Category Archives: Berlin School

BEST NEW ALBUMS OF 2016-PART 5.

BEST NEW ALBUMS OF 2016-PART 5. Martin Green-Flit Last year, when  Lau enjoying some downtime, accordionist and electronics guru Martin Green decided to release his sophomore album, Flit on Reveal Records. It was the followup to Crow’s Bones which was released in 2014 and found Martin accompanied by an-star cast of musicians. They play their …

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BEST NEW ALBUMS OF 2016-PART 6.

BEST NEW ALBUMS OF 2016-PART 6. Qluster-Echtzei. Forty-seven years after he first co-founded Kluster, Hans-Joachim Roedelius keeps the memory of Kluster and Cluster alive with Qluster.  They released their sixth album Echtzeit on  Bureau B during 2016.    Echtzeit marks a stylistic departure from Qluster. It’s much more ambient sounding album.  Qluster combine elements of …

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BEST NEW ALBUMS OF 2016-PART 7.

BEST NEW ALBUMS OF 2016-PART 7. Sunanna-Triangle. Triangle is Susanna’s eleventh album and first for four years. It was released on Susanna’s own SusannaSonata label, and is no ordinary album. Not by a long chalk. Instead, Triangle is a twenty-two song cerebral epic, where Susanna muses and meditates on mortality and religion.  It’s a powerful album, …

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MANUEL GOTTSCHING-E2-E4

MANUEL GOTTSCHING-E2-E4 It was late 1981, when Manuel Göttsching returned home after a lengthy tour with Klaus Schulze. The two pioneers of the Berlin School of electronic music had spent much of 1981 touring their latest albums.  Manuel Göttsching’s most recent album was Belle Alliance. This was his fifth solo album, and the fourth to …

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ASHRA-CORRELATIONS COMPLETE BOX SET.

ASHRA-CORRELATIONS COMPLETE BOX SET.  When Manuel Göttsching released Inventions For Electric Guitar in 1975, this was meant to be the start of a new chapter in his career. Inventions For Electric Guitar was meant to be Manuel Göttsching’s debut solo album. Some eagle eyed record buyers weren’t so sure about that. Atop the album cover …

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THE KRAUTROCK AND PROGRESSIVE BOX SET.

THE KRAUTROCK AND PROGRESSIVE BOX SET. Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, the late-sixties was the start of a golden age for music. It continued right through the seventies. During this period, some of the most important music ever recorded was released. This included countless classic albums. These classic albums ranged from classic rock, psychedelia, …

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ADELBERT VON DEYEN-NORBORG AND ATMOSPHERE.

ADELBERT VON DEYEN-NORBORG AND ATMOSPHERE. After Adelbert Von Deyen released his debut album Sternzeit on Günter Körber’s Sky Records in 1978, the label became his home for the next nine years. This was the most productive period of Adelbert Von Deyen’s career. His creativity blossomed and he released eight studio albums and one live album. …

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SPACE ROCK: AN INTERSTELLAR TRAVELLER’S GUIDE.

SPACE ROCK: AN INTERSTELLAR TRAVELLER’S GUIDE. Music like fashion is cyclical. One minute a musical genre is hugely popular, the next it falls from grace. That usually, isn’t the end of the story. There’s usually always a resurgence in popularity of that musical genre at a later date. This has been the case with countless  …

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CONRAD SCHNITZLER-FILMMUSIK 1.

CONRAD SCHNITZLER-FILMMUSIK 1. Conrad Schnitzler was, without doubt, one of the most important and influential figures in German music. Having studied under Joseph Beuys, he cofounded the legendary Zodiak Free Arts Lab in Berlin with Hans-Joachim Roedelius.  For next the two years,  the Zodiak Free Arts Lab became one of Berlin’s cultural hubs. Artists and …

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KOLLECTION 06: CLUSTER 1971-1981-COMPILED BY JOHN McENTIRE.

KOLLECTiON 06: CLUSTER 1971-1981-COMPILED BY JOHN McENTIRE. One of the most important, influential and innovative bands in the history of German music were Cluster. Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius formed Cluster in 1971. Previously they had both been members of Kluster since 1969. However, Conrad Schnitzler, the third member of Kluster, left the band in mid-1971. …

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THE CAN STORY 1968-1979.

