It was more like sonic warfare, waged against all musical categories and conventions. Many a listener posed the rather helpless question "What is that supposed to be??... art? Music? A happening?" According to statements made by the band, none of the above. It was simply Kluster. A lofty claim which Zwei Osterei fulfills one hundred percent. Translated, the statement is nothing more nor less than a challenge to ignore the accumulated theory of art and music, with all the risks and side effects this entails. Back in 1970, Kluster could not have known that they were setting in motion a process which would endure until the present day. But they no doubt hoped as much." -Bureau B.
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Artist: MOEBIUS Title: Tonspuren Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "LP version, pressed on 180 gram vinyl. This is the first solo album by Dieter Moebius, recorded at Conny Planks studio and originally released in 1983 on Sky Records. By 1969 at the latest, Dieter Moebius was synonymous with the avant-garde electronic music scene in Germany. He and Hans-Joachim Roedelius formed Cluster, a seminal electronic/ambient duo, while Moebius was also a member of the so-called Krautrock supergroup Harmonia (with Michael Rother and Roedelius), as well as collaborating on various other projects with the likes of Brian Eno and Mani Neumeier from Guru Guru. Somehow, it took Moebius until 1983 to release his own solo debut album. Tonspuren is an album of minimalisms, miniatures and stringent form -- 10 consistently concise and precise pieces. Moebius develops tonal variations out of minimalistic, rhythmic, harmonic basic tracks, sometimes coming close to tangible melodies. Yet this is exactly the point at which he purposely steers clear of electronic pop criteria. Nevertheless, Tonspuren is a pop album, its radically stripped-down contents replenished with harmonious elements of prevalent popular music. Echoes of Cluster notwithstanding, the music of Tonspuren is a separate entity altogether. Moebius seems to be avoiding improvisation as the devil keeps his distance from holy water. Each piece is thoughtfully composed, as Moebius crafts his miniatures layer by layer. Spontaneous inaccuracies have no place here; noise escapades are nipped in the bud. Baroque, folklore and frivolity are not admitted into the studio when the red light is on. Thanks to Tonspuren, the keen listener now has the opportunity of direct comparison in his appraisal of the solo albums of Moebius, Roedelius and Rother. Tonspuren thus represents a vital piece of the Harmonia puzzle. Full color inner sleeve with liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & BEERBOHM Title: Blue Moon OST Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. By 1969 at the latest, Dieter Moebius was synonymous with the avant-garde electronic music scene in Germany. He and Hans-Joachim Roedelius formed Cluster, a seminal electronic/ambient duo, while Moebius was also a member of the so-called Krautrock supergroup Harmonia (with Michael Rother and Roedelius), as well as collaborating on various other projects with the likes of Brian Eno and Mani Neumeier from Guru Guru. This was the last solo album that Moebius delivered to Sky Records, originally released in 1986. Blue Moon was released at a time when electronically-created pop music was no longer perceived as exotic. It was new music, free of the ballast of the 1970s, minimalist and uncluttered. Moebius, a constant simplifier in the Cluster/Harmonia family, made a particular virtue of this simplicity on Blue Moon, resulting in 11 wonderfully measured miniatures, rhythmic, harmonic textures of exceptional aural transparency. Clarity, calm and an impression of unthreatening irreality run through all 11 pieces, which, to capture their full sense of musical and atmospheric development, would all need to be twice as long. Instead of which, regrettably, they break off abruptly, all too soon, all too often. Short isnt always sweet. What an epochal flight of fancy Blue Moon could have been, had it extended to a double album format. But Moebius, his wings clipped in the service of film music, needed, of course, to match his compositions to the length of each scene -- sometimes a blessing, other times a curse. Due to their soundtrack function, the 11 compositions on the album fell short of the glittering diamonds they could so easily have become, precious though they undoubtedly were. As previously on Tonspuren (BB 040CD/LP), Moebius structures his music with well defined, sharp contours, modestly elegant, simple yet rich in detail, thus never running the risk of lapsing into monotony. This is forceful electronic pop music and it works perfectly well without pictures. It has survived throughout the decades because Moebius -- much like his Harmonia colleagues, Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Michael Rother -- had formulated a musical language which, today, can be understood better than ever. Innersleeve with full-color photos and notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & BEERBOHM Title: Double Cut Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "In 1984, two years after their first album collaboration, Strange Music, Dieter Moebius and Gerd Beerbohm issued their second LP, Double Cut. It bore the same distinctive hallmarks as its predecessor, but this time around, the two musicians had simplified matters significantly. This was not simplification due to a lack of inspiration, however, but a masterful concentration on what really counts in pop music: rhythm. Today, any discussion of German electronic pop music of the 1970s and 1980s takes for granted that the origins of a whole range of future music movements can be traced back to this period. German groups anticipated punk and were producing proto-techno and ambient music long before these had entered the genre pool as recognized categories. A number of the protagonists from that era would become enduring worldwide legends. Others, such as Moebius and Beerbohm, have thus far been limited to the shelves of certain enthusiasts. Yet, as a precursor of prescient future music, Double Cut is a perfect specimen. The centerpiece of the album, the 22-minute "Doppelschnitt," can be tagged as proto-techno. Moebius and Beerbohm have grafted an endless stream of rhythmical electronic particles onto an ostinato bass and drum figure, fluttering to and fro like the lightest of shimmering veils. The utter and deliberate absence of any kind of melody makes it even easier to be carried away by rhythm to distant places. Double Cut is musical askesis of a formidably persuasive nature, avoiding energy-sapping meditative ballast and the anaemic contemplation of new sound academia. Double Cut is powerful, sensual pop music. Moebius never set foot in the studio with the aim of recording structured, premeditated compositions -- he rather more resembled a child in a sandpit. Beerbohm was a congenial partner in this respect, as he and Moebius bounced artistic ideas back and forth, surprising each other time and again with their musical caprioles. Beerbohms contribution to the pair of albums cannot be regarded too highly. And Moebius, the brilliant spark, had once again proved shrewd in the extreme by enlisting Beerbohm to record two albums with him. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & BEEROHM Title: Strange Music Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version with liner notes by Asmus Tietchens. Bureau B reissues the first collaborative release by Dieter Moebius and Gerd Beerbohm, originally released by Sky Records in 1982. In the latter half of the 1970s, alongside their Cluster collaboration, Dieter Moebius and Hans-Joachim Roedelius embarked almost simultaneously on individual musical journeys. Roedelius focused primarily on solo projects, while Moebius preferred to engage with other musicians on equal terms. Strange Music -- as unimaginative as the title may first appear -- speaks volumes about where Moebius was coming from, artistically speaking. Moebius is a master of perspicuity, without ever oversimplifying or lapsing into banalization. Instead, he uncovers the rich variety inherent in the detail of minor variations. Moebius principles of pop music are drawn from three sources: the uncomplicated minimalism of the late 1960s, archaizing, instrumental rocknroll of the late 1950s and improvisation. Working with Gerd Beerbohm saw him combine these elements to create an exact representation of his understanding of contemporary pop music. Gerd Beerbohm turned out to be the perfect musical foil for Moebius, affording him free rein, in the very best sense of the expression, to bring his concept of pop music to life. While "unleashed" best describes his mindset, this should be equated with neither chaos nor arbitrariness. On the contrary, the only liberty Moebius took was to focus exclusively on his and Beerbohms musical visions, without feeling the need to consider any higher group concepts. This gave rise to a forceful, energized album, steering a clear course ahead, full of improvised ideas and unencumbered by frills or embellishments. Moebius und Beerbohm had well and truly arrived in the early 1980s, with the future clearly in their sights, most definitely not looking over their shoulders. It is impossible to ignore distant echoes of punk and new wave -- DIY, the "do it yourself" ethic had been common practice for the Harmonia family since the 1970s, recording with their own equipment, independent of the bigger studios. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & BEEROHM Title: Strange Music Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Bureau B reissues the first collaborative release by Dieter Moebius and Gerd Beerbohm, originally released by Sky Records in 1982. In the latter half of the 1970s, alongside their Cluster collaboration, Dieter Moebius and Hans-Joachim Roedelius embarked almost simultaneously on individual musical journeys. Roedelius focused primarily on solo projects, while Moebius preferred to engage with other musicians on equal terms. Strange Music -- as unimaginative as the title may first appear -- speaks volumes about where Moebius was coming from, artistically speaking. Moebius is a master of perspicuity, without ever oversimplifying or lapsing into banalization. Instead, he uncovers the rich variety inherent in the detail of minor variations. Moebius principles of pop music are drawn from three sources: the uncomplicated minimalism of the late 1960s, archaizing, instrumental rocknroll of the late 1950s and improvisation. Working with Gerd Beerbohm saw him combine these elements to create an exact representation of his understanding of contemporary pop music. Gerd Beerbohm turned out to be the perfect musical foil for Moebius, affording him free rein, in the very best sense of the expression, to bring his concept of pop music to life. While "unleashed" best describes his mindset, this should be equated with neither chaos nor arbitrariness. On the contrary, the only liberty Moebius took was to focus exclusively on his and Beerbohms musical visions, without feeling the need to consider any higher group concepts. This gave rise to a forceful, energized album, steering a clear course ahead, full of improvised ideas and unencumbered by frills or embellishments. Moebius und Beerbohm had well and truly arrived in the early 1980s, with the future clearly in their sights, most definitely not looking over their shoulders. It is impossible to ignore distant echoes of punk and new wave -- DIY, the "do it yourself" ethic had been common practice for the Harmonia family since the 1970s, recording with their own equipment, independent of the bigger studios. