#centrozoon

[jettajimm]

Happy Birthday @markusreuter! 🎂🎈🎁🎊🎉🥳 Have a rockin' one! 🎼🎵🎸🎤 #MarkusReuter #StickMen #Centrozoon

#Tuner #Halo #Tovah #TheLoft #TheCityWineryDC #RamsHeadOnstage #Lumix #GX7

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📸: Erin Conley

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by James JettaJimm Valle (@jettajimm)

[rudyscuriocabinet]

[Music] Steppe-Scape (Stars of Eurasia) – The Great Steppe Live Stick Men guitarist/Chapman Stick player Markus Reuter participates in a stunningly good collaboration wedding progressive rock and improvisation with music from Central Asia.

[progtracks]

PROGRESSIVE TRACKS SHOW #204 (“The Big Event”)

Some things are just bigger than Progressive Rock....

Sorry, lost my head there for a minute.  

How ‘bout: Some things are so big, that they warrant a whole progressive rock show dedicated to them.  Yes, that’s better!

So what is this ‘thing’?  Tune in and be ‘in the know’!

- Mike “ProgTracks” Pollack

P.S.  If any of my shows will attract a female audience, it’s this one.  Trust me.

———————————————————-

Showtimes:  We’re all back to ‘normal’ once again, as the UK is now on BST - British Sumer Time.    

(1) Thursday evening at 8:00 PM (Seattle - Pacific) / 4:00 AM Friday morning (London - BST) on Progzilla Radio (Progzilla.com)  http://tunein.com/radio/Progzilla-Radio-s242911/   NOTE:   I’ll be in the Progzilla Lounge Chat Room… drop by and say ‘Hi’. (http://www.progzilla.com/chat-room/)

(2) Sunday morning at 5:00 AM (Seattle - Pacific) / 1:00 PM Sunday afternoon (London - BST) on KPTZ 91.9 FM (KPTZ.org)  http://tunein.com/radio/KPTZ-919-s138748/

(3) Monday afternoon at 2:30 PM (Seattle - Pacific) / 10:30 PM Monday evening (London - BST) on Progzilla Radio (Progzilla.com)  NOTE:   I’ll be in the Progzilla Lounge Chat Room… drop by and say ‘Hi’ (http://www.progzilla.com/chat-room/)

(4) Monday evening at 9:00 PM (Seattle - Pacific) / 5:00 AM Tuesday morning (London - BST) on KPTZ 91.9 FM (KPTZ.org)  http://tunein.com/radio/KPTZ-919-s138748/

And if the time changes causes you to miss all these opportunities, you can always access the podcasts to this and previous shows (which are scheduled on “Forever Time”):

http://www.progzilla.com/?s=progtracks

You have lots of chances to catch the show… so don’t miss your chance to Prog On!

E-mail me at ProgTracks@KPTZ.org 

[sounds01014]

the cult of: bibbiboo from centrozoon

[audiomatiquecfou]

Audiomatique 04-10-17 featuring : Chris Dooks - Zola Jesus - Seeming - Depeche Mode - Front 242 - Pankow - Centrozoon - Sarajevo & Moi - Blue Sky Black Death - Electric Bird Noise

 L’émission de radio Audiomatique

du 4 octobre 2017

Transmission 156

présentée de 17 h à 18 h sur les ondes de CFOU 89,1 FM

animée par Les Électronistes

  Radio show Audiomatique

October 4, 2017

Transmission 156

aired from 5 PM to 6 PM on CFOU 89,1 FM

hosted by Les Électronistes

  1) Chris Dooks : « An Outsider From Finland » (To Look North)

 2) Zola Jesus : « Wiseblood » (Okovi)

 3) Seeming : « The Wildwood » (Sol: A Self Banishment Ritual)

 4) Depeche Mode : « So Much Love » (Spirits)

 5) Front 242 : « Melt (Again) » (05:22:09:12 Off)

 6) Pankow : « Life Is Offensive » (I Never Thought Of The Consequences)

 7) Centrozoon : « Little Boy Smile » (Never Trust The Way You Are)

 8) Sarajevo & Moi : « Imaginary Winter » (Dark Sky)

