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Bpitch Control
Modeselektor
Trapez
Ozy
Jenka Music
Karsten Pflum
D'StoreMix
Krede
Sender Records
misc.
k.lakizz
Komplott
Hans Appelqvist
~scape
Jan Jelinek
Komponent Records
The Ultra Violence Organ
Kontroll.er
--bB
Others...
Dj Nikolaj
Bpitch Control
The label with the "fernsehturm" as their favourite cover emblem has been introducing diversity to the club society of Berlin since 1997. The label, created by Ellen Allien, tries to split the technoid-electronic microcosmos of the capital city with the function of being a platform for upcoming artists. Berlin is growing from the important role as one of the cities where techno has been at home the most for the last 10 years. Bpitch Control puts this consequently into practice and leaves its unmistakable marks on techno, hence "made in Berlin". Bpitch Control considers itself a channel where the collective is the priority and the ideas of every individual have space. Reflection about the sound can become a mirror to the city of Berlin.
Modeselektor
Actually MODESELEKTOR, for those to whom the granulate synthesis and its consequences is still unknown. It could be described this way: in order to construct this music, one takes a sound, files away at it until a thousand bits of "sound dust" are created, compacts and grinds the bits of "sound dust" over and over again and finally slaps the odd shape over the mixture. The next step to understanding MODESELEKTOR is to imagine creaking, grinding beats - depending on the mood either monotonously pounding away or cut in unbelievably cool breaks - and then gently added, classically arranged facets that sprinkle the heavy beats like freshly fallen snow - if you can imagine all that, then you get an impression of what MODESELEKTOR is about: uniting contrasts that one doesn't even realise are contrasts while listening to the music.
The music, played three notches over red on a huge system, blows you away. And, where the bass vibrates the body, you can't help but jump from one leg to the other enthusiastically. That's what they do to you, the Shah of Persia and Faustan (as they are known in the Berlin night life)! They rock and even reflect before. They try to stick to their live gig's "fuck off" (let's have fun even if the computer breaks down and everything gets put into the chaos pad!) not only as private guys but as musicians as well - no conventions, no showing consideration to self adoring scenes and don't even think of being a service person! Be honest, stay honest and show yourself through the music, with all apparent contradictions.
Trapez
Ozy
Ozy's main output has been THULE RECORDS in Iceland (which often is referred to as BASIC CHANNEL of the north). In 2002 legendary German label FORCE INC. released OZY's debut album "Tokei", placing OZY within their impressive artist rooster that featured some of the most talented and famous electronic acts around. Recently, OZY has started releasing on the wonderful TRAPEZ label in Cologne, music that could best be described as slinky, articulate tech house with certain pop appeal.
Jenka Music
Karsten Pflum
Karsten Pflum is the alter ego of Danish Jacob Helverskov Madsen. His music is an ingenious and at times schizophrenic mix of themes from folk music, cunningly cutup rythems, sweet pop intermezzos, and something nombastically teasing. Pflum perpetually examines the borderline between narrative complexity and ambient vastness - underlined by a great deal of humor and irony, where still always caring greatly for his subtleties and details. In 2003 he released his album debut, Tracks, on London label Worm Interface, and in 2004 the 12" Dogcatcher, on Copenhagen label Tender Productions. He has appeared on quite a few compilations, in Denmark and the UK, and his tunes have caught the attention of radio programs such as BBC1's Breezeblock and the John Peel Show several times. Besides this he has been playing live a great deal, around Europe.
On January 31st his new album "Flugten Fra År 2000" is realeased on the Danish label Jenka Music, who among other things drew a great deal of attention when they did a showcase at the Sonar Festival in Barcelona in the summer of 2004. So this night will, apart from his concert, also be celebrating his new realease.
D'StoreMix
Krede
Started DJ'ing back in the mid 80'ties at various parties and radio stations. Took a couple years of to present various TV musicshows. In October 1999 Krede and Madvig welcomed the listeners to their first D'StoreMix broadcasting ever. From this time on the radio show have released 2 compilation, held 9 parties, hosted the ChillOut stage at the Roskilde Festival in 02 and 03 and brought the radio show to its listeners from different places around the world such as Sonar/Barcelona, MWMC/Miami, ADE/Amsterdam, Ibiza etc. The DJ style is versatile, but focused on Deep & Techy and Lounge/Ambient
Sender Records
Sender Records was founded in 1999 by Benno Blome in Cologne, Germany and has moved to Berlin since then.
The label started off by releasing tracks with dry and funky vapours. It thus stepped into the new century delivering advanced, rocking high-tech dance music with a crisp and existential sound-design. Sender is quickly taking agency for the communication of new talent. Within a short period of time, it has established both artist identities as well as a strong label identity.
Today functional reduction and an innovative, timeless approach reinforce the brand name of Sender Records.
misc.
