Go Forward Into Dark Again
Packages from France focussing on historic moments in European history and featuring Swiss Industrial musicians covering German composers are something I receive too infrequently. Contained within the 2CDs of Berlin 61/89 – Wall Of Sound is an almost distracting quantity of amazing music quite a bit of which we’ve covered on 20JFG over the years I’m happy to say. What separates this from an intricate Hype Machine search is the way it’s all weaved together – across decades and countries – into a cohesive soundtrack to a memory of cultural insurrection.
Swiss Industrial titans Young Gods contribute with a 1991 cover of German (although eventually American) composer Kurt Weill’s Speak Low. After 30 seconds of tortured electronics a rumbling industrial beat replete with bustling snares and grinding bass heralds an obviously reverent cover of Weill’s words…if not sounds. A serenade in empty warehouses soon to be filled with wondrous technology but here struggling with a past of sweat and metal and dark moist grease.
Bonus video#1: Charlie Haden performing Speak Low accompanying an original recording of Kurt Weill singing Speak Low. Just as good. Just as brutal, in its own way.
Soft like Bowie’s more reclined cocaine moments, Hannover Prog. band Jane took a stab at pop-rock stardom with the straight to the point, Love Song. Not-quite-weird-enough-to-be-Eno synth washes still manage to infect the strummed guitar with strangely epic qualities. Gloriously naive lyrics get repeated until they shed all meaning and become part of the incessant drive of the song towards some sun kissed oblivion, uncaring that the object of the love song has long since faded from view.
Bonus video#2: Malaria – Your Turn To Run. Pitch perfect Super-8 synced to horn flecked post-punk.
All of those songs (bar the Charlie Haden) are on the Berlin 61/89 – Wall Of Sound compilation which, from November 24th, you can buy here
Not on the compilation but fitting seamlessly into this post are the wonderful Die Dominas. Recorded surreptitiously at Manuel Göttsching‘s studio in 1980 the Die Dominas 10″ features not only sleeve artwork and ‘special chords’ by Herr Ralfi und Herr Karl but a song dedicated to them. Like a louche party on the Trans Europe Express, Rosi and Claudia’s vampish vocals compete over the ‘special chords’ endlessly repeating on the tracks beneath them.
5 thumbs up!
Thursday, November 19, 2009 3:53 ambcr