 9) Blue Sky Black Death : « And Stars, Ringed » (Noir)

 10) Electric Bird Noise : « Holdin Back The Tears » (Unleashing The Inner Robot)

   Écoutez en différé / Listen : https://archive.org/embed/Audiomatique041017

www.mixcloud.com/audiomatique/audiomatique-04-10-17

Contact : audiomatiquecfou@gmail.com

Facebook :

www.facebook.com/audiomatiquecfou

[jazzworldquest-blog]

USA/SPAIN: Tony Levin on MoonJune's new release of Xavi Reija "The Sound Of The Earth" with Markus Reuter & Dusan Jevtovic

MoonJune announces new release

of the Catalan drummer extraordinaire

XAVI REIJA 

"The Sound Of The Earth"

XAVI REIJA drums

TONY LEVIN bass guitar, upright bas, stick

DUSAN JEVTOVIC guitar

MARKUS REUTER touch guitar

    CD • $15 +shipping

HD Download • $10

  Click on any image or link above to fully stream the album.

      The Sound Of The Earth  Notes by Dan Burke First heard on Xavi and Dusan’s inspired 2014 album, “Random Abstract” by XaDu, “Deep Ocean” starts things off with a fanfare of muscular guitar and cymbals crashing like waves on the rocky coast, carving out the beach and unearthing a primal groove with growling bass and jittering spectral figures. “The Sound of the Earth I” brings to mind David Sylvian’s post-Japan near ambient instrumental excursions where space and pause became as integral to the “composition as place” as his trusty Prophet 5. Once this world is created, and with a decidedly Beckian vibe (Jeff, that is), Dusan wrings from the neck of his guitar, some of the most emotive broken phrases and edited soulful voicings. “From Darkness” finds Tony’s minimalist bass pulse in 5/8 with snare/kick serving as the groundwork for Dusan and Markus’ spiraling moebius strip guitar riffery. There is a slightly frenzied insistence to this track which serves as a great counterpoint to the more atmospheric work. Leading off with playful skipping brushwork and a rich and supple Levin bass groove, then painted with Reuter’s ominous stained and weathered guitar tones, “The Sound of the Earth II” is a dark canvas of shifting clouds of color. Dusan’s skittery clipped chords and abbreviated lead lines bring necessary tension for the fluid guitar phrasings which seem to erupt and then run down the face of this 12 minute tone painting. “Serenity” is an inspired atmospheric piece which features an abstracted melodic lead buoyed by an insistent tamboura-like repeated wavering note. There is enough creativity and inspiration in this one track to feed a whole album’s worth of music. Beginning with a deep space Curtis Mayfield vibe, “The Sound of the Earth III” unfolds slowly with a practiced teasing restraint that allows the music to bloom naturally. “Lovely Place” finds the notes of Dusan’s guitar projected, like light, into a prism and coming back as a myriad of shimmering colors. Reuter’s stellar fluid guitar solo has a heroic and almost “Hotel California” build and break before returning to Dusan’s delicate finger work. At nearly 17 minutes long, “The Sound of the Earth IV” would feel right at home on side 3 of a double Kosmiche Musik LP from 1969. This is heady stuff with lots of room for some really spirited interplay. Markus inspires this kind of creativity with his willingness to step way outside of the comfort zone. The musicians feel as though they’ve played together for years. In “Take a Walk” Dusan knits a lean triplet argeggiated guitar riff into a tight braid to give structure while a swaggering monster groove builds and builds, all the while tugging mercilessly at the yarn of his guitar until it temporarily unravels into a series of more tentative notes and slightly bent chords. You can feel the room in this recording and, by that, I mean you can sense both the physical space and the emotional space between these four gifted players. There is a level of trust and comfort here that puts the listener at ease and ready to take the ride. Band leader and Catalan drummer, Xavi Reija and Serbian-born guitarist Dusan Jevtovic have worked together on numerous projects these past few years and have become an intuitive musical unit. Born in Boston, Tony Levin, with his impeccable pedigree from Herbie Mann and Chuck Mangione to Peter Gabriel and King Crimson as well as his own 10- year ongoing project Stick Men, along with fellow Stick Men, Crimson ProjeKCt and Centrozoon member German-born Markus Reuter, have likewise developed a common language communicating through music. Such heartfelt and enthusiastic playing is in short supply these days. This is not music pigeon-holed for easy consumption, rather, it challenges and rewards more and more with each listening. So put down your phone, lower the lights and prepare to experience the gift of this inspired recording. 