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & PLANK Title: En Route Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram vinyl. En Route was created in 1986, when the era of analog synths and rhythm machines seemed to be drawing to a close. Drum computers, samplers and digital instruments such as the Synclavier and Fairlight CMS would shape the immediate future of electronic music. Naturally, these wonderful machines formed a part of Conny Planks arsenal and were used extensively by him and Dieter Moebius. The duo explored the new devices with their inimitable, cheerful sense of abandon, but were wise enough not to rely on them entirely. Analog instruments resurface time and again, such as trumpet (!), guitar and other sonic sources which are less easy to identify. Nor had Moebius packed his analog synthesizers away in mothballs. Rhythmic throughout, the music is wholly free of the darkness which characterized the fashionable industrial or new wave scenes of the period. A tendency to descend into enraptured sonic abstraction is similarly absent. The pieces almost sound as if they are the product of real-time improvisation -- airy and self-evident, ballast-free and without unnecessary embellishment. En Route is hip electronic music, yet it steers well clear of the mainstream. The fact that three tracks were remixed for a commission by Dave Stewart (Eurythmics) did nothing to change that. Stewart was planning a film project (which never came to fruition) and hired producer Manu Guiot, who reshaped the tracks together with Dieter Moebius shortly before release in Connys studio. Moebius and Plank were en route, "on the way," so to speak. Sadly, it was to be the last in a sequence of five albums they recorded and released together. Conceived in 1983, Ludwigs Law was the fourth album in chronological terms but only appeared in 1998. Debilitated by severe illness, Plank was no longer able to mix the recordings himself. His studio colleague Bruno Gebhard took on the task, together with Moebius. Shortly afterwards, in 1987, Conny Plank died. The common path of the two friends was now at an end. But En Route was certainly not intended to mark the conclusion of their lengthy collaboration. For how much of the future, how much optimism is implicit in the certitude of being en route?" -Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & PLANK Title: Material Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "On their second album Material, originally released on Sky Records in 1981, Moebius & Plank ventured far, far away from the double coordinates of the Harmonia world and pop music cosmos. Amazingly, they did not find themselves floating in space, but made an exemplary landing, avoiding getting caught between a rock and a hard place. Material saw them generate a form of genre-busting electronic music, more radical than anything one might have expected to come out of Germany, not even from the likes of Cluster or Harmonia. Having said that, one should add that the album is in no way a copy of the new wave and industrial scenes that were enjoying such prominence at the time. Material is, in the best sense of the word, without style, that is to say, it cannot be aligned with any of the conventional styles available. On their two first albums, Moebius & Plank take up their place in a lengthy list of musicians and composers who, from roughly the end of the 1970s, gave up caring about which stylistic category their music might belong to, no longer looking upon experimentation as a strategy of reckless abandon, but as a perfectly normal course of action. 180 gram vinyl LP housed in a printed inner sleeve with full-color photos and notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & PLANK Title: Rastakraut Pasta Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Dieter Moebius and Conny Plank got to know each other through their work on Clusters 1971 album and remained close friends until Planks death in 1987. They made a congenial pair as musicians, as amply demonstrated by their first album as a duo, Rastakraut Pasta, originally released on Sky Records in 1980. On this album, drums, electric guitars and bass are the cornerstones of every track; they provide the framework to which Moebius adds fresh color and life with his synthesizers. Thanks to the technical merits of Planks studio, the keyboards sound barely distinguishable from one another. No samples -- strictly analog from start to finish. Holger Czukay (Can) plays bass on three pieces and his consummate professionalism sees his virtuosity finely-tuned to the concept of Moebius and Plank. Moebius has a predilection for surrealist cascades of noise, heard throughout the album, grotesque yet playful. An enigmatic form of pop music came into being on this LP, a breakneck, elegant mix of diverse elements: a touch of Krautrock, some avant-garde pop, new German electronica, even sporadic echoes of reggae. 180 gram vinyl LP housed in a printed inner sleeve with full-color photos and notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & RENZIEHAUSEN Title: Ersatz Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "1990 sees Dieter Moebius enter new musical territory, cautiously reconnoitering the digital world. His companion on this excursion is Karl Renziehausen, a visual artist and constructor of sound sculptures. The two of them distance themselves sonically and musically from existing Moebius collaborations with Conny Plank and Gerd Beerbohm (almost all of which have been reissued on Bureau B); similarly, only sporadic echoes can be heard of Cluster and Harmonia, two projects whose style Moebius influenced significantly over a number of years. There is an exactness to the music of Moebius and Renziehausen, who allow nothing to stray from their chosen path. They stage seven little musical comedies with different plots, much as if they were writing for the theater. Common to each of the pieces is a prevailing mood of surrealism: Moebius appears to have an unlimited menagerie of imaginary sonic creatures at his disposal, introduced to the audience in a clearly discernible framework of dramaturgy. Their actions are utterly unpredictable, the plot develops in the listeners head. Renziehausen constructs the space: moving scenery to accommodate wonderful transparency and depth, as warm, bright light affords a clear view of each and every delectable detail. Ersatz is music at its most pictorial, far removed from cheap, programmed music. Although Moebius and Renziehausen frequently cross the boundaries of tonality, they still remain firmly grounded. The connection to the real world is never completely severed. Which is what makes this music so puzzling to anyone willing to engage with it: the occasional fleeting sense of something familiar, yet no sooner than something appears which one might have heard before, it disappears again, replaced by something new and unrecognizable. Listeners can look forward to nine meticulously crafted soundscapes of uncharted, fantastic regions. Soundscapes, perhaps, of some imitation paradise? Rather than measure this album by a musical yardstick then, one ought to evaluate it as one of the great discoveries in its own right." -Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & TIETCHENS Title: S/T Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "With Asmus Tietchens and Dieter Moebius, two artists counting among the greats of German avant-garde electronic music have come together. Both have been active for well over 30 years: Moebius (since 1970) as a member of Kluster/Cluster and Harmonia, as well as solo and in numerous collaborations (Brian Eno, Mani Neumeier, Conny Plank, Mayo Thompson and many more), and Tietchens (since 1979) almost exclusively as a solo artist, beginning in the fields of electronic music and musique concrète and later mainly in the realm of abstract music. Moebius + Tietchens is now their first collaboration in 32 years. With this album, Dieter Moebius and Asmus Tietchens fulfill a promise that they made 35 years ago. That is, in 1976, when the five musicians of Liliental completed the recordings for their eponymous album and again scattered to the winds, Moebius called out to Tietchens from the already-moving car: "We have to make a record together sometime." At least that is the report of an ear-witness. Whether or not its true... In any case, both decided in 2011 to record the album which is now released. Moebius (Cluster, Harmonia), since the early years of Cluster, has neither lost his curiosity nor his eagerness for experimentation. On the contrary: he has downright cultivated them. Tietchens is not only a true aficionado of Clusters music and friend of the duo, but has also released countless albums of electronic music and musique concrète since the 1980s -- like Cluster, initially on Sky Records -- then later only in the field of industrial and abstract music. Their album may come from out of the blue, but the large amount of overlap in the music of both artists made it a forgone conclusion to finally make good on the aforementioned promise. Thirteen pieces carry the album. These are thirteen ideas that could hardly be heterogeneous -- no two pieces are similar. From the rough sketch to densely-gripping rhythms, one can clearly hear just what these two old masters of electronic music have in their arsenals. This is not a result of the routine that comes with so many years of experience, nor a thin portion of tired old recipes for success. Other than a few faint echoes of a bygone era (perhaps as a sentimental reminder), Moebius + Tietchens is an album that could only emerge from the here and now. It is contemporary, new music." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & TIETCHENS Title: s/t Format: LP + CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "With Asmus Tietchens and Dieter Moebius, two artists counting among the greats of German avant-garde electronic music have come together. Both have been active for well over 30 years: Moebius (since 1970) as a member of Kluster/Cluster and Harmonia, as well as solo and in numerous collaborations (Brian Eno, Mani Neumeier, Conny Plank, Mayo Thompson and many more), and Tietchens (since 1979) almost exclusively as a solo artist, beginning in the fields of electronic music and musique concrète and later mainly in the realm of abstract music. Moebius + Tietchens is now their first collaboration in 32 years. With this album, Dieter Moebius and Asmus Tietchens fulfill a promise that they made 35 years ago. That is, in 1976, when the five musicians of Liliental completed the recordings for their eponymous album and again scattered to the winds, Moebius called out to Tietchens from the already-moving car: "We have to make a record together sometime." At least that is the report of an ear-witness. Whether or not its true... In any case, both decided in 2011 to record the album which is now released. Moebius (Cluster, Harmonia), since the early years of Cluster, has neither lost his curiosity nor his eagerness for experimentation. On the contrary: he has downright cultivated them. Tietchens is not only a true aficionado of Clusters music and friend of the duo, but has also released countless albums of electronic music and musique concrète since the 1980s -- like Cluster, initially on Sky Records -- then later only in the field of industrial and abstract music. Their album may come from out of the blue, but the large amount of overlap in the music of both artists made it a forgone conclusion to finally make good on the aforementioned promise. Thirteen pieces carry the album. These are thirteen ideas that could hardly be heterogeneous -- no two pieces are similar. From the rough sketch to densely-gripping rhythms, one can clearly hear just what these two old masters of electronic music have in their arsenals. This is not a result of the routine that comes with so many years of experience, nor a thin portion of tired old recipes for success. Other than a few faint echoes of a bygone era (perhaps as a sentimental reminder), Moebius + Tietchens is an album that could only emerge from the here and now. It is contemporary, new music." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: MOEBIUS & TIETCHENS/JUNIOR ELECTRONICS Title: Mr. Mercator/Herrlichkeit/Tiefland Format: 12" Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $12.00 |