THE CAN STORY 1968-1979. After eleven years and eleven studio albums, Can called time on their career in 1979. By then, Can were rightly regarded as one of the most innovative bands of the Krautrock era. They had enjoyed an almost unrivalled longevity. Can were formed in 1968, by Holger Czukay and Irmin Schmidt. Both …

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MIKI YUI-OSCILLA.

MIKI YUI-OSCILLA. There aren’t many people who successfully juggle several different careers. Instead, most people tend to specialise in one thing. Especially when it comes to art. That however, isn’t the case with Japanese artist Miki Yui.  She has successfully combined and cultivated several different careers since her career began in 1998. Since then, the multitalented Miki Yui’s …

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(THE MICROCOSM): THE VISIONARY MUSIC OF CONTINENTAL EUROPE, 1970-1986.

(THE MICROCOSM): THE VISIONARY MUSIC OF CONTINENTAL EUROPE, 1970-1986. As the seventies dawned, a new musical movement started to take shape across Europe. This new musical movement continued right through to the mid-eighties. By then, artists from  Germany, Austria, Holland and France were part of this new musical movement. So were artists in Italy, Greece, …

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THE CLUSTER STORY.

THE CLUSTER STORY. The Cluster story began in the Zodiak Free Arts Lab in West Berlin. That’s where Hans-Joachim Roedelius first met Dieter Moebius. Little did they know that they were about to embark upon a musical journey that would last five decades.  During that period, Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Dieter Moebius were part of three …

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AK MUSICK-AK MUSICK.

AK MUSICK-AK MUSICK. By the early seventies, the West German music scene was thriving. Across the country, new bands were being formed, and releasing new, ambitious,  innovative and experimental music. This had been the case since the late sixties, when the first wave of new bands were formed. One of the earliest groups were Amon …

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HARMONIA-“THE MOST IMPORTANT BAND IN THE WORLD.”

HARMONIA-“THE MOST IMPORTANT BAND IN THE WORLD.” Throughout musical history, innovative music has often failed to find an audience upon its release. It’s only much later, that the music’s importance and innovation is recognised. Musical history is littered with examples. This includes the group that Brian Eno once called : “the most important band in the world,” Harmonia. Despite such high praise, Harmonia’s …

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AUTOMAT-OSTWEST.

AUTOMAT-OSTWEST. Back in 2014, Automat released their their eponymous debut album. This was no ordinary debut album. Automat was also the first in a trilogy of albums from the Berlin based trio. For a new group, this was an ambitious project. The three members of Automat, Jocem Arbeit, Achim Färber and Georg Zeitblom were all …

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LIGHTDREAMS-ISLANDS IN SPACE.

LIGHTDREAMS-ISLANDS IN SPACE. Thirty-five years ago in 1981, the British Columbian band LightDreams, released their debut album, Islands In Space. It was a captivating, psychedelic sci-fi odyssey where LightDreams explored cosmic ideology. This was something that had fascinated and enthralled the band’s leader Paul Marcano ever since he first encountered the work and theories of author, …

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PAUL MARCANO AND LIGHTDREAMS-10,001 DREAMS.

PAUL MARCANO AND LIGHTDREAMS-10,001 DREAMS. In 1981, British Columbian band LightDreams released debut album Islands In Space. It was a captivating psychedelic sci-fi odyssey where LightDreams explored cosmic ideology. Normally, an album like Islands In Space would’ve found favour with fans of psychedelia and progressive rockers who embraced cerebral, innovative and epic albums. Alas, that …

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ADELBERT VON DEYEN-STERNZEIT.

ADELBERT VON DEYEN-STERNZEIT. By 1977, Adelbert Von Deyen was working as a retoucher for a Berlin newspaper. While this kept him busy during the day, Adelbert had plenty of free time in the evenings. Wanting to put his free time to good use, Adelbert decided to take up a hobby. The hobby Adelbert Von Deyen …

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