"The Sound Of The Earth is like a musical buffet, with something for everyone who has a taste for genre-crossing electric music. The Reija/Jevtovic pairing has a history to draw from, as does the Levin/Reuter axis—and the combination uncovers a real chemistry. Yet another magical MoonJune session." - Mark Sullivan, All About Jazz

        "The Sound Of The Earth" was recorded at Club House Studio, Rhineback, NY, USA by Paul Antonell in August 2016. Mixed by Jesus Rovira at La Casa Murada Studio, Banyeres del Penedés, Catalonia, Spain in 2018. Mastered by Álvaro Balañá at Impact Mastering Lab, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Produced by Xavi Reija. Executive producers Leonardo Pavkovic and Xavi Reija.

via Blogger https://ift.tt/2LElMFd

[musicazca]

New Releases in Avant-Garde & Free Jazz #3: BLAST ~ CENTROZOON https://t.co/7lo1dw9iCr https://t.co/HQFG8RtvQB

New Releases in Avant-Garde & Free Jazz #3: BLAST ~ CENTROZOON https://t.co/7lo1dw9iCr pic.twitter.com/HQFG8RtvQB

— MusicAzCA.bot (@MusicAzCA) March 23, 2017

via Twitter https://twitter.com/MusicAzCA March 23, 2017 at 09:56AM

[tobiasreber]

centrozoon - WWTY-Tour memories Pt.2 - Erik Emil Eskildsen

[This is the second of two guest posts celebrating the release of the new centrozoon album "The Room of Plenty" by providing some context, stories and memories from where this music originated. While the recent first post by Adrian Benavides focused on the first leg of our tour in November 2011, in this post by Erik Emil Eskildsen recalls his memories travelling with us during the second round of concerts in December. Pictures by added by me.- Tobias] -

The Room of Plenty by centrozoon

I joined centrozoon for 4 concerts in December 2011 during their “We Will Tongue You” tour. I wanted to support the band by helping out with whatever was needed, and taking care of the recording of the concerts. At that time I was still living in Denmark, and had just come out of some difficult times. So when I left I knew spending time with my best friends would definitely be good for me. I traveled to Innsbruck, Austria from Denmark by train, a journey I’ve done several times in my life, to meet up with Markus and spend some time with him before travelling to Bern, Switzerland on the 7th of December, where Bernhard and Tobias would join us for the concert at Headmaster-Ateliers as part of the “Freipass” series of artist presentations.

"Going along well: Erik and Innsbruck" (photo and caption credit: Markus Reuter) I remember being very happy when I arrived to Innsbruck. The cold and refreshing mountain air was good for me. Markus and I had lots of time to talk and catch up. Going out for coffee in town, as we have done so often. When Markus and I drove to Bern, we were met with pretty rough weather conditions on the way. Snow came, lots of it. At the concert in Bern I met Tobias’ mother for the first time, she had brought some amazing local marzipan cakes for us all to take home with us. Those were great cakes!

cz setup in Bern (photo credit: Erik Emil Eskildsen) After the gig, before driving back to Tobias’ place in Biel, I remember that we had a conversation with some local artists, who were in charge of arranging concerts at the venue. I don’t remember a lot from this conversation, except that I felt very exhausted by having talked about things that were mostly irrelevant to what I considered important as an artist. But all in all it also felt great to have a conversation of this type, something that wasn’t really possible for me were I was in Denmark at that time, and I had therefore been missing. On the 8th of December we spent most of the day hanging in Biel, our good friend Mark Butler, who was living and working in Switzerland at that time and had also attended the concert the night before in Bern, joined us and we went out for food at a Kebab place and then had coffee at Starbucks. The food was good, but the coffees were better! ;-) It was really nice to catch up with Mark, not having had that much time to talk the night before. After hanging around town, Mark left and would join us later in Basel. We gathered all things we needed, said goodbye to Biel and were heading to Basel for the concert at the Plattfon record store. As we came to the car, that we had parked a few blocks from Tobias’ place, we realized that the front passenger seat window had been left open all night, with gear and some belongings of ours in the trunk of the car. Luckily enough nothing was missing, and the car hadn’t been touched! This felt really rare, and left a very positive impression of Biel in me. Something like that would not go well in most other cities I know and have lived in.

