Music from Germany

With DronosWalze / Dron, Conrad Schnitzler revisits and redefines the drone form, crafting a dual album that foregrounds his singular approach to electronic minimalism. These expansive pieces radiate immersion and mechanical elegance - each a testament to Schnitzler’s restless exploration and uncompromising sonic vision.

Control captures Conrad Schnitzler at a pivotal moment in his solo career, with recordings made between 1979-1981 at his home studio in Berlin. Following his departure from Kluster and his brief tenure with Tangerine Dream, Schnitzler had fully committed to his vision of electronic music as pure sonic exploration. Where Convex explored minimalist repetition and icy atmospheres, Control reveals a different facet of Schnitzler's artistry. The album showcases intriguing electronic patterns, tape ma…

Conrad Schnitzler was a prolific German experimental musician and co-founder of West Berlin's Zodiak Free Arts Lab, an early member of Tangerine Dream and founder of the band Kluster. After leaving Kluster in 1971, Schnitzler embarked on an extensive solo career, pushing the boundaries of experimental electronic music. Originally released as a private pressing in 1982, Convex stands as one of Schnitzler's most compelling and underrated works. A minimalist album composed of shrill loops and disso…

A rare offset print by the radical German composer and visual artist. Published by Edition Block in an edition of 60, signed and numbered, 50 x 100 cm. Dieter Schnebel (*1930 Lahr – †2018 Berlin) was among the most uncompromising figures in post-war experimental music, exploring the boundaries between sound, silence, notation, and performance. A student of theology and musicology, Schnebel brought rigorous intellectual inquiry to his compositions, which often investigated the physical gestures o…

The second chapter in Schnitzler's color trilogy of pure electronic minimalism. Released in 1981 on Edition Block, Gelb continues the radical sonic experiments begun with Grün, stripping electronic music to its most stark and uncompromising essence. The original Edition Block pressing is exceptionally rare and highly sought after by collectors of minimal electronics, early industrial sound, and the German underground. "The chronology of Schnitzler's solo releases in the 1970s -- and even more so…

Electronic minimalism at its most hypnotic and uncompromising. Released in 1981 on Edition Block, this is pure Schnitzler—no concessions, no commerciality, just the sonic vision of one of Germany's most radical electronic pioneers. Former Tangerine Dream and Kluster member Schnitzler strips away all excess, constructing strange, pulsating soundworlds from primitive synthesizers and tape manipulation. Grün unfolds like a series of sonic experiments, each track a self-contained universe of repetit…

2014 release ** "Composed in 1970, Mantra, for two pianos and ring modulation, was one of the decisive turning points in Karlheinz Stockhausen’s career. The 70-minute piece not only signalled a break with the text-based intuitive works, relying heavily on improvisation, that had come to dominate his output towards the end of the previous decade and a return to fully notated scores, but also introduced the idea of melodic formulae, the “mantra” of the title, which Stockhausen would eventually dev…

*300 copies limited edition* The musical material on „Lichthöfe“ is based on modular recordings by Thorsten Soltau. Conceptually these recordings deal with the spaciality of sound and the stereo field, while still maintaining an improvisational character. Asmus Tietchens has treated the material to intensive deformations, ranging from reductionist clusters to brittle textures. In each treatment a fragment of the original material remains audible.

2007 release ** Cardboard sleeve. Probably one of the frenziest & craziest Sudden Infant' recordings. Recorded live at the Gluerooms, London, on may the 20th, 2004, stands for me as one of joke lanz most intense and unique sudden infant recordings I came across to this day besides his already classic ones! sharing this disc w-his recent "partner in crime' Bill Kouligas (those who caught up w-the recent dec 06, uk tour know what am talking about), also member of the bizarre greek duo of family ba…