| "Dieter Moebius (Cluster,Harmonia) and Asmus Tietchens share an outtake of their album Moebius & Tietchens with us for this Record Store Day exclusive 12". Joe Watson(Stereolab) aka Junior Electronics recorded a new song and reworked the Moebius & Tietchens song "Herrlichkeit" by adding vocal overdubs." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: PALAIS SCHAUMBURG Title: Palais Schaumburg Format: 2CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $23.00 |
| "The influential German post-punk electronic pop band Palais Schaumburg has reunited in the classic line-up. Since its release in 1981, their debut album has remained in a league of its own: fleet-footed and peculiar, abstract and pop, amateurish and savvy, it showed real alternatives to the then-pervasive crude search for identity found in the "new German wave." The band, which consisted entirely of divergent personalities, has reunited in this formation to rediscover their common ground, further develop, and to perform live. In this post-sampling era, with the current, dynamic changes in the creation and reception of music, their statement has lost none of its fascination. Anyone who sees and hears the combination of idiosyncratic bass riffs (Blunck), bizarre yet catchy rhythms (Hertwig, Blunck), Fehlmanns shrill horn and synthesizer fanfares, and Hillers seemingly atonal staccato guitar work and oblique lyrical conglomerates, will immediately comprehend the influence of this band. In addition to the actual album, this reissue includes a second CD/LP containing all the pieces that the band recorded prior to their debut album (all of them now available for the first time on CD), and a previously-unreleased recording of a concert in Holland. A lavish booklet includes rare photographs and liner notes by Chris Bohn, editor of The Wire. " - Bureau B |
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Artist: PALAIS SCHAUMBURG Title: s/t Format: Double LP/CD/7 Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $37.00 |
| "The definitive reissue of influential German post-punk electronic pop band Palais Schaumburg: in addition to the actual album, this reissue includes a second LP containing all the pieces that the band recorded prior to their debut album, and a previously-unreleased recording of a concert in Holland. A lavish booklet includes rare photographs and liner notes by Chris Bohn, editor of The Wire. In 1980, two students met at the Hamburg Art Academy: Thomas Fehlmann, who appreciated art and music and wanted to connect them, and the musician Holger Hiller, who had escaped the fractious Hamburg alternative scene, preferring the art schools Conservatory of Music. The spirit of the early New German Wave blew through the country, the first independent labels vied for innovative artists, and the West German post-punk scene began to take shape. Hiller and Fehlmann brought in FM Einheit (from the band Abwärts) on drums and the Californian Chris Lunch on bass. But only shortly after the first single, with Timo Bluncks bass riffs and the adept drumming of Ralf Hertwig, did the band establish its classic line-up. Palais Schaumburg played numerous gigs in this line-up and recorded a second single -- then on the indie label Zick Zack. The recording of the album was enhanced by the British producer David Cunningham (Flying Lizards). Soon the music giant Phonogram came along waving a contract. Though it was predictable that the album would not exactly be a commercial success, its special position in German pop music soon became clear. The attention the album received was considerable, given the "awkwardness" of the music. These days, alongside the central works of the famous Krautrock bands, it is one of the most sought-after albums of German avant-garde music internationally. The limited edition 180 gram vinyl double LP comes with a CD version of the album and contains a 7" single with four tracks from a concert in Hamburg where people from the audience -- among them Andreas Dorau -- perform their own versions accompanied by the band." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: PALAIS SCHAUMBURG Title: Wir Bauen Eine Neue Stadt/Madonna Format: 7" Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $16.00 |
| "Officially licensed exact repro of this 1982 single, originally issued on Phonogram. This is the internationally most successful single of Holger Hillers and Thomas Fehlmanns early 80s avant-garde pop band, Palais Schaumburg. David Cunningham produced this cold, minimalistic elektro-funk combined with Dadaesque lyrics in 1981."-Bureau B |
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Artist: PHANTOM BAND Title: Freedom Of Speech Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "LP version, 180 gram vinyl. Originally released in 1981 on Sky Records, Bureau B reissues the second album by Phantom Band, a Cologne combo assembled by Can drummer Jaki Liebezeit. By this point in the bands history, ex-Can bass player Rosko Gee (earlier Steve Winwoods bassist in Traffic) had left the band. The surviving quartet managed without a bass for the most part (or substituted a keyboard) and invited spoken-word performer Sheldon Ancel to step up to the microphone. And while the debut album revealed many Caribbean or African influences and a generally positive frame of mind, Freedom Of Speech is a somewhat darker avant-garde rock manifesto, interspersed with individual dub or reggae pieces. Regular Phantom Band members alongside Jaki Liebezeit included keyboarder Helmut Zerlett, known to a wider television audience in Germany through the Harald Schmidt Show, percussionist Olek Gelba and guitarist Dominik von Senger, all drawn from the deep pool of Cologne musical talent which has given rise to so many projects over the past thirty years: Dunkelziffer, Damo Suzuki Band, Unknown Cases ("Masimba Bele"), Club Off Chaos, and Trance Groove, to name just a few. Printed inner sleeve features notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: PHANTOM BAND Title: S/T Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "LP version, 180 gram vinyl. Originally released in 1980 on Sky Records, Bureau B reissues the debut album by Phantom Band, a Cologne combo assembled by Can drummer Jaki Liebezeit. In spite of continuing in the vein of the last three Can albums, the Phantom Band (recording three albums themselves) remained unknown to many who would count themselves fans of Can. All of their albums are quite different from each other, even though there was just a single change in personnel: while ex-Can bass player Rosko Gee (earlier Steve Winwoods bassist in Traffic, now with the Helmut Zerlett Band) played a significant part in both the music, vocals and the production of the first, he was absent from the next. Featured heavily here is Jaki Liebezeits inimitable monotone polyrhythmic drumming and the Phantom Bands predilection for hypnotic (Jamaican) grooves. Regular Phantom Band members alongside Jaki Liebezeit included keyboarder Helmut Zerlett, known to a wider television audience in Germany through the Harald Schmidt Show, percussionist Olek Gelba and guitarist Dominik von Senger, all drawn from the deep pool of Cologne musical talent which has given rise to so many projects over the past thirty years: Dunkelziffer, Damo Suzuki Band, Unknown Cases ("Masimba Bele"), Club Off Chaos, and Trance Groove, to name just a few. Printed inner sleeve features comments by Jaki Liebezeit, Helmut Zerlett, Dominik von Senger and Asmus Tietchens, bringing to life the creation and unique chemistry of the Phantom Band. Mixed by Conny Plank, guest appearance by Holger Czukay." -Bureau B |
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Artist: PYROLATOR Title: Ausland Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Just two years separate Pyrolators 1979 debut Inland and the 1981 album Ausland. Nevertheless, they could hardly be more different from one another. If Inland reflects the industrial decay and politically-explosive atmosphere of 1977 and the years thereafter in the Federal Republic of Germany, then Ausland is a buoyant, playful and yet groundbreaking pop album. There had been some significant developments since 1979. The Ata Tak label, which Pyrolator had co-founded, had hit a rich vein of form with the debut album by Der Plan (Pyrolator was also a band member), Andreas Doraus hit single "Fred Vom Jupiter" and Holger Hillers debut single. Pyrolator made his first trip to the USA, travelling the land from east to west over a period of three months. This all paved the way for the production of Ausland and pointed the way ahead for the Ata Tak label as well. On the West coast, Pyrolator met up with the Los Angeles Free Music Society (LAFMS), a collective in the process of exploring the frontiers between noise and industrial on the one hand and easy listening on the other. It was the influence of such free spirits which opened up the Ata Tak world and that of Pyrolator to "Schlager" and its American equivalent, easy listening. This mix of electronic elements and supposedly left-field pop music of times past runs through the Ata-Tak oeuvre and, with the benefit of hindsight, can be identified as the labels trademark. A further difference to Inland is that a long list of musicians participated in the Ausland recordings. In the USA, Pyrolator played together with designer Chris Lunch and his brother as support act for the likes of DNA and X. This moved Pyrolator to decide that he would not produce his next album alone, but with other musicians and technicians. With the help of the genius Werner Lambertz, inventor of "Brontologik," a forerunner of midi systems, and Ata Tak and Der Plan cohort Frank Fenstermacher, Pyrolator recorded the backing tracks on which other musicians would subsequently play their overdubs. The critics were in agreement when Ausland was released. From the progressive Sounds to the rather more traditional Musikexpress, all the way to the British New Musical Express (NME), the album met with universal praise. NME heralded Pyrolator as a "great pioneer" and quite right, too. He is still a pioneer today." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: PYROLATOR Title: Inland Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Pyrolators Inland (originally released in 1979) provides musical commentary on the late 70s in West Germany, with its undercurrent of paranoia and violence. Inland is one of the most radical, modern and unconciliatory albums of its, or any other, time. The cover for Inland illustrates this atmosphere: tones of grey and brown instead of 70s bliss. The political situation in West Germany is at its most volatile. The war between the Rote Armee Fraktion (RAF) and the State escalated two years before. The spirit of departure which characterized the early years of government by Willy Brandt and the socialist-liberal coalition, dissolved in the so-called "years of lead." Taking part in a demonstration against occupational bans could lead to the very same, and the chances of falling into a terrorist manhunt or staring a gun in the face were not so slim, particularly for young people. Pyrolators aim was to make a protest album, one detached from all convention. A total absence of common musical structure and an unfiltered rush of sound recordings create a nightmarish, claustrophobic atmosphere. Pyrolator used a Korg MS20, SQ10 sequencer, B20R home organ, a Davolisint synthesizer, a Logan string orchestra and a dual-channel tape machine. Inland is both a rejection of the new form of protest song, the throaty, despairing scream of punk rock, and a rejection of the traditional form of protest song as nurtured far into the 1980s by the bards of the green, alternative milieu. Furthermore, there is another side to Inland: a desire for something new, a passion for experimentation, seeking to extend ones own horizon and that of others. This desire runs through all of Pyrolators work, from his Inland debut to his 2011 release Neuland (BB 084CD). Thus Inland remains, in spite of its protests and rejections, a positive album. For inherent in every "no" is a "yes" to something else. Maybe something better." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Lustwandel Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. The third studio album by Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released by Sky Records in 1981, fulfilled a dream he had long cherished. A series of chamber music pieces, with grand piano solos taking center stage in some places, archaised percussion patterns in others. Lustwandel represents a logical progression, following on from Jardin Au Fou (re-released on Bureau B in 2009). Both albums were recorded at Paragon Studios in 1979 and produced by Peter Baumann (Tangerine Dream). Electronica in the sense of synthetic sound sources or rhythm are absent from Lustwandel, in keeping with so many Roedelius solo works. This led to lively action amongst Cluster fans 30 years ago, as they divided into different camps. Roedelius unique musical style and irrepressible enthusiasm take his listeners down more of a sidetrack to the aural landscape of European harmonic and rhythmic tradition. There are obvious parallels to so-called serious chamber music, if not all the way along the route. His music has never been bound by contemporary aesthetic debate nor susceptible to emerging theory. As an autodidact, his techniques of composition and piano-playing are so well developed, that Roedelius has never wanted, nor needed to bother himself with any of that. It is a carefree Roedelius who saunters through both the 19th and late-20th centuries. Boundaries dissolve in his music. Here the glow of a magic lantern, there the glare of a neon light. Herein lay the originality of Lustwandel: he availed himself of traditional forms yet expressed them in contemporaneous fashion. Roedelius and Lustwandel could easily have been assimilated into the postmodern era which arrived in the 1970s. But, as usual, he was many miles away from the hub of cultural activity, without the slightest inclination to pay any attention to new phenomena. This child of the sun walks some very different paths indeed. Printed inner sleeve with photos and an essay by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Offene Turen Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $22.00 |
| 180 gram vinyl. "Offene Türen is a purely electronic album. Without losing himself in their infinite tonal possibilities, Roedelius delights in playing a selection of synthesizers. He even deploys an analog rhythm machine now and then to discreet effect. Roedelius takes great care to steer well clear of any cosmic fog or de-personalized abstractions. Nothing of the sort can be heard, as he focuses intensely and exclusively on the relationships of rhythm, harmony, and melody. Roedelius conjures up their delicate timbres on synthesizer with the greatest of ease. The seasoned electronic musician would have found similar results beyond the reach of his good old Farfisa organ. Offene Türen is an album of electronic chamber music and only someone with as sunny a disposition as Roedelius could be its composer and performer. Indeed, the unfettered Roedelius knew no artistic barriers in the early 1980s, following a turbulent period of personal upheaval amidst the musical revolution going on around him. He began to open up a brand new musical world, venturing forth with typical humility, as quietly and steadfastly as ever. Offene Türen marks a kind of threshold which Roedelius crosses in the moment of its inception: one foot in the glorious 1970s, the other already reaching into the uncharted future of the 1980s. Roedelius did not surrender his musical identity in the process, nor did he modify his inimitable artistic handwriting. Both had attained a level of complexity that perhaps he himself would have found surprising in earlier days. Those who have listened carefully to Roedelius both before and after Offene Türen will appreciate the albums significance. But even leaving such historical reminiscences aside, this music is incredibly vibrant and beautiful. Listening to it now is as great a pleasure as it was at the time of its creation. Clearly, Roedelius has always been an absolute master of timelessness." -Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Plays Piano (Live In London 1985) Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| LP version. Breathtakingly beautiful piano fantasies from the year 1985 -- released for the very first time! In 1985, Hans-Joachim Roedelius was still perceived by the music community as an electronic artist. Yet ever since acquiring his Bösendorfer grand piano in 1983, his interest had grown in the most royal of instruments: the piano. While staying with Brian Eno in 1985 (they had collaborated earlier in the 70s), Roedelius composed a wealth of new material on his friends two grand pianos (or, as Roedelius would say: the music flew to him). He organized a series of concerts to introduce his new musical direction, with the Bloomsbury Theatre in London amongst the venues. Guests included Brian Eno and The Edge, with Roedelius taking the belated opportunity to use the artwork to thank them accordingly for their support. For Roedelius, this London concert remains one of the highlights of his career: "At the Bloomsbury Theatre I encountered a Steinway grand piano of exceptional quality. I was thus given the perfect opportunity to put my ideas of simple piano rendition into practice. For me, the aural explorer, it was a gift from heaven," he describes of the instrument. The audience responded enthusiastically. "People were kneeling down before me in gratitude and happiness," Roedelius recalls. And anyone who listens to the recordings will understand why. Roedelius plays his way through 21 delicate, drifting piano fantasies, sometimes meandering dreamfully, often progressing towards gorgeous, deeply moving melodies. Asmus Tietchens musings on Roedelius 1991 opus Piano Piano are just as valid here: "His music is quiet and focused, but to call it contemplative or even meditative would also be wide of the mark: not all music which draws us out of ourselves is accompanied by spiritual pomp." (Fortunately, there is no audible trace of the audience at any point of the recording.) Which leaves us with the question: why did we have to wait 25 years for this treasure to see the light of day? Roedelius explains: "I always knew that this concert would have to be made available some day, I was just waiting for the right moment, for the right partners who would do it justice. On 180 gram vinyl with free download code." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Selbstportrait Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "LP version on 180 gram vinyl. This is the third solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1979 on Sky Records. Alongside his ongoing work with Cluster and Harmonia, Roedelius amassed an almost incalculable number of musical notations during his time in the idyllic Weser Uplands. Fleeting sketches, spontaneous improvisations, implied miniatures, rough compositions -- Roedelius recorded virtually every idea he came up with outside the studio sessions on his Revox A77 reel to reel; with the basic intention of capturing his moments of inspiration, he simply let the tape run as he played around on the Farfisa organ. Sound quality was not his prime concern, as he was not as yet entertaining any notion of releasing the results. As Roedelius recalls, costly tape spools were at a premium, so he recorded over older tapes in mono, at a less than ideal speed. Substandard, technically speaking (or listening), but as a self portrait, nothing short of a masterpiece. It would be inappropriate to measure this album by the hi-fidelity yardstick; see it as something closer to an intimate confession, an unguarded communiqué from one person to another. Bordering on naivety and free of conceit, Roedelius introduces us to his world through these chiffonesque études. There may be little variation in the Farfisa sound, but this is soon forgotten when Roedelius invites us to listen, to enter the experience. No expensive technology, no producer, no collaborators. This is unfiltered personality, the real Roedelius. Musically, Selbstportrait is characterized by a combination of ländler, minimalism and harmonic simplicity. The Weser Uplands, where Roedelius recorded his music, are certainly no Arcadia and the village of Forst is anything but Atlantis, but perhaps it could become the Graceland of German electronic music. Printed innersleeve with original liner notes and new notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Selbstportrait Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1979 on Sky Records. Alongside his ongoing work with Cluster and Harmonia, Roedelius amassed an almost incalculable number of musical notations during his time in the idyllic Weser Uplands. Fleeting sketches, spontaneous improvisations, implied miniatures, rough compositions -- Roedelius recorded virtually every idea he came up with outside the studio sessions on his Revox A77 reel to reel; with the basic intention of capturing his moments of inspiration, he simply let the tape run as he played around on the Farfisa organ. Sound quality was not his prime concern, as he was not as yet entertaining any notion of releasing the results. As Roedelius recalls, costly tape spools were at a premium, so he recorded over older tapes in mono, at a less than ideal speed. Substandard, technically speaking (or listening), but as a self portrait, nothing short of a masterpiece. It would be inappropriate to measure this album by the hi-fidelity yardstick; see it as something closer to an intimate confession, an unguarded communiqué from one person to another. Bordering on naivety and free of conceit, Roedelius introduces us to his world through these chiffonesque études. There may be little variation in the Farfisa sound, but this is soon forgotten when Roedelius invites us to listen, to enter the experience. No expensive technology, no producer, no collaborators. This is unfiltered personality, the real Roedelius. Musically, Selbstportrait is characterized by a combination of ländler, minimalism and harmonic simplicity. The Weser Uplands, where Roedelius recorded his music, are certainly no Arcadia and the village of Forst is anything but Atlantis, but perhaps it could become the Graceland of German electronic music. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Selbstportrait - Vol. II Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. This is the fourth solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1980 on Sky Records. With Selbstportrait, Roedelius gave unequivocal confirmation that he no longer was treading the hitherto common paths of electronic music. Selbstportrait - Vol. II corroborated the findings: for Roedelius, electronics would no longer be a means of creating abstract, noise-like music in the future, nor of generating utopian, mechanical rhythmic structures. His own utopia was quite a different place, more in keeping with his own personality and view of the world. Hence both self-portraits, in particular Selbstportrait - Vol. II, are programmatic. Uniquely among musicians of the German electronic scene at the time, Roedelius succeeded in blending European and extra-European musical styles quite intuitively, developing his own language of music, neither epigonic nor weighed down by stereotype, as often occurred in the emerging world music genre of the period. There is a fascinating simplicity to the music of Roedelius: his vision does not reside in cloud-cuckoo-land. His utopia is founded in reason, his vision sustained by a simple base: not only did he ignore musical traditions, he also sought to create something new out of them. He succeeded where many of his contemporaries failed, going to ground as they attempted to bridge the postmodern gap. Not Roedelius. Roedelius music is littered with stumbling blocks. The listener may not necessarily lose his footing, but will not exactly find himself sitting comfortably as he listens. With this album, Roedelius has drawn a clearly delineated picture of himself. Few musicians can say the same, few even harbor such aspirations. Transcending styles, hypes and modernisms, Selbstportrait - Vol. II is electronically-sourced music, yet sounds anything but technical, dismantling the misconception that electronic music has to sound cold and distant. Selbstportrait - Vol. II has never been released completely before. Printed innersleeve with original liner notes and new notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Selbstportrait - Vol. II Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "This is the fourth solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1980 on Sky Records. With Selbstportrait, Roedelius gave unequivocal confirmation that he no longer was treading the hitherto common paths of electronic music. Selbstportrait - Vol. II corroborated the findings: for Roedelius, electronics would no longer be a means of creating abstract, noise-like music in the future, nor of generating utopian, mechanical rhythmic structures. His own utopia was quite a different place, more in keeping with his own personality and view of the world. Hence both self-portraits, in particular Selbstportrait - Vol. II, are programmatic. Uniquely among musicians of the German electronic scene at the time, Roedelius succeeded in blending European and extra-European musical styles quite intuitively, developing his own language of music, neither epigonic nor weighed down by stereotype, as often occurred in the emerging world music genre of the period. There is a fascinating simplicity to the music of Roedelius: his vision does not reside in cloud-cuckoo-land. His utopia is founded in reason, his vision sustained by a simple base: not only did he ignore musical traditions, he also sought to create something new out of them. He succeeded where many of his contemporaries failed, going to ground as they attempted to bridge the postmodern gap. Not Roedelius. Roedelius music is littered with stumbling blocks. The listener may not necessarily lose his footing, but will not exactly find himself sitting comfortably as he listens. With this album, Roedelius has drawn a clearly delineated picture of himself. Few musicians can say the same, few even harbor such aspirations. Transcending styles, hypes and modernisms, Selbstportrait - Vol. II is electronically-sourced music, yet sounds anything but technical, dismantling the misconception that electronic music has to sound cold and distant. Selbstportrait - Vol. II has never been released completely before. Includes 5 tracks never released on CD! Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: The Diary Of The Unforgotten (Selbstportrait VI) Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Pressed on 180 gram vinyl. The Diary Of The Unforgotten is a collection of recordings from the years 1972 to 1978 and was first released in 1990 (with different artwork). Between the years of 1972 and 1978, Hans-Joachium Roedelius and Dieter Moebius, later joined by Michael Rother, lived out on a country estate in the idyllic, diminutive settlement of Forst in the Weser Uplands. It was here that the Harmonia albums, legendary recordings with Brian Eno and various splendid Cluster albums were created. Both the house itself and the surrounding landscape held a magical fascination for Roedelius. The time he spent here was intense in every sense of the word. He translated his feelings and impressions into music, giving rise to the "self-portrait" series. His sixth self-portrait bears the title The Diary Of The Unforgotten and offers a compelling aural record of the Roedelius psyche of the period. For Roedelius, Selbstportrait VI, in particular the 24 minutes of the "Hommage ÿ Forst" centerpiece, were like messages in a bottle, cast into the water in 1990 and now ready to be discovered on the different shores of 2010. Every track on the album is a distant echo from the Forst era. "Even today," Roedelius writes in the original liner notes (1990), "these pieces retain the spirit and atmosphere of those days in Forst, where I learned so much about life." The windswept character of Selbstportrait VI is underlined by the sporadically lo-fi quality of the recordings: Roedelius just let the tape machine run, without overdubs. In the booklet, Roedelius casts his mind back again to the detailed creation of the tracks and their relevance to his later works: "At the end of the days sessions, I would sit in our small, makeshift ground floor studio almost every night. With the window open in summer, I could hear the ducks quacking on the river, the horses snorting and the cows mooing on the meadows across the water, the wind rustling through the leaves of old elm and oak trees on the riverbank behind the house. This set the scene for my first self-portraits, as well as providing the basis for subsequent studio productions, and other compositions which, in a way, could also be seen as self-portraits." Printed inner sleeve with an appraisal by Asmus Tietchens." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Wenn Der Südwind Weht Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram vinyl LP version. Wenn Der Südwind Weht ("When The South Wind Is Blowing") is the seventh solo album by Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released on Sky Records in 1981 (also known under the title Selbstportrait IV). "Where on earth does Roedelius find such a beautiful array of notes?" wonders Asmus Tietchens in his sleeve notes for this reissue. Not an unreasonable question. Roedelius, a pioneer of ambient music, Krautrock and, arguably, synthesizer pop, member of such seminal bands as Cluster and Harmonia, revels in alien worlds on this record. This is "Music to be listened to quietly," as Roedelius advised on the LP cover. Indeed, listening at low volume enhances the sense of otherworldliness quite considerably. And yet, this album can hardly be termed "spacy" nor psychedelic in the slightest. Electronic excesses are absent, aural exotica off-limits, bizarre cacophonies non-existent. The individual tracks are compact, lined up in quick succession, like a string of pearls. Wherein lies their fascination? From what distant place do they reach out to the listener? First of all, there is the Roedelian "quietitude." Even when the music is turned up, it remains quiet in character, almost as if wrapped in cotton wool. The quiet nature of this music is inseparable from the serene and tranquil manner in which Roedelius goes about creating his typical harmonies and melodies on an electric organ of decidedly limited sonic variability. He leaves in the occasional blip and electric interference or tape hiss, but nothing can distract him from the inspiration of the moment as it feeds his music. The contrast with the perfect, yet impersonal precision of minimalism could not be greater. Improvisation is the driving force of Roedelius music. Without a trace of exhibitionism, he externalizes himself through his music with an honesty that could move one to tears. As a member of Cluster and Harmonia, such radicalism was never open to him. Südwind is an undisputed highlight in the Roedelius canon. Inner sleeve with liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS Title: Wie Das Wispern Des Windes...Like The Whispering Of The Wind Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. Bureau B reissues the eleventh solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1986 on the small Norwegian label Cicada. If we can agree on 1969 as the year of Clusters inception, then Roedelius needed a good 17 years to discover the aural qualities and musical beauty of the grand piano for his own compositions. More precisely, he must have become aware of the grand piano during the recording sessions for Jardin Au Fou (1979) and Lustwandel (1981) in Peter Baumanns Paragon studio. Another five years would pass before he built an album entirely around the piano, with electronic elements altogether absent. There is no sign of the Farfisa organ or indeed any of the synthesizers which had previously been such a common feature of Roedelius solo works. The piano sounds were left untreated. Indeed, he was clearly so fascinated by the sonority and potential of the Bösendorfer grand piano that, a few overdubs notwithstanding, he dispensed with virtually all distinguishing features of his musical approach. On Wie Das Wispern Des Windes, Roedelius played his way into virgin territory, as new to his listeners as it was to him. Its no wonder that Wispern was released not on a specialist electronic label in Germany, but on a small Norwegian label called Cicada. Rarely has the title of a Roedelius album (trans. "Like the whispering of the wind") so poetically and yet so accurately described its content. Roedelius expands his études towards amorphousness; then suddenly, a disarmingly familiar melody appears, from a completely different source, perhaps (Harmonia? Cluster?). To continue the poetic theme of the LPs title, Roedelius is not only listening to the wind, he surrenders to it, allowing himself to be carried hither and thither; effortlessly, weightlessly transported to where the sun shines brightest. In this context, the image of a butterfly may be pushing the metaphor a little too far, but an apposite one nevertheless. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." - Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS, HANS-JOACHIM Title: Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram vinyl. This is the tenth solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1984 on Editions EG. On Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment, Roedelius broke away unequivocally from purely electronic music. If Lustwandel (BB 055CD/LP) and Jardin Au Fou (BB 023CD/LP) had seen the process set in motion, this was the album that completed the transition. Following the Selbstportraits, which had at least been created through the use of electric organ and synthesizers, Roedelius focused on the grand piano, sometimes accompanied by a cello, violin and guitar. Distant echoes of a not-so-distant musical past could only be detected in the occasional appearance of sparse chords played on a polyphonic synthesizer. Significantly, his arrival in Austria (having moved there a few years earlier) was much more than a geographical relocation. Roedelius responded to the musical culture of romanticism and the Biedermeier tradition, their influences seeping into his essentially modern understanding of composition in bewildering fashion on Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment. It was all too much for his listeners, reared on the more familiar sounds of Cluster and Harmonia. Moreover, the album wore a veil of delicate melancholy: no vibrant folk dances, no colorful carousels, no cheerful melodies. Instead, Roedelius offered a calm, almost detached form of music, openly acknowledging romantic heritage. Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment eluded contemporary definitions of the "experimental" concept, as Roedelius was now experimenting in new, eclectic areas, too weighty, too grainy to be labeled "proto New Age." Roedelius was not striving for perfection, but for authenticity -- a music stripped of disguise; and to this end he left little playing errors in the mix, fading out tracks rigorously to eliminate any bigger blunders. Such artistic honesty bears no relation to reality-free New Age music. Printed inner sleeve with notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS, HANS-JOACHIM Title: Momenti Felici Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram vinyl version. Bureau B reissues Momenti Felici by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1987 on the Virgin label Venture. Since the early 80s, Roedelius had more or less dispensed with electronics, focusing increasingly on the grand piano. He also collaborated with various combinations of musicians to create a new kind of music, vastly different from Cluster and Harmonia aesthetics. For Roedelius, it was not only a period of reorientation in musical terms, but also geographically: Austria was now his home. "Tu Felix Austria" (trans. "Oh, Happy Austria"), a time-honored Austrian campaign slogan, became his very own motto in no time at all. The pleasure he derived from playing the piano and meeting musicians on the same wavelength did the rest: an enthusiastic Roedelius allowed new impressions and discoveries to flow virtually unfiltered into his music. Momenti Felici is one of the finest examples hereof. With characteristically exuberant inventiveness, Roedelius tickles the ivories lightheartedly, or, entering into a more pensive mood, seems to caress the keys. With saxophonist Alexander Czjzek dueting on some of the pieces, Roedelius shuffles a pack of disciplined compositions and carefree improvisations. In this respect, Momenti Felici most closely resembles Jardin Au Fou. On closer listening, however, the length of time between the two albums can be discerned. Roedelius honed both his compositional and, more than anything, his playing skills in the lengthy period in between. Naturally, Momenti Felici saw Roedelius distance himself further still from the electronic scene. The signs had been there on his preceding albums and this release simply removed any last vestige of doubt. Roedelius had, in any case, long since found a new audience, who continue to follow him avidly today. With the passage of time, many of his companions from earlier days have come to realize that a beautiful melody and a rich piano chord can be just as pleasing to the ear as pure tones and rhythm machines. With liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: ROEDELIUS, HANS-JOACHIM Title: Wie Das Wispern Des Windes...Like The Whispering Of The Wind Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. Bureau B reissues the eleventh solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1986 on the small Norwegian label Cicada. If we can agree on 1969 as the year of Clusters inception, then Roedelius needed a good 17 years to discover the aural qualities and musical beauty of the grand piano for his own compositions. More precisely, he must have become aware of the grand piano during the recording sessions for Jardin Au Fou (1979) and Lustwandel (1981) in Peter Baumanns Paragon studio. Another five years would pass before he built an album entirely around the piano, with electronic elements altogether absent. There is no sign of the Farfisa organ or indeed any of the synthesizers which had previously been such a common feature of Roedelius solo works. The piano sounds were left untreated. Indeed, he was clearly so fascinated by the sonority and potential of the Bösendorfer grand piano that, a few overdubs notwithstanding, he dispensed with virtually all distinguishing features of his musical approach. On Wie Das Wispern Des Windes, Roedelius played his way into virgin territory, as new to his listeners as it was to him. Its no wonder that Wispern was released not on a specialist electronic label in Germany, but on a small Norwegian label called Cicada. Rarely has the title of a Roedelius album (trans. "Like the whispering of the wind") so poetically and yet so accurately described its content. Roedelius expands his études towards amorphousness; then suddenly, a disarmingly familiar melody appears, from a completely different source, perhaps (Harmonia? Cluster?). To continue the poetic theme of the LPs title, Roedelius is not only listening to the wind, he surrenders to it, allowing himself to be carried hither and thither; effortlessly, weightlessly transported to where the sun shines brightest. In this context, the image of a butterfly may be pushing the metaphor a little too far, but an apposite one nevertheless. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens." -Bureau B |
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Artist: ROTHER, MICHAEL Title: Flammende Herzen/Karussell Format: 7" Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $16.00 |
| "This is the sixth round of the Bureau B vinyl single reissue series which started successfully with reissues of Harmonia, La Düsseldorf and Palais Schaumburg. This 7" features German artist Michael Rother (Kraftwerk, Neu!, Harmonia) -- an officially licensed exact repro of this 1977 single, originally issued on Sky Records. Featuring Jaki Liebezeit (Can) on drums and the legendary producer Conny Plank. Includes the original artwork and a new mastering from the original master tapes." -Bureau B |
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Artist: SCHICKERT, GUNTER Title: Uberfallig Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Bureau B reissues Günter Schickerts album Überfällig, originally released in 1979 on Sky Records. 180 gram pressing. "No sooner had electronic music broken through in Germany, principally aligned in the two schools of Düsseldorf and Berlin, than Günter Schickert also began his first musical experiments. Although GAM, the group he founded in 1973, did not then release a record, he did issue his first solo effort, Samtvogel, a year later -- an album which was eagerly snapped up and re-released by the Brain label. It would take five years for Sky Records to release his next LP, entitled Überfällig (trans. "Overdue"), which proved to be the last for a number of years. This album, as its German title suggests, was long overdue. Günter Schickert had developed his own unique, forward-looking type of music, assuming an exceptional position in the concert of German electronics. In spite of the clearly discernible influence of music from the so-called Berlin school (Tangerine Dream, Ash Ra Tempel etc.), Schickert is anything but a copycat. Schickert concentrated on pursuing his own ideas and pushing the boundaries of his remarkable aural creations. He is at pains to emphasize that, unlike almost all of his contemporaries, he did not use any synthesizers; his instruments are the electric guitar, his own studio with a multi-track tape machine and a comfortable arsenal of effects. Similar experiments had also been attempted by Manuel Göttsching (Inventions For Electric Guitar) and Achim Reichel (A.R. & Machines: Die Grüne Reise), but without stretching the multifaceted nature of their music to the point of microtonality, as Schickert dared to do on Überfällig. His own take on minimalism places him closer to the likes of Steve Reich and Glen Branca, free from the reach of Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream. Schickerts use of concrete sounds and his completely autonomous way of working in his own studio presaged a stage of development more readily associated with the early 1980s. In 1979, the album was a statement of a virtuosic outsider, a guitarist and sound sculptor whose musical visions transgressed the level of expectation of a potential audience, detached from the electronic mainstream. Günter Schickert was one of the protagonists who furthered the development of experimental pop music from the outer margins. The reissue of Überfällig was, in a word, overdue." -Asmus Tietchens; Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: SCHICKERT, GUNTER Title: Uberfallig Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Bureau B reissues Günter Schickerts album Überfällig, originally released in 1979 on Sky Records. "No sooner had electronic music broken through in Germany, principally aligned in the two schools of Düsseldorf and Berlin, than Günter Schickert also began his first musical experiments. Although GAM, the group he founded in 1973, did not then release a record, he did issue his first solo effort, Samtvogel, a year later -- an album which was eagerly snapped up and re-released by the Brain label. It would take five years for Sky Records to release his next LP, entitled Überfällig (trans. "Overdue"), which proved to be the last for a number of years. This album, as its German title suggests, was long overdue. Günter Schickert had developed his own unique, forward-looking type of music, assuming an exceptional position in the concert of German electronics. In spite of the clearly discernible influence of music from the so-called Berlin school (Tangerine Dream, Ash Ra Tempel etc.), Schickert is anything but a copycat. Schickert concentrated on pursuing his own ideas and pushing the boundaries of his remarkable aural creations. He is at pains to emphasize that, unlike almost all of his contemporaries, he did not use any synthesizers; his instruments are the electric guitar, his own studio with a multi-track tape machine and a comfortable arsenal of effects. Similar experiments had also been attempted by Manuel Göttsching (Inventions For Electric Guitar) and Achim Reichel (A.R. & Machines: Die Grüne Reise), but without stretching the multifaceted nature of their music to the point of microtonality, as Schickert dared to do on Überfällig. His own take on minimalism places him closer to the likes of Steve Reich and Glen Branca, free from the reach of Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream. Schickerts use of concrete