The Room of Plenty by centrozoon

After setting up and preparing everything for the concert at Plattfon in Basel we had dinner at a restaurant where they had good vegetarian food, which considering that both Tobias and I are vegetarians was very appreciated. One of Tobias’ sisters joined us for dinner, so I met her for the first time there. One very remarkable thing that I remember from the concert at Plattfon, was that the majority of the audience was female, and not only because they were the girlfriends of guys that had come to the concert. They were just there for the music. This is, unfortunately, not the typical thing to occur at an experimental music concert. It felt like it created a different atmosphere. I remember talking with Mark outside the venue after the concert about how real the music had been, comparing experiences we had both had before, that somehow connected to this point, and to the music. I remember that being in the audience at this concert was a powerful experience, and I’m pretty sure it had been like that for Mark too.

cz playing at Plattfon, Basel (photo credit: Simona Reber) After the concert Bernhard, Markus and I drove to Innsbruck, Tobias would join us a few days later. Markus had bought Kate Bush’s new album “50 Words for Snow” at Plattfon, and we listened to that album on the way to Innsbruck. This album sort of became the soundtrack of this whole trip for me. We listened to that album quite a lot during the days in Innsbruck. In Innsbruck Bernhard and I stayed at our friend Herlinde’s place, and on one of those nights we finally had a beer together! Something we had been wanting to do for quite some time. It was really good to spend time with Bernhard. Having good long breakfasts together in the mornings. On the 10th Tobias arrived and we prepared for the concert at the local radio in Innsbruck, Radio Freirad. The concert was live on air in our friend Alexander Spechtenhauser’s radioshow Klangforschung. I remember Tobias and I having fun posting through each others facebook pages, Tobias posting “This is not Erik” as me on mine, and me posting “This is not Tobias” as him on his. It was a great 2 hour show, with two sets.

cz performing live on air at Radio Freirad (photo credit: Erik Emil Eskildsen) On the 11th we drove to Munich, where there would be a house concert at a good friends place. This would be the last concert of the 2011 leg of the “We Will Tongue You” tour. I remember being very tired and overwhelmed that night during the concert. I’m assuming that it was a combination, of having been exposed to such deeply moving music, during the time up to this night, and knowing that the next day I would be returning to Denmark. After the concert we hung out, Markus left for Innsbruck and Bernhard, Tobias, and I stayed overnight at our friend’s place where the house concert had been. We all had trains leaving from Munich Main Station the next day.

centrozoon playing a living room concert in Munich (photo credit: Renée Stieger-Reuter) I remember enjoying breakfast the next morning very much. I took care of the guys and made us some nice coffee. We eventually went together to the train station. Tobias and Bernhard were the first to leave. I still had a bit of time until my train was leaving. I think I had another coffee, as a matter of a fact I most likely did [Editors note: ;-)]. And eventually got on my train, listening to “50 Words for Snow” on repeat for most of the long journey back to Denmark. I don’t remember if actually did snow on the way there, or if it did when I arrived. But somehow the snowfall that came when Markus and I were on the way to Switzerland, was still there with me, covering me like a comforting blanket. - ["The Room of Plenty is available at www.iapetus-store.com.]

[jettajimm]

Happy Birthday @MarkusReuter! 🎂🎈🎁🎊🎉 Have a rockin' one! 🎼🎵🎸🎤 #MarkusReuter #StickMen #Centrozoon

#Tuner #Halo #Tovah #TheLoft #TheCityWineryDC #RamsHeadOnstage #Lumix #GX7

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📸: Erin Conley

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A post shared by James JettaJimm Valle (@jettajimm)

[schnuron]

Centrozoon - Blast

Ambient time.

