D>Elektro   |1.2.2|  |>Sounds + Elements
      |> History/ies + Sounds
of modern electronic / experimental music in Germany |<
 
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While reading the above, you might have come under the impression, that all those developments happened ages ago and all the musicians involved are long since retired - or already buried.
You couldn't be more wrong.

"What's extraordinary about all these bands - apart from the music itself, is that despite severely limited commercial returns, their influence was so wide-reaching that most are still working today; or if like CAN, they're no longer together as a band, the various members are still engaged on projects every bit as bonkers."
Andy Gill - MOJO Magazine - 4/97
ALL of the mentioned musicians are still active. Even if not each and everyone is still to be found experimenting in the front lines of the muscial avantgade, the most of them are still following their routes very consequently.

Kraftwerk - live '98
Even Kraftwerk, who, for a long time seem to have gone off-line for good, re-appeared under much media-attention with the release of the EXPO 2000 jingles and 4 Song-remix versions of them. And rumours have it that at long last a new album is truly in production....
But who could seriously oppose, if one would say, that the Kraftwerkers just took themselves that much time off, until the EXPO, as a kind of magnifying glass of the so-called media-society and the information age, with it's motto "Man Nature Technology", has finally arrived, where Kraftwerk with it's concepts and records were already 20 years ago.
Faust, Cluster and Ashra are still touring and continue to release new records - and on very rare occasions they receive - even in Germany - the public acknowledgement and credit that is so long overdue. For instance in the summer 2000, when Ashra were invited to play at the 'Z-2000 Festival / Positions of young(!) culture' - their first concert in Berlin/Germany for years.
Apart from that Ashra, Faust, Cluster, Amon Düül 2 and various other German groups were invited to play in Japan, U.K. and the U.S.
At one of these occasions in April 2000, Manuel Goettsching [Ashra] and Klaus Schulze rejoined as [the almost complete original line-up of] Ash Ra Tempel and recorded a new live-album at London' Royal Festival Hall.

Also Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream and Conrad Schnitzler continue their experiments in their very own ways - and the request for their works continues as well. Schulze has recently released a mighty 50-CD's package of so-far unreleased material, called the 'Ultimate Edition'.
Schulze and Schnitzler have been, like Kraftwerk, also invited to perform at the prolific new media-arts festival ARS Electronica.

Especially Klaus Schulzes for now 30 years ongoing continuous creative output seems incomparable - and that not 'only' in terms of quantity.
Against the usual rules in the musicbusiness, his pioneer's spirit and the lust to experiment have not left him up to this day.
Also in the 90's Schulze-CD's are regarded as pathbreaking and the value of his whole body of work increases with every new release. And certainly he show's no lack of ideas - as not only brilliantly proofed by his latest release 'Dosburg Online', that easily and elegantly incorporated a wide range from free Synth-improvisations to grooving drum 'n' bass pieces and a requiem incl. an opera singer. The latest bulletin from the Schulze headquarters are announcing not less than a package of 10 CD's, packed with brandnew material.

"What a long electronic trip, which Klaus Schulze had begun 30 years ago. In the early 70's he discovered the legendary Moog, the archetype of all synthesizers. Until today Schulze remained faithful to the synth's with their immense musical possibilities.
He invocates completey new sounds out of them - way beyond the usual trends. Maybe it's this particular aspect, that makes Schulze's latest releases so exciting, new and innovative, so that also the dance-scene pays homage to him as the 'Godfather of Ambient'. On his current CD you can find Trance, Ambient or even Drum'n'Bass - but processed in a way that it never sounds just trendy."
Musik Express - 1997

In the meantime Holger Czukay, one of the key-figures of experimental / electronic music in Germany, has driven his work into the multimedia-area.

At the moment he's working on a couple of CD's and one of his latest releases, a collaboration with the German techno-musician Dr. Walker [Air Liquide], entitled 'Clash', received raving reviews.

He's giving concerts and since quite a while he's present on the internet with his own domain: www.czukay.de. And in collaboration with the media-artists of 'Gvoon' he has set foot into the frontline of virutal-multi-media entertainment. They are offering the 24-hour 'Czukay TV', a 'writing system and during the recently 30th CAN - anniversary gigs [CAN - the solo projects], they premiered their virtual multi-media entertainment project.

Czukay + GVOON - live 1999
It goes without saying that at this 'CANniversay' not only Czukay presented his remarkable current solo-project. CAN's keyboarder Irmin Schmidt delievered - in collaboration with his current musical partner Kumo - a truly breathtaking performance, that, in an almost magically playful manner combined Schmidt's virtuoso improvisations with up-to-date electronic sounds and rhythm-patters - but also with one of the most archaic electronic instruments: the theremin.
The magic of the spontaneous composition, the telepathic understanding, as the collaboration amongst the members of CAN have often been described by themselves, was yet again -and still- clearly present.

      So, no time for nostalgic feelings.
      That was D>Elektro is about as well.
      The sounds continue and keep on working - like their producers - then and now.
| Music Non Stop |

|> Sources |
> Kraftwerk: Man, Machine and Music | Pascal Bussy | SAF Publishing, 1993
> We can be Heroes | Andy Gill | Mojo Magazine, April 1997
> Krautrocksampler | Julian Cope | KAK London, 1995
> The CAN Book | Andy Hall + Pascal Bussy | 1989 SAF Publishing
> Klaus Schulze - The Works | Klaus D. Mueller | P.O.E.M. Verlag, 1998
> Klaus Schulze - eine musikalische Gratwanderung | Verlag M. Schwinn, 1986
> Amon Düül - Tanz der Lemminge | I. Schober | Sonnentanz Verlag, 1994
> Krautrock | Simon Reynolds | Melody Maker, Juli 1996
> Ocean of Sound | David Toop | Serpent's Tail Publ. | 1996
> further articles + interviews |> go to the Material section

| Knut Gerwers | - cont. |

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