Relax and you'll be out of that damn thing in no time

Guitar and vibraphone. I'm listening to that combination a lot lately so I thought sharing some of it would be the thing to do. I'm a total sucker for Florian Poser's vibes so there was no need to playcheck the record when I found it in a shop some time ago. I do remember that at home it was the first one on the deck. Some blissed out 40 minutes later I "woke up" and listened to some more records, but none of those was half as nice as this here LP. But beware! The whole record is really relaxed and - of course - acoustic, no drums, no synths etc. Just some good old handmade music!

Cheers!

Star Dance

Mostly solo effort from the guitarist and main songwriter in Jane. Hess is playing guitar, bass, keys and drums. He has help on drums from Bernie Van Der Graaf and Rosebud on a few tracks, Ulli Heicher plays bass and percussion on Vegas, and Wolfgang Krantz provides strings on 3 tracks. Sternentanz was released on the Sky label in 1983. The sound is quite different from the progressive Kraut that Jane was making. More of a cosmic sheen on these jams as befits a record named Star Dance.

Sternentanz

Deep in the Bamboo Cosmos

Peaceful Solutions was a collaboration between Kirby Shelstad and Richard Allen, two musicians from Nashville, Tennessee. This, their first lp, was released in 1984. Richard Allen made the instruments he is playing from bamboo. Various flutes including shakuhachi and transverse, whistles and bamboo saxophones were among the instruments used on this recording. Kirby Shelstad added synthesizers, vibraphone and various percussion instruments. The music is a kind of a folk/new age fusion and the result is unbelievable.

Peaceful Solutions

The Space Between by ABEL

Autumn again! I couldn't imagine anything nicer than sitting at home in the warmth, looking at the raindrops run down the window and listen to this beautiful mix Abel is spoiling us with from today on. It's been on repeat since I got it and i'm damn happy to share it with you. Off the hook!! Make sure to check out Abel's mixes on Lovefingers, Dreamchimney, Noncollective and Noiseinmyhead and of course get a copy of his fantastic edits on Blackdisco instantly.
But listen to this first. THE SPACE BETWEEN.
Thanks so much Abel!

Shopping Info

One of my hobbies is to cut, repair and strech odd tracks that make me dance, dance, dance. Andrew Lovefingers pressed some of these tracks on wax now and at least one of the tracks is really burning! This record should be findable in every GOOD recodstore around the globe ; )

Hope you guys dig it.

Cheers, Basso


Socaland by bassso

Tears Of Joy by bassso

Burning by bassso

Cycles by bassso

The joy of cooking KRAUT

Hi folks, tuesday october 19th at 10pm Central European Time (2 pm eastern, 11am western) my second show on Deepfrequency.com will be aired. It's a "Kraut" special this time. A bit of good old krautrock as well as some jazz and obscure 80s stuff... but no Kraftwerk, no Cluster, no Can, almost none of the big names featured but you know them already anyway ; )
Hope you'll enjoy it!! Cheers, Basso

the show is archived now. you can stream or download it here

Starting with a very short track (=no track) by hobby musician group Thotes Schwein and their 1981 hit "Schwuler Frosch". Sounds like there's some good old german beerspirit involved too.
Next up is Alex Oriental Experience. A dealer who showed me that fantastic double album lately called the guy "Türken-Alex". The decision of having a turkish influenced track as the "first" track in a Kraut-Mix is a political one!
Alex is followed by Agitation Free, one of my favourite krautrock bands - ever! This one here called "First Communication" is the opener to their second LP.
"Öffnen Sie Mal Ihre Tasche" comes from a private press 80s LP called Subtanz.
It's followed by Moebius and Rentzihausen's opener of ther Ersatz LP.
Next up my favourite Richard Schneider Jr. tune "Regine's Dance".
"Wereld World" has been edited by Tako and you'll find it on one of the ESP Concentration Vol. 1 12"s.
Off to some more folky vibes we have Gadzho with "Manege" followed by the International Geräuschorchester.
Next is a collaboration of Kraan and Guru Guru called "Leopardenkästchen" unfortunately only to be found on a pretty rare Promo LP from a southern german radiostation. Hugest thanks to Paul at the Plattenrille for that one : )
Next we have Ceddo's mastermind Jochen Schlumpf. Must admit that I forgot the title and can't find the damn record in the chaos right now....
Off to another gifted guitarrero - Martin Müller - accompanied by Hakim Ludin and Michael Höfler with the title track of the truly wonderful Avenida Atlantica LP. Mos definitely one of my favourite finds of the last years.
Voodooish vibes from Frankfurt in "Sister Magic" by Iviron. A strange story about a guy who goes home with a fifteen year old girl and then finds out that girl's got balls ; )
The joy of cooking kraut closes with Janus' "Gravedigger" a perfect neverending kraut hymn from the UK.