[sounds01014]

Circulaar 1

by centrozoon

[jazzworldquest-blog]

USA: MoonJune announces new release WINGFIELD REUTER SIRKIS Lighthouse CD / LP / HD Download

MoonJune announces new release

WINGFIELD REUTER SIRKIS

Lighthouse

CD / LP / HD Download

Dear friends in Music

​​​​​​​

MoonJune Records' new release Wingfield Reuter Sirkis "Lighthouse" which was recorded at the magic settings of the XI Century mansion La Casa Murada in Banyeres del Penedes, in the picturesque Catalan countryside - is officially out now! This is a quintessential MoonJune album! 

Explosive mix of impromptu progressive rock, improvisational jazz, space rock, experimental music. An excellent sounding release that surely will take listeners through an aural canyon from darkness into the light. - Wesley Derbyshire, Mediaversal

The work is a tour de force. The chemistry is inspiring. The skill with which the instruments are wielded is mind numbing. The final tune "Surge" brought me to the point of spontaneous applause and joyful laughter. Thank you gentlemen!  - Mike Shockley, BandCamp

CD • $15 +shipping

HD Instant Download • $10

2LP/180grams • $24.95 +shipping

This album can be fully streamed:

http://ift.tt/2gbKPSJ.http://ift.tt/2yjiOU024bit-88-2khz

CDs will be shipped this week, LP pre-orders to be shipped in the end of October.

LP vinyl release is made possible by Audio Anatomy, MoonJune's vinyl partner label.

Instant download in HD 24bit/88/2 kHz, in various formats: WAV, FLAC, MP3-320.

Note by John Kelman (All About Jazz)

It’s rare that an album emerges as something entirely new; so different that there aren't any genre or sub-genre categories into which it comfortably fits. Like its critically acclaimed, similarly forward-reaching and all-improvised sister The Stone House - released first but actually recorded second during a marathon six-day 2016 series of sessions that will ultimately yield more than the three albums initially planned - Lighthouse is an even more tumultuous, texture-driven and, perhaps, overtly daring ride than the undeniably audacious The Stone House. Lighthouse, featuring guitarist Mark Wingfield, touch guitarist Markus Reuter and drummer Asaf Sirkis, represents a true paradigm shift in what improvised music can be. This isn’t jazz, though its improvisational spontaneity suggests at least a tenuous link. It isn’t rock - or, more appropriately, progressive rock - though it certainly is, by definition, progressive in its futuristic stance. Nor is it free improv, despite its overall lack of planning. Instead, the bold and utterly fresh Lighthouse represents nothing less than a brand new methodology and a completely unheard-of way of doing things, its sense of progression and imagination miraculously drawn from the ether, with no clear precedent or preconception. Mark Wingfield's 2015 MoonJune album Proof of Light (also featuring Sirkis and The Stone House bassist, Yaron Stavi) was a career-definer and instrument gamer-changer for the American-born British guitarist, whose reach ranges from jazz to rock to classical music and beyond, and with a C.V. that features work with improvisers ranging from fellow-Brit Iain Ballamy and Indonesia's Dwiki Dharmawan to Norway's Thomas Strønen, as well as tenure in ResRocket, which includes collaboration of big names such as Peter Gabriel, Tricky, Todd Rundgren and Dave Stewart. The multidisciplinary Markus Reuter - musician, composer, record producer and instrument designer - has become, after early years garnering exposure as a solo artist and with groups including Centrozoon and Tuner, to more popular acclaim and high demand as a member of Stick Men (featuring King Crimson's Tony Levin and Pat Mastelotto) and The Crimson ProjeKct (Stick Men, joined together with Crimson alum Adrian Belew's Power Trio with Julie Slick and Tobias Ralph). Israeli expat Asaf Sirkis' expansive resume has, since relocating to U.K. where he's achieved attention for his own groups including The Inner Noise and guitar-based Asaf Sirkis Trio, built an expansive, still-growing resume that includes Tim Garland's Lighthouse Trio, fellow Israeli expat Gilad Atzmon and the Orient House Ensemble, Jacob Collier, Natasha Atlas, Nicolas Meier, Phil Robson, Dwiki Dharmawan and Glauco Vernier, amongst many others. Individually and, now, together as Wingfield Reuter Sirkis, these three imaginative musicians continue to expand the potential of their respective instruments … and, with the exhilarating Lighthouse, developed a new vernacular for 21st century improvisation.

