Resonator is a duo from Münster, Germany, who makes some of the most unique and creative music you can find. Kai typically writes music for theater and works on film soundtracks, while Anja is a formally trained musician who plays the accordion for the Resonator project. Ambient electronic music mixed with accordions is certainly not a common combination of sounds, but I can assure you it’s something very special when you hear it.
Enter the Red Room Diner
Red Room Diner is Resonator’s first full length album, originally released in 2003. It starts out with the mysterious sounding intro “Avis De Securite”. Coming in at under a minute in length, the song doesn’t really give you much of a clue about what you’re in for. This could be the introduction for anything, it’s very abstract. What’s to come? It might surprise you…
Mikki from DeutschMusikLand.com recently completed an interview with Admirabilis, a gothic metal band from the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. In the interview, the band’s classical vocalist Anh sheds light on lots of different topics about the band from their formation in 2003 to the release of their current album Above & Beyond. It’s definitely worth a read, so go ahead and check it out.
Admirabilis is also the new featured artist on DML, and for good reason. Their music is guitar-driven but does offer some electronic elements, and it’s all topped off with a pair of female singers, one rock inspired and the other sounding more classical. It’s a very nice combination, something we see a lot of because it works. You can hear 5 full-length songs on the band’s MySpace page, 3 from Above & Beyond and 2 from their 2004 debut Unbelievable. There are also samples of every song from their albums on the band’s website on their Music page (although their new album is only in the German side of their site). Have a listen and post a comment to let us know what you think.
ASP just released a new compilation called Horror Vacui yesterday. It’s a best-of album and includes 33 songs spanning the band’s entire history on 2 discs. Some are just copies of the original songs, but most are either remastered or totally rerecorded. You’ll also find several remixes, live versions, and even a few previously unreleased tracks as you listen. I’ve been listening to ASP for years, and I think they did a great job with this selection.
If you like electronic influenced gothic rock but you don’t know ASP’s music, this would surely be a good place to start. You’ll probably want to go for the regular version of Horror Vacui which just has the 2 CDs and all the music. But if you’re already a big fan of ASP and a collector, maybe you would prefer the limited edition which comes with a 40 page booklet. There’s also a bonus DVD with photo galleries, a short film, and an original frame from the 35mm film reel.
More info about ASP and Horror Vacui
Be sure to check out the ASP interview on DeutschMusikLand.com that Joki performed with the members of ASP before their concert in Köln back in November. It is incredibly informative and reveals a lot about the band’s history as well as Horror Vacui.
Disc 1:
01. How far would you go? (single version)
02. Hunger (re-recorded)
03. Coming Home
04. Schwarzer Schmetterling (re-mastered)
05. Ich will brennen (re-recorded)
06. Dancing (re-recorded)
07. Weltunter (re-recorded)
08. Demon Love (re-recorded)
09. De Profundis
10. Sing Child (re-mastered)
11. Panik (Horror Vacui mix)
12. Die kleine Ballade vom Schwarzen Schmetterling (re-mastered)
13. Raserei
14. Stille der Nacht (re-recorded)
15. Once in a Lifetime (re-mastered)
16. Die Ruhe vor dem Sturm (re-mastered)
Disc 2:
01. Ich bin ein wahrer Satan (single version)
02. Me (video edit 2.0)
03. Schwarzes Blut (club version)
04. Kokon (Horror Vacui mix)
05. Biotopia
06. Werben (re-recorded)
07. Ballade von der Erweckung (re-mastered)
08. Sanctus Benedictus (End of Virginity-version)
09. Krabat (club version)
10. Lykantropie (re-recorded)
11. Finger Weg! Finger!
12. Schwarz (re-recorded)
13. Tiefenrausch-LIVE (previously unreleased)
14. Und wir tanzten - Ungeschickte Liebesbriefe (re-mastered)
15. Nie Mehr (Horror Vacui mix)
16. Duett - Minnelied der Incubi
17. So viel tiefer (previously unreleased)
I recently did an interview with 2 of the members of Beloved Enemy. Peter, who is the band’s main contributor, was previously in Fiddler’s Green before venturing into darker and heavier styles of music. Eddy is the band’s live bassist and also writes for Laut.de. Beloved Enemy’s singer, Ski, and their drummer, Dog, were unavailable for comment.
The interview is fairly long, so I hid it under the cut. (more…)
DeutscheMusik.net has just interviewed Joachim Witt. In this rare English-language interview with Witt, this German music mastermind answers many questions submitted by fans about his history and future plans. Included in the interview are Witt’s own favorite musicians, how he teamed up with bands like Oomph! and Peter Heppner from Wolfsheim, and how he would love to work with either Rammstein or Marilyn Manson. To read the full interview text, please visit this page.
Joachim Witt experienced his early success in the Neue Deutsche Welle (new German wave) school of music, but eventually reinvented himself for his 1998 album Bayreuth I. This was the start of what he considered the “Bayreuth trilogy” in which he adopted a harder sound but kept a soft touch. However, Bayreuth III was released last year so this phase of his musical career has now come to an end. To mark this point in history, Witt is releasing his final work of this style, a unique album called Auf Ewig - Meisterwerke.
Instead of a normal best-of album, Witt has taken the time to recreate the elements from all of his best songs over the years and release them together in what is basically a new album. The first single from this compilation was the remake of his famous song “Goldener Reiter” (see the video here), and it will be joined by 15 other classics on the full-length album. Two versions will be available, a regular CD version and a limited edition which includes a DVD containing several music videos and an interview. Auf Ewig - Meisterwerke will be released on August 31st in Europe. It’s not clear yet whether or not Witt’s US distributor, Dancing Ferret, will be releasing this CD in America.
According to an interview Witt did with Radio Goethe, he has decided it’s time for a change in his musical direction. Witt says he will be moving to London to work on some newer, more experimental music. Perhaps we should have known something like this was coming when he appeared in the Egobar collaboration “Ajax zum Beispiel” where he worked with other experimental musicians such as Blixa Bargeld.
Auf Ewig
01. Goldener Reiter
02. Ich Spreng-den Tag
03. Eisenherz
04. Jetzt und Ehedem
05. Hundert Leiber
06. Die Flut
07. Herbersvater (Tri-Tra-Trullala)
08. Und Ich Lauf
09. Wem Gehört das Sternenlicht?
10. Das Geht Tief
11. Unsere Welt
12. Supergestört und Superversaut (Oomph! remix)
13. Batallion D’Amour
14. Wo Versteckt Sich Gott?
15. Weh-Oh-Weh
16. Immer Noch
Mikki from DeutschMusikLand.com just performed an interview with the singer of Pesticide. They are a pretty new crossover-metal band from Kiel and have been described as sounding a bit like Staind or Static-X. The band’s debut album is also called Pesticide and features some nice, heavy riffs with English vocals. Check out some of the songs on their Myspace page and get ready to bang your head.