Knockout! Thrillingly arid, exploratory rhythm trips on a way more austere, isolationist tip than anything we’ve heard from Trjj/Trii/Trj/Tri previously. Sounds like Liima re-scoring Dead Man or some shit! The music was made for a student film that was in development for four years before being aborted when the directors realised they lacked either the chops or the budget or both to realise their vision. There were three substantially different scripts, but the basic setting stayed the same: “a …

Thumbing through the back pages of German electronic music, Bureau B uncovers another hidden gem from the Sky Records archive: 'Inventions', the 1983 collaboration between Adelbert von Deyen and Dieter Schütz. Fusing expansive kosmische textures with biting rock guitars, motorik rhythms, and the growl of '80s synth-pop, the duo conjure a sonic singularity which still sounds like the future today. Compact yet cosmic, 'Inventions' distils ambient drift and experimental edge into taut, three-minute…

Asmus Tietchens is a sound artist and composer from Hamburg, Germany. He got interested in Musique Concrete by listening to a German radio programme when he was 10 years old. In 1965, at the age of 18, Asmus started experimenting with tape loops and turned them into musical collages. Soon, the use of synthesizers was added. In 1980 his debut album Nachtstücke was released, produced by Peter Baumann of Tangerine Dream. This was soon followed by a series of albums of electronic pop music for the S…

Frode Gjerstad, Alexander von Schlippenbach, and Dag Magnus Narvesen's first trio recording is powerful convergence of avant-garde improvisation and deep jazz sensibilities. Gjerstad’s fearless saxophone work, Schlippenbach’s adventurous piano explorations and Narvesen’s dynamic drumming create spontaneous compositions that betray a deep mutual respect.

1975 was the year in which Kraftwerk's live shows took off and you can hear that on this record. Kraftwerk developed a progressive robot pop style by mixing electronic sounds and hypnotic rhythms with pop melodies. Kraftwerk was the birthplace of electronic music and is still an example for great artists. This registration includes the world hit Autobahn.

Wolfgang Voigt makes a return to Astral Industries, seeing the continuation of his long-running Rückverzauberung (Reverse Enchantment) series. In line with previous volumes, one may expect the unconventional, idiosyncratic sound Voigt is reputed for. ‘Im Tunnel’ however, takes a more concentrated viewpoint - a metaphysical transmutation that brings with it an experience of mind-melting drones and swelling intensity.  Entering the tunnel is like opening a portal, but as the fabric of time-space b…

2015 release ** "Given their separate history as masters of droning atmospherics, and their mutual admiration for each others work, a collaboration seemed only natural. Now, after years of discussion, Mnemonic Induction has finally materialized, resulting (not surprisingly) in one of the greatest, most mind bending works of dark ambient ever. A 60 plus minute exploration through nebulous, grey areas of the mind-expansive drones and spiraling vortex of sound that hover near the shadowy, distorted…

2012 release ** "Complex and expressive vocal writing, blending elements of traditional choral music with more modern, experimental techniques. Wolfgang Rihm has not usurped the immense reputation he enjoys in contemporary artistic life. The works of this worthy heir to the German musical tradition invariably oscillate between monumentality – immutable blocks of sound – and ethereal movement – instrumental or vocal lines opening towards the infinite. His choral music is characterised by a syncre…

A Year In Minutes is an artistic diary / audio calendar that contains a sound recording, a geographical location, and a photograph, artwork, or essay for each day of the year. Meant as a psychogeography—the study of the influence of geographical environment on the mind or behaviour, Aidan Baker invites you to reflect with him on the year 2024. Berlin-based Canadian multidisciplinary artist Aidan Baker (a.k.a. Nadja, Hypnodrone Ensemble, Tavare, etc.) presents a new monumental work in the form of…

Rare 1967 original first album on ESP by German vibraphonist featuring Carlos Ward, Henry Grimes and Ed Blackwell. One of the most obscure ESP albums, never re-issued on either CD or LP.

Rare first and only CD re-issue of the essential early manifesto of European improvisation, featuring Brötzmann, Han Bennink, Derek Bailey, Evan Parker, Fred Van Hove, Buschi Niebergall.