WINGFIELD REUTER STAVI SIRKIS

The Stone House

Special offer until November 1, 2017

CD $10 + shipping • HD Instant Download $8

​​​​​​​"...the sonic tapestry of all four instruments serves to enhance The Stone House’s inevitable storytelling atmosphere.”  ***** (5 stars) DownBeat Magazine

“These four players, well-versed in transforming tangles of discursive strands into dazzling revelations, came together without any rehearsals or preamble, plugged in and took off. The resulting melange of rock-orientated grooves and languid drifts through spacey ambience is breathtakingly confident. With so much complimentary overlapping content and tuned-in acuity, you’d never guess that these six pieces were wholly improvised. Moving seamlessly from speculative reverie to ferocious, tumbling interplay, the degree to which this music sounds intricately arranged probably stems from the quartet’s ability to swap the focus from its frontline to backline in the twinkling of an eye, a rare capacity that brings to mind Wetton-era Crimson’s forays into the unknown. Wingfield’s impassioned guitar runs springboard from Reuter’s broad tonal sweeps. Bassist Yaron Stavi, whose nimble interlocking with drummer Asif Sirkis frequently regulates both direction and temperature." - Sid Smith, Prog Rock Magazine

“That the collective resume of this group of rising star musicians includes everything from more clearly definable jazz to something that can only be described as progressive music… means that The Stone House is a truly unique record in its undercurrents from a multiplicity of musical perspectives…It’s an album that breaks many rules, but could only be made by four musicians who not only learned them first, but continue to apply them even as they find ways to push past them into new terrain. Completely unclassifiable, The Stone House is a record that will challenge many preconceptions while still being rooted in enough of the approachable to render its appeal to fans of progressive music… a career-defining record for everyone involved.” - John Kelman, All About Jazz

via Blogger http://ift.tt/2yjiPr2

[panzertron]

Synapscape vs Centrozoon - "Bigger Space"

I'm not entirely sure how a powernoise band decides they're gonna remix synthpop, but it works.

[tobiasreber]

centrozoon - WWTY-Tour memories Pt.1: Adrian Benavides

[This is the first of two guest posts celebrating the release of the new centrozoon album "The Room of Plenty" by providing some context, stories and memories from where this music originated. Adrian Benavides, centrozoon friend and collaborator on various releases, is no stranger to long time readers of this blog. Used to much larger scale touring work, he travelled with us during much of the first leg of our little 2011 tour on which the album was recorded, and is now sharing some of his memories of the time. Pictures added by me. - Tobias] - Adrian at Theaterkapelle, Berlin

By a series of devastating events in my personal life intertwined with longstanding collaborations with centrozoon and related artists (the later of which, at the time, I held among the few motivating factors in moving forward at all), I found myself in the midst of a dreary German autumn in the small town of Gütersloh. In this small town I spent three months at Markus Reuter's old flat which had been Iapetus Media headquarters for several years with a considerable amount of help from Bernhard Wöstheinrich. To this point in the timeline of late 2011, I had become familiar with centrozoon back in 2009. While in mixing sessions in Austin with Markus on an unrelated album, he showed me some early rough ideas of a centrozoon album with the rough title of "the weird thing is that I get a boner from this". This record would receive a much shorter title over two years later and would eventually become the first incarnation of the band to feature Tobias Reber. Among a few odds and ends which were never released, I later mixed a much less publicized version of that record of the two which were released as well as the "Fire" sessions which where the first set of live compositions which the band performed as the centrozoon trio of Reuter, Wöstheinrich and Reber.