Explosive Sounds . . .

Timer is the second lp from Gian Piero Reverberi, published in 1976. The music ranges from laid back atmospheric tracks with gorgeous female vocals, to full tilt epic renditions of classical compositions featuring synth heavy arrangements. It's all built for long lasting listening pleasure. (Are you sold yet?)

Timer

the growing bin informs again

After Cracklin' Chimney (thanks a lot, man) posted a Lullatone video over at Dreamchiney's TOTD I ordered the first copy I could get a hold of. This is some damn beautiful music. I'm pretty sure it will make children sleep and dream the sweetest dreams but it also creates a wonderful atmosphere in our adult kitchen everytime I play that CD (and that's almost daily!!!)

How they promote the CD here: “Let Lullatone send you to sleep with their newest collection of lullabies. Originally composed for their newborn son, this set of merry-go-round melodies is the perfect bedtime background music for babies and adults alike. Each track is specially composed to loop seamlessly using the “repeat one” function on your CD or mp3 player, allowing unlimited long listening. Single melodies can also be enjoyed seamlessly for hours at a time as you drift to dreams, letting the songs spin in circles. And the artwork also uses a special die cut cover to allow the music’s disc to spin too! The production on the album features a high level of sound science to ensure ultimate effectiveness in snooze induction. Underwater recordings, heartbeats as drumbeats and tape hiss as ambient white noise are just the beginning of the shuteye science the duo employed to create their most careful concept album to date.”

Ace present for young parents btw ; )

Constellation Latvia

Disco Alliance is the first lp recorded by Latvian instrumental rock band, Zodiac. The group was organized by composer Jānis Lūsēns and the band was made up of fellow students from the Latvian State Conservatory. This lp was enormously successful and is still highly regarded 30 years later. The music leans more towards space rock than disco, with synthesizers taking a prominent role in the mix.

Disco Alliance

Fields of Estonia

That last post went over so well I'll try not to post any more cosmic disco lps. Downloads galore, but when you label it cheese people are embarrassed to give it their approval, even when it's well played and included in the top disco mixes. My girlfriend predicted this result and she called it right. Ha ha.

Now for something completely different. Synopsis was an Estonian progressive rock band originally formed in 1977. Igor Garšnek and Nevil Blumberg joined the band in 1978, Garšnek on keyboards and Blumberg on guitar and synthesizers. Material for an album was recorded but was never released. The band took a break for several years and then reformed in 1984 with a few new members. They recorded this lp and it was released in 1986 on the Melodiya label. The music veers from heavy prog, to symphonic rock to cosmic ambiance. The longest tracks are very relaxed, bordering on new age.

Synopsis

Hot Rocks

HOT R.S. = House Of The Rising Sun. They were a South African disco rock band who published their first discs in 1977. Their first two lps featured extended disco versions of rock classics. You can probably guess which famous track was covered on this, their initial effort. It's extended to over 14 minutes and features quite a bit of cheese (cake). 2 more tracks on the b-side also with a heavy disco flavor.

HOT R.S.

the growing bin informs

I have bought a record lately and I love it. Its a comp and it is called "Future Cosmic Grooves". Library stuff only. Had a few tracks on record already but spend way too much money on those. Now I got a few more (that I couldn't afford as original copies anyway) and I'm damn happy with it. You may get it at your local recordstore or buy it directly from the man who made it here.
Cheers!

listen to the radio...

I just wanted to let you guys know that from tomorrow (tuesday sept. 21st) I'm going to have monthly show on http://www.deepfrequency.com/index.php called "the joy of cooking". I'd be happy if you'd drop in for some lovely tunes. If you dig the music we post here you might like the stew I'm about to cook there.

Cheers, Basso

PS. The show is now archived and you can listen here

Thanks for Visiting!

From those three Craig Leon records I know (Visiting, Nommos, Tapes Of Atoya) this one's my favourite. Wonderful mellow and atmospheric tracks alternating with uptempo electronica. (Discogs describes it "Leftfield, Dark Ambient, Abstract, Illbient, Ambient" : ) Check out his œuvre as a producer - pretty impressive list he got there. Pretty great record you get here...