Christopher Bleckmann and Hannes Wenner first hooked up working the nighshift at a videostore in the small german town Münster. Since both had been music fanatics their whole life, they soon started making music together. Christopher is a classical trained musician but he also got interested in electronic sounds and music at young age. He used to play new synthesizers at local stores in the mid-80's so fanatically that he got house-forbidden in most of them in his hometown Bremen. Hannes never really tried to make music by himself before he met Christopher but he always has been a very careful music-listener and, growing up in Kassel, got infected with the Techno virus in the early 90's.
The first project they ever started was a breakbeat one with a jungle-like attitude. But it soon became clear, that they would not just stick to the scheme. So crossing borders and mixing up styles became their most important principle. Due to this approach, Christopher and Hannes soon began to work on completely different musical styles like Downbeat, House or Minimaltechno at the same time. After a long string of Drum & Bass-records with their project Monophace on Germany's leading D&B labels Precision and Krush Grooves and after their moving to the city of Cologne they began to release House and Downbeat tracks as Van Delta on Groove Attack. Next thing was a radical form of MinimalTechno as Niederflur on Detroit's finest Minus, which lead them directly to their TechHouse project misc. which is currently releasing on Force Tracks and Sender-Records. Meanwhile Christopher has aswell become an excellent Techno/House DJ, who is supported by an unique live-performance of their misc.-project by Hannes.
k.lakizz
k.lakizz aka Kim Blomme produces electronical music since 1997 and released her first track "Ein Geist gab mir Feuer" 1999 on the the Munich-based label Gigolo. DJ Hell has used this track on his SONY Mix-CD "DJF750". At the same year the "Schwebstaub EP" appears on Sender and has a very positive resonance in the press:
"Her music is a brilliant mixture of superdry minifunk and spherical melancholy." /Groove mag
"One feels a conviction, that chooses, absolutely independent from techno-trends, an existencial form of expression. Tip." /De:Bug
After taking a few years break from live performances, she will return to the spot light. New material from her hand will follow in the near future.
Komplott
Hans Appelqvist
With his new album "Bremort" (Komplott) Hans Applequist has made an extraordinary record, that explores alternative techniques of musical story telling. He is influenced by the musical story telling used in movies. With "Bremort" he is telling a story about the fictitious Swedish town of Bremort. He has done this so well that his record became nr. 1 at the German magazine DE-BUG October list.
From the pressrelease to "Bremort":
Appelqvist's music infuses the debate on the musical qualities of music. The newness of his acoustic image, where the choice of sounds are not always evident or natural in there context, makes the listener react, certain musical nuances might generate strong emotions while others leaves the listener indifferent. The same is true for Appelqvist's scheme of using untrained, hand-picked voices, a device which by many might be construed as provocative. It raises the question of whether we are actually listening to music and/or taking part in a staging. The crude voices are intimately interlinked through the underlying narrative and bring a dimension of agitation on top of the melancholy and suggestive coulisse of sound /Komplott
~scape
Jan Jelinek
Jan Jelinek is one of the true hot shots at the electronic listening music scene. He has released on ~scape and as Farben on Klang Elektronik. No further introduction should be necessary.
Since 1998 Jelinek has taken his work to the public: split into the re-evaluation of phrases in soul music (as Farben), a reduced approach to the dance-floor (Gramm) or, under his third pseudonym which strictly speaking isn't one (Jan Jelinek), the exploration of his own production concepts, he has so far released six Farben Eps on Frankfurt-based label Klang Elektronik (recently compiled on the album "Textstar"), followed by a Gramm album on Move D's Source Records and, as Jan Jelinek, with "loop-finding-jazz-records" (~scape) the shifting of linear second loops, condensing Jazz samples into arrangements with an unrivalled depth of field. /~scape
Komponent Records
The Ultra Violence Organ
U.V.O http://uvo.komponent.dk is 2 parts Renegades of the game boxen http://rgb.komponent.dk and one part electro scientist.
kun.stOEj, ctrl_alt and dzl has started U.V.O which can be described as a noise orchestra with techno/rock/dub influences.
Kontroll.er
Kontroll.er works with visual material in much the same way that a DJ or musician uses samples. Kontroll.er's center is his laptop, a DV camera and a video mixer where energy and musical moods are visualised in realtime.
--bB
--bB the only experimental pure ambisonic orchestra. --bB is an ensemble of electronic musicians dedicated to explore and develop the spatial proporties of electronic music by developing methods and practices for presenting ambisonic compositions and live performances in public spaces. The members of --bB each has a varying background in electronic music and the musical genre is mainly minimal-/noise-tech. with live analog instruments counterbalancing pure synthetic sound. --bB is allso developing 'ambisonic styling' for presenting other musicians material in an ambisonic context. --bB has played at major ambisonic events including Radar festival 1 & 2, Public service, and a number of Komponent installments.
Others...
Dj Nikolaj
Local Dj Nikolaj works at the record store Soundstation. He is into the more listening oriented electronic music.
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