Boner (Adrian Benavides Version) by centrozoon

centrozoon "Boner (AB version)" Under Iapetus Media headquarters' slanted roof constructed with utilitarian windows cracked to fill the flat with the unmistakable crisp autumn chill of Germany, I had observed a small glimpse into Tobias' thorough and seemingly tireless work ethic in managing the small tour on which the band was about to embark in addition to compiling and refining the ideas the trio provided for the crowd funding campaign they later dubbed "Bonestarter". The group never lacked a sense of humor. I offered a few suggestions and words of encouragement here and there while they worked to set up the album release in conjunction with the small "We Will Tongue You" tour. My understanding was that the title came from one of the members' mispronunciation of the word "tongue". I hit the road with them in early November 2011 to offer some light roadie support for a series of performances in the home base of Gütersloh, the neighboring college town Bielefeld, Berlin and a radio appearance in Dortmund. As an added bonus, I got to observe these live performances. Markus had just hit his stride with Stick Men and The Crimson ProjeKct in months past and performed in these centrozoon live composition sessions as a musician often does from becoming something of a road dog. I had worked with Markus on several records in the couple of years prior and was as a result very familiar with his playing and performances. Bernhard had recently contributed some wonderfully textured synth performances to an album I was co-producing with Markus at the time for Specimen 13 which also featured some King Crimson members. I engineered these sessions with Bernhard so I was familiar with his brilliance firsthand going into these centrozoon shows. I had only just met Tobias in person on this trip to Germany and didn't have much of an understanding of what exactly he was bringing to the table though I knew it would be quite special. setup at Theaterkapelle, Berlin

Berlin was a great experience. I had spent a little time there earlier that year to hang with Alex Dowerk whom I had worked with as producer and mixer for his debut ZweiTon album. He made an appearance at the show and even made arrangements for us to spend the night at his flat after the gig. My recollection of the band's performance that night is a bit fuzzy for any real specific technical details though the general impression that stays with me is one of power, confidence and raw energy between the three members of the band as well as mutual surprise and an excitement fueled by uncertainty shared between these three performers and their intimately sized audience. The flow of the performance over the span of the evening felt not unlike a classical recital with its musicians poised and carefully executing even the most seemingly chaotic passages while audience members, perhaps in some sort of hypnotic anti-reaction, reciprocated with our own restraint in allowing these spontaneously conjured compositions to breathe without audible interruption between movements. A standing ovation deservedly erupted at the end of the performance. The following morning, we awoke in Alex's flat to coffee and traditional German pastries and rolls with a spread of charcuterie, soft and hard cheeses, butter and jam as suggested accompaniments. Breakfast with friends is always a treat but particularly so with such simple and efficient yet quietly delicious German food at the table. We said our goodbyes to Alex and met with Tobias Fischer, a journalist, at a local café for a very long interview he conducted with the band and myself. During segments of the interview which were spoken in German, I tried my best to pick up certain words or at least syllable patterns in an attempt to learn through osmosis. In about three years time, I've taken four trips to Germany cumulatively spanning a little less than half a year and I have yet to learn enough of the language to get me through a simple conversation! One of these days… Bernhard, Markus and Adrian at Die Weberei, Gütersloh

The guys dropped me back off in Gütersloh as they continued on their journey. I then picked back up with them for the gig there. The show went much like the one in Berlin which is to say very well indeed. on stage in Gütersloh

The following performance in Dortmund was a different experience since this was to be a radio broadcast live in the studio. The guys who seemed to be running the station were not dissimilar to typical American radio producers and personalities. They were a bit weird. Not in a bad way. Just in a passionate music nerd way. This is a comfortingly familiar shade of weird to me as I more closely identify with it myself of course. My mother was a radio personality for many years. One of my best friends used to cut commercial spots and run the board for several stations so I have spent a good amount of time around folks who work in radio beyond my professional engagements in such production. So regardless of the language barrier, I recognized the personalities involved here to a degree. There were Star Wars figures lining the windows in the DJ booth and I found this endearing. Eldoradio studio, Dortmund

I recall the performance from Dortmund feeling slightly less urgent mostly because of the lack of a proper concert setting. There the guys were crammed in this small booth with sterile bright halogen tube lamps suspended in the drop ceiling office grid encased in plastic diffusors. Not nearly as cinematic as an old theater or small club with a projector displaying visuals through the band and onto its towering screen in low light. However, the compositions were just as representative as any of the previous performances I had witnessed from what I can remember.