sounds and his completely autonomous way of working in his own studio presaged a stage of development more readily associated with the early 1980s. In 1979, the album was a statement of a virtuosic outsider, a guitarist and sound sculptor whose musical visions transgressed the level of expectation of a potential audience, detached from the electronic mainstream. Günter Schickert was one of the protagonists who furthered the development of experimental pop music from the outer margins. The reissue of Überfällig was, in a word, overdue." -Asmus Tietchens; Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Blau Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "On the Red Album Rot, Conrad Schnitzler laid down the direction his musical artistry would take. His second solo , The Blue Album Blau, originally released in 1974, offered confirmation of his intent. Maybe the "Red" and "Blue" tracks were recorded in the same session. The structure, sound and timbre of both LPs are so similar as to suggest that this was the case (an unverified assumption nevertheless!). Far more important than this historical pedantry is the fact that Schnitzler included two brand-new compositions on Blau which followed on seamlessly from the previous album. Quite simply, he had found his way, a course from which he would not stray as long as he lived. The so-called Berlin School (Berliner Schule) -- with Conrad Schnitzler one of their number -- had developed its own style of minimalist music. Clearly distinct from Anglo-American pop music, and no less removed from the minimalist art music of Steve Reich or Philip Glass, the focus here was on electronics and elementary rhythmics. The Berlin musicians showed no great interest in instrumental or vocal virtuosity, nor were they in thrall to exuberant interleaving of rhythm. With the aid of synthesizers and studio technology, they were bent on breaking into territory hitherto considered the province of a privileged elite, clouded in mystery and secrecy, resonating with uncharted sounds and noise. Blau is an archetypal example of this very phenomenon. Courage, the pioneering spirit and artistic brilliance can be detected in each part of the albums two infinite sequences. Inspired by Joseph Beuys, Schnitzler propagated those very tones beyond the musical realm, detached from tradition, the only tones capable of catalyzing the utterly stagnant pop music and new music scene of the day, injecting them with fresh impulses. Questions of harmony, melody and strict form were well and truly rejected by Schnitzler. His aural crystals shine like pearls on a string. Schnitzler uses his ropes of pearls to weave new, fantastic patterns which constantly shift like kaleidoscopes to reveal unexpected facets; they are sign-posts to spatial and temporal infinity. Schnitzlers style was really too idiosyncratic ever to set a precedent, but he was, and still is, one of the most significant inspirations for pop music in more recent times. Includes a printed innersleeve with notes from Asmus Tietchens. 180 gram vinyl." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Blau Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "On the Red Album Rot, Conrad Schnitzler laid down the direction his musical artistry would take. His second solo , The Blue Album Blau, originally released in 1974, offered confirmation of his intent. Maybe the "Red" and "Blue" tracks were recorded in the same session. The structure, sound and timbre of both LPs are so similar as to suggest that this was the case (an unverified assumption nevertheless!). Far more important than this historical pedantry is the fact that Schnitzler included two brand-new compositions on Blau which followed on seamlessly from the previous album. Quite simply, he had found his way, a course from which he would not stray as long as he lived. The so-called Berlin School (Berliner Schule) -- with Conrad Schnitzler one of their number -- had developed its own style of minimalist music. Clearly distinct from Anglo-American pop music, and no less removed from the minimalist art music of Steve Reich or Philip Glass, the focus here was on electronics and elementary rhythmics. The Berlin musicians showed no great interest in instrumental or vocal virtuosity, nor were they in thrall to exuberant interleaving of rhythm. With the aid of synthesizers and studio technology, they were bent on breaking into territory hitherto considered the province of a privileged elite, clouded in mystery and secrecy, resonating with uncharted sounds and noise. Blau is an archetypal example of this very phenomenon. Courage, the pioneering spirit and artistic brilliance can be detected in each part of the albums two infinite sequences. Inspired by Joseph Beuys, Schnitzler propagated those very tones beyond the musical realm, detached from tradition, the only tones capable of catalyzing the utterly stagnant pop music and new music scene of the day, injecting them with fresh impulses. Questions of harmony, melody and strict form were well and truly rejected by Schnitzler. His aural crystals shine like pearls on a string. Schnitzler uses his ropes of pearls to weave new, fantastic patterns which constantly shift like kaleidoscopes to reveal unexpected facets; they are sign-posts to spatial and temporal infinity. Schnitzlers style was really too idiosyncratic ever to set a precedent, but he was, and still is, one of the most significant inspirations for pop music in more recent times. Digipak reissue with liner notes by Asmus Tietchens, rare photos and six bonus tracks." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Con 3 Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $22.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. This album saw Conrad Schnitzler head further in the direction of pop music. Like Consequenz, Con 3 (1981) is a collaborative effort with Wolfgang Seidel, alias Sequenza. Con 3 is a really odd mixture of numerous ingredients which Schnitzler was capable of combining with dexterity and taste. His musical handwriting is immediately apparent in the foreground. Effervescent electronic sequences can be heard on all nine pieces, coming from somewhere and appearing to go wherever -- this is Schnitzler alright, this is his musical utopia. Then Wolfgang Seidel, formerly drummer with Ton Steine Scherben: an ideal partner for Schnitzler when it came to programming rhythm machines and sequencers for a minimalistic mesh. Another ingredient in Con 3 is undoubtedly German new wave (Neue Deutsche Welle, NDW). How could it not have touched Schnitzler? He lived and worked in Berlin! Above all, his succinct, absurd-surrealist lyrics would have suited many a protagonist of NDW. In this respect, Schnitzler revealed two hitherto hidden talents: his delivery of lyrics written by himself was both precise and incredibly assured. The fourth component of Con 3 is without question the character in the background, Peter Baumann. As producer and sound engineer, he was to Schnitzler what Conny Plank had been for Cluster and Harmonia and many others. His gentle, discreet impulses, his immense know-how with regard to modern studio technology and his perennial enthusiasm could be detected in all of the productions he created in his Paragon Studio. Years of working with Tangerine Dream honed his studio experience and his intuitive flair for electronic experiments. Those like Schnitzler who were able to work in the Paragon Studio were in exceptionally good hands. There could hardly be a more fertile alliance. Con 3 might have sounded rather disconcerting to Schnitzler listeners at the time. He had long since nailed his colors to the mast of the art scene (Fluxus, Beuys, performance art etc.) and now dared to attempt a balancing act between the high artistic aspirations of the avant-garde and the more entertainment-driven nature of pop music. Not for the first time, perhaps, but particularly emphatically on this album. Many had tried their luck at this tour de force and failed, not least because they lacked the necessary credibility. Not Schnitzler. He remained true to himself, and hence retained his credibility, integrating his new experiences and information resources wisely and creatively into his idiosyncratic and unmistakable music." -Asmus Tietchens. Includes a printed innersleeve with notes from Tietchens. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Con 3 Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "This album saw Conrad Schnitzler head further in the direction of pop music. Like Consequenz, Con 3 (1981) is a collaborative effort with Wolfgang Seidel, alias Sequenza. Con 3 is a really odd mixture of numerous ingredients which Schnitzler was capable of combining with dexterity and taste. His musical handwriting is immediately apparent in the foreground. Effervescent electronic sequences can be heard on all nine pieces, coming from somewhere and appearing to go wherever -- this is Schnitzler alright, this is his musical utopia. Then Wolfgang Seidel, formerly drummer with Ton Steine Scherben: an ideal partner for Schnitzler when it came to programming rhythm machines and sequencers for a minimalistic mesh. Another ingredient in Con 3 is undoubtedly German new wave (Neue Deutsche Welle, NDW). How could it not have touched Schnitzler? He lived and worked in Berlin! Above all, his succinct, absurd-surrealist lyrics would have suited many a protagonist of NDW. In this respect, Schnitzler revealed two hitherto hidden talents: his delivery of lyrics written by himself was both precise and incredibly assured. The fourth component of Con 3 is without question the character in the background, Peter Baumann. As producer and sound engineer, he was to Schnitzler what Conny Plank had been for Cluster and Harmonia and many others. His gentle, discreet impulses, his immense know-how with regard to modern studio technology and his perennial enthusiasm could be detected in all of the productions he created in his Paragon Studio. Years of working with Tangerine Dream honed his studio experience and his intuitive flair for electronic experiments. Those like Schnitzler who were able to work in the Paragon Studio were in exceptionally good hands. There could hardly be a more fertile alliance. Con 3 might have sounded rather disconcerting to Schnitzler listeners at the time. He had long since nailed his colors to the mast of the art scene (Fluxus, Beuys, performance art etc.) and now dared to attempt a balancing act between the high artistic aspirations of the avant-garde and the more entertainment-driven nature of pop music. Not for the first time, perhaps, but particularly emphatically on this album. Many had tried their luck at this tour de force and failed, not least because they lacked the necessary credibility. Not Schnitzler. He remained true to himself, and hence retained his credibility, integrating his new experiences and information resources wisely and creatively into his idiosyncratic and unmistakable music." - Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Consequenz Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "Commercial Schnitzler? How quickly, how prematurely are opinions and judgements bandied about when an artist suddenly changes the form of his work. Conrad Schnitzler fell under such a cloud when, after 1978, his songs, for a time at least, did not exceed the catchy compactness of pop songs, while their harmonies and rhythms seemed to be drifting towards pop. Produced by Peter Baumann (Tangerine Dream) the Con (1978) album and the Auf dem schwarzen Kanal 12" EP (1980) ushered