Thanks for visiting, folks. May I now lead you to the almighty Lunar Atrium because this record has been posted there in February already! All props to NRC and thanks to anonymous for the heads up. The link to my own rip from original vinyl is still in the comments.

They've Left the Window Open Again . . .

Czech jazz keyboardist Emil Viklický assembled a tightly knit crew for this outing. Bill Frisell on electric guitar and Kermit Driscoll on electric bass (Frisell and Driscoll have a long history together) and rounding off the rhythm section is drummer Vinton Johnson. The band nailed the jazz funk sound with this one. Viklický's synths and clavinet lines bounce well with Driscoll's bass workouts. We also get a preview of Frisell's future sound as a leader with this recording. Okno turned 30 this year. Still sounds fresh . . .

Okno

"Cadavre Exquis" By Ronny & Renzo

Le cadavre exquis boira le vin nouveau.

We're unbelievably happy to have a superb mix by the "Kings of Downtempo" - Ronny & Renzo in the growing bin. If you belong to the four persons on the globe who don't know these guys and their label King Kung Foo yet, just buy their records (they're amazing - Broken Fingers incl. a Sombrero Galaxy remix came out a few weeks ago : ) and check out their interview (and of course the mix) at Cosmic Disco. But first listen to this mix. It's different from most of the mixes I've yet heard. They are precisely cutting vocal samples from german TV, overlaying laid back Ronny & Renzo originals and pearls from the vast collection. Next level ; )
Dear listener, I know you love it gloomy, spiritiual and a tad surreal -
so may I present Cadavre Exquis

your pocket grows seafood on the moon

Good Vibes . . .

Here is a later edition of the Volker Kriegel sound (1981). Volker is pushing the envelope as usual with his sitar-guitar and vibraphone heavy arrangements, courtesy of Wolfgang Schlüter. Journal features top talent from the experimental jazz world and the tracks cover a wide range of moods. This is a solid keeper, and currently my favorite Kriegel.

Journal

Jazz in the Clouds . . .

This lp represents the first of many collaborations between Karin Krog and John Surman. The two musicians had in common a love of the poetry of Paul Rowlands and decided to base this music on his works. Karin chose her favorites and she and John went into the studio and laid down these tracks. The music was recorded in 1976 with the help of Stu Martin on drums and Janet Cooke on piano and string ensemble. John is playing synthesizers, which are very prominent on this recording, bari and soprano saxophones, bass clarinet, piano and guitar, and of course Karin is the vocalist singing these poems. The release of this music was delayed 3 years by lack of funds. The mix-down finally occurred in 1979 and the music was released on the Polydor label in the West and on Poljazz in Eastern Europe. The Poljazz release is different from the Polydor issue in that only Karin's name appeared on the cover.

An acquaintance recently observed that "women are not particularly fond of listening to this album". So, if you happen to be a woman and are turned off by this music please leave a comment. I would like to know what it is about this recording that is offensive to women. Conversely, if you like this music, feel free to comment on that as well. This is experimental jazz, so an acquired taste. I am curious to know why 'women' in particular would be offended by this music which is the work of 2 WOMEN and 2 men . . .

Cloud Line Blue

Strings Attached . . .

Strings? All over this record. Heinz Fröhling's guitars are very prominent in this late release which dropped in 1979. Gerd Führs is covering drums and synths per usual. 3 drummers on this release and yet another string player. Credits. A few of the tracks have a symphonic edge, but all the tracks have a cosmic shimmer; loads of synths. Well worth adding to your collection.


Strings

More music to sit back and relax

Music to read books by, Part III

on Deepfrequency's Cosmic Connections
Thanks Chidi

PS. you'll find Part2 at NOISEINMYHEAD

and heeeeere's the tracklist:

Zero 7 - Futures
Jeff Liberman - Transformation
1. Futurologischer Kongress - Fair Light
Christian Darré - Perceneige
Craig Leon - One Hundred Steps
Earforce Band - Spaceflight II
Ralph Lundsten - Cosmo Nova
Irmin Schmidt - Im Herzen des Hurrikan
Giovanni Cristiani - Violence Love
Rüdiger Oppermann - Nebelreiter
Dutch Treats - San Sebastian
James Vincent - Etüde 20
Li Garratoni - Child of Venus/Orbital Star
Giovanni Cristiani - Dancing For Diletta
Müller, Ludin, Höfler - Tage des Friedens
Geoff Bastow - Tomorrow's City
Eroc - Von der Insel
Toti Soler - all