The Room of Plenty by centrozoon

centrozoon playing in Dortmund One other memory that sticks out to me from that evening is that one of the gentlemen from the radio station had a stack of centrozoon records that he asked the band to sign. For some reason he even wanted me to sign a copy of one of his centrozoon records. It wasn't even one that I had contributed to! I obliged regardless. A few days later, I attended the show in Bielefeld. I remember this performance being particularly outstanding. I felt the entire show to be gripping from start to finish. There was an incredible relentless energy that seemed to be flowing out of them that night. This was the largest venue with the nicest sound system that I had witnessed on this run so far. Perhaps these elements had an effect on their performance. It seemed like they were not only listening very carefully to each other and reacting with their own contributions but also executing musical passages more as a group at this point.

The Room of Plenty by centrozoon

centrozoon playing at Falkendom, Bielefeld That was the last of the centrozoon dates I saw on that tour. I went back to Gütersloh to continue work on other projects and stayed the rest of the year in what was a sort of sabbatical after a very traumatic time in my personal life. Markus invited me to spend Christmas and New Year's with his family. Those days remain fond memories for me at a time when I was near the end of a very long and painful journey and unknowingly near the start of a wonderful new life. centrozoon at Falkendom, Bielefeld

- ["The Room of Plenty" is available at www.iapetus-store.com.]

[tobiasreber]

new release: centrozoon - The Room of Plenty

On November 9th, centrozoon released a new album, "The Room of Plenty" as a digital download. Here's "Aarooma", one of our preview tracks:

The Room of Plenty by centrozoon

Tobias Fischer of tokafi.com (who recently also published a new interview with me) attended our debut performance at Theaterkapelle Berlin as part of the now discontinued monthly Sound Art Modules series organized by Leander Reininghaus. (text continues below)

The next day we, the band and collaborator Adrian Benavides met Tobias for coffee and a discussion. In the article and interview that resulted from this, Fischer writes about the debut performance: "Nothing is planned, yet everything sounds minutely choreographed. Not a note has been pre-prepared, yet they all slot together. Years have passed since the last centrozoon gig, and yet only a few minutes into the event, the band have got their audience spellbound. There is all but no applause in between pieces, which further adds to the impression of whitnessing a performance by a classical ensemble and of the formation playing carefully rehearsed material. [...] what really makes the performance stand out is the way the trio are sculpting the flow, direction and shape of their pieces, which display an impressive command of dynamics and all seem to be coming full-circle as precisely as a Bach'ean counterpoint." This is certainly what we aimed to focus on. We didn't rehearse for the tour. Our only pre-defined objective was to create focussed pieces rather than longers sets. The tour showed that there are settings that lend themselves more to that than others, and as the tour progressed and we became more relaxed on stage, we would sometimes abandon that aim altogether and venture into longer pieces. Without wanting to read too much into it, I find it telling that the excerpt from that first Berlin gig is very short. "Aarooma" on the other hand is a long excerpt from a much longer set played on live radio a week later. And here's "Plaan", another preview track, recorded in Gütersloh on the fourth date of the tour.

The Room of Plenty by centrozoon

Often we would of course just follow where the music led, but the presence or absence of a live audience really did play a big role in shaping the music. While "The Room of Plenty" was recorded in live situations and it conveys some of the the energy available during the tour, the music was recorded straight to disk - no different than during a regular centrozoon recording session. Beautifully mixed by Marziano Fontana and mastered by Markus Reuter, "The Room of Plenty" has received all the production care and love of details of a regular studio album, and listening back to it now, I find that committed to a recording medium, the live music has yet again become something else. Find the liner notes and purchase options for the album at http://iapetus-store.com/album/the-room-of-plenty. Also make sure to read this blog over the coming weeks for a few posts with more background info on the album and the WWTY tour as well as more centrozoon related material. [Update Nov 14: Adrian Benavides' guest post is now online here.]

[tobiasreber]

A Listener's Guide to centrozoon

Here's "A Listener's Guide to centrozoon" that artist Whitney Leary compiled. 

It's made up from tour photos and excerpts of the round table discussion that Bernhard Wöstheinrich, Erik Emil Eskildsen, Lee Fletcher and I recorded for DEGEM's web radio this summer. The background music is "Field 2" from our Lovefield album. You can listen to or download the full one hour discussion here.