in this phase, and the private release of the Consequenz album, also in 1980 -- as the title suggests -- was the logical consequence. Consequenz is Schnitzlers first collaboration with another musician since the days of Kluster long before. In Wolfgang Seidel aka Wolf Sequenza, he found someone who not only understood the Schnitzler principle but was able to expand on it with his own input. Seidel, like Schnitzler, had started early with the development of an alternative language of music, away from the mainstream. Schnitzler actually went a step further: with the best educational intentions, he supplied a schematic drawing to go with Consequenz, illustrating in detail how his music functions, which instruments and equipment he used and how the various elements are interconnected. It is rare for an electronic artist to lay his cards quite so openly on the table, thus prompting the demystification of this new music. Consequenz conveys 12 remarkably short pieces. Remarkable in the sense that Schnitzlers early solo works (e.g. Rot and Blau) were characterized by unending sequences. Not only are the tracks even shorter than on Con (1978), their form has also shifted. Electronic drums can be heard, along with an electric guitar in places; Schnitzler and Seidel sculpt rhythmic-harmonic structures with an analog sequencer, blended with harmonies to create a somewhat unwieldy form of pop music. Little musical motifs are played without really becoming melodies capable of underpinning bona fide songs. The influence of the German new wave (NDW) may also be detected, but not enough to determine the style of Consequenz. The dozen tracks on the album remain firmly rooted in Schnitzlers sonic universe, each an individual facet of his infinitely shimmering aural cascades. And, naturally, Consequenz is electronic pop music, lacking only the commercial added value which was of little interest to Schnitzler anyway -- he didnt give a damn." -Asmus Tietchens |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Consequenz Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $22.00 |
| "180 gram LP version. Commercial Schnitzler? How quickly, how prematurely are opinions and judgements bandied about when an artist suddenly changes the form of his work. Conrad Schnitzler fell under such a cloud when, after 1978, his songs, for a time at least, did not exceed the catchy compactness of pop songs, while their harmonies and rhythms seemed to be drifting towards pop. Produced by Peter Baumann (Tangerine Dream) the Con (1978) album and the Auf dem schwarzen Kanal 12" EP (1980) ushered in this phase, and the private release of the Consequenz album, also in 1980 -- as the title suggests -- was the logical consequence. Consequenz is Schnitzlers first collaboration with another musician since the days of Kluster long before. In Wolfgang Seidel aka Wolf Sequenza, he found someone who not only understood the Schnitzler principle but was able to expand on it with his own input. Seidel, like Schnitzler, had started early with the development of an alternative language of music, away from the mainstream. Schnitzler actually went a step further: with the best educational intentions, he supplied a schematic drawing to go with Consequenz, illustrating in detail how his music functions, which instruments and equipment he used and how the various elements are interconnected. It is rare for an electronic artist to lay his cards quite so openly on the table, thus prompting the demystification of this new music. Consequenz conveys 12 remarkably short pieces. Remarkable in the sense that Schnitzlers early solo works (e.g. Rot and Blau) were characterized by unending sequences. Not only are the tracks even shorter than on Con (1978), their form has also shifted. Electronic drums can be heard, along with an electric guitar in places; Schnitzler and Seidel sculpt rhythmic-harmonic structures with an analog sequencer, blended with harmonies to create a somewhat unwieldy form of pop music. Little musical motifs are played without really becoming melodies capable of underpinning bona fide songs. The influence of the German new wave (NDW) may also be detected, but not enough to determine the style of Consequenz. The dozen tracks on the album remain firmly rooted in Schnitzlers sonic universe, each an individual facet of his infinitely shimmering aural cascades. And, naturally, Consequenz is electronic pop music, lacking only the commercial added value which was of little interest to Schnitzler anyway -- he didnt give a damn." -Asmus Tietchens. Includes a printed innersleeve with notes from Asmus Tietchens. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Rot Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "There was a particular type of artist who could only have emerged in the legendary early 1970s. Few musicians fit the bill better than Conrad Schnitzler (Tangerine Dream, Kluster). Revolution, pop art and Fluxus created a climate which engendered unbridled artistic and social development. Radical utopias, excessive experimentation with drugs, ruthless (in a positive way) transgression of aesthetic frontiers were characteristic of the period. The magic words were "subculture," "progressivity" and "avant-gardism." West Berlin, with its unique political status, was a crucible of turbulence. Founded in 1968, Zodiak Free Arts Lab was the ultimate point of convergence for subculture in West Berlin, with Conrad Schnitzler the driving force behind it. It was also here that Tangerine Dream and Kluster first met up to perform in public. Bureau B presents Rot (The "Red" Album) from 1973, Schnitzlers first solo LP. Includes a printed innersleeve with notes from Asmus Tietchens. 180 gram vinyl." -Bureau B. |
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Artist: SCHNITZLER, CONRAD Title: Rot Format: CD Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "There was a particular type of artist who could only have emerged in the legendary early 1970s. Few musicians fit the bill better than Conrad Schnitzler (Tangerine Dream, Kluster). Revolution, pop art and Fluxus created a climate which engendered unbridled artistic and social development. Radical utopias, excessive experimentation with drugs, ruthless (in a positive way) transgression of aesthetic frontiers were characteristic of the period. The magic words were "subculture," "progressivity" and "avant-gardism." West Berlin, with its unique political status, was a crucible of turbulence. Founded in 1968, Zodiak Free Arts Lab was the ultimate point of convergence for subculture in West Berlin, with Conrad Schnitzler the driving force behind it. It was also here that Tangerine Dream and Kluster first met up to perform in public. Bureau B presents Rot (The "Red" Album) from 1973, Schnitzlers first solo LP. Digipak reissue with liner notes by Asmus Tietchens, rare photos and a 20-minute bonus track" -Bureau B. |
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Artist: YOU Title: Electric Day Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
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"LP version on 180 gram vinyl. The Bureau B label reissues Yous Electric Day, first released in 1979 on the small German label, Cain. As synthesizers grew more popular from the mid-70s onwards, an increasing number of groups swapped the classic instruments of a rock band for sequencers and synthesizers. Pioneers (and paragons) of this electronically-created music included, of course, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Manuel Göttsching et al, who represent the "Berliner Schule" (in contrast to the Düsseldorfer Schule which developed around Kraftwerk and company). A hitherto less celebrated, yet outstanding exponent of the Berliner Schule was the Krefeld combo You. Udo Hanten and Albin Meskes teamed up with another iconic figure of electronic music, Harald Grosskopf, to issue two fantastic albums as the 1980s began. Without disowning their Berlin role models, You nevertheless came up with their own hypnotic mix of sequencer patterns, synthesizer melodies, pulsating drums and sporadic acoustic guitar phrases. Now and again they even ventured into experimental territory. Tracing Yous path from the idea of founding a band to the release of their first LP, one encounters a host of illustrious characters from the electronic/Krautrock music scene. Peter Baumann, for example, a member of Tangerine Dream for so many years, was the first to hear the material played to him by Hanten and his guitarist Uli Weber at his Paragon Studios in Berlin. They also met Harald Grosskopf here, a member of Rolf-Ulrich Kaisers "Kosmische Kuriere" and former drummer with Klaus Schulze. Grosskopf was a member of Manuel Göttschings Ashra band at the time. Which just leaves the sound engineer, the legendary Conny Plank. It was he who suggested that You and Grosskopf get together to set up the Spiegeltraum Studio in Krefeld, with Grosskopf supplying the recording gear and Hanten the musical equipment. Grosskopf completed Synthesist, his most famous work, before You recorded Electric Day halfway through 1979. It now appears with four CD-only bonus tracks on Bureau B. The musicians: Udo Hanten, Albin Meskes, Uli Weber, supported by Harald Grosskopf (using the pseudonym Lhan Gopal at the time)." -Bureau B
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Artist: YOU Title: Time Code Format: LP Label: Bureau B Country: Germany Price: $18.00 |
| "LP version on 180 gram vinyl. The Bureau B label reissues Yous Time Code, first released in 1983 on Rock City Records. As synthesizers grew more popular from the mid-70s onwards, an increasing number of groups swapped the classic instruments of a rock band for sequencers and synthesizers. Pioneers (and paragons) of this electronically-created music included, of course, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Manuel Göttsching et al, who represent the "Berliner Schule" (in contrast to the Düsseldorfer Schule which developed around Kraftwerk and company). A hitherto less celebrated, yet outstanding exponent of the Berliner Schule was the Krefeld combo YOU (Udo Hanten, Albin Meskes). Their debut album Electric Day immediately launched YOU into the elite echelon of Germanys electronic music scene. It would take four years for them to deliver their sophomore LP, entitled Time Code. If Electric Day was characterized by Harald Grosskopfs pulsating drums and Uli Webers solo guitar, Time Code emerged as an altogether more electronic affair, with both Grosskopf and Weber having left the project. Reduced to a duo, YOU largely remained faithful to their style, but expanded upon it. Time Code displays more range and variation than its predecessor. Downtempo and faster numbers alternate and sugar-sweet melodies are followed by expanses of ominously dark or crystal-clear synthesizers. Hanten and Meskes new sound was further refined by the use of drum computers and the omission of guitar. The album perfectly illustrates the transition of electronic music from the 1970s to the 1980s. Sequencer patterns owe much to the legacy of the Berlin School (Berliner Schule), while the synthesizer and drum computer sounds heralded the advent of the new decade. The level of interest and excitement was particularly high in Italy, where songs from the album featured heavily on the radio. Listeners were clearly impressed by "Live Line," which has resurfaced in various techno productions over the past 20 years, either as a cover (by Diolac Duvai, for example), or as "Elektro Message" (by Gigi DAgostino)." -Bureau B |