I had promised a Christian Morgenstern post ages ago. You've waited for long, so it's gonna be a big one. A large bio can be found in his discogs page, so check there first.
I first encountered him in Kanzleramt (*) compilations and for years mistook him for a typical techno artist; then it came that I listened to Forte and realized there was more, so much more to like. I won't try to describe his style, as it shifts from record to record. The only thing certain is that as time passed, as he gathered experience through his (numerous) releases, his music became more and more personal, more than an amalgam of his various influences - attempting a crossover sound with electro and techno elements and pop sense, keeping his attitude and aesthetics underground and uncompromising.
All albums posted here were found through the net at some time or another. They're generally low bitrate, yet who cares... I consider 'Hawaii Blue' to be his masterpiece, but you knew anyway I'm a sucker for retro electro. Although the tracks I have (and have posted here) sound weirdly like a bad cut-up; don't know if it's bad ripping or the CD is like put together that. His last one 'Carolea' was left unfinished and released post mortem. He had also compiled his Kanzleramt records in two CDs. The only album missing here is 'Re:Death Before Disco' of which I have only half of it, I hope I'll up it at some time later on.
Rest in peace, man. You did more than well.
P.S. Mario was kind enough to send us a link for missing CD 'Re:Death Before Disco'. I added it below. Thanx, man.
Original post 2010-11-15
Christian Morgenstern - 2000
The Future Is On Fire. The Kanzleramt Years
Info here.
Christian Morgenstern - 2001
The Future Is On Fire Pt.2 More Kanzleramt Years
Info here.
Christian Morgenstern - 1999 Death Before Disko
Info here.
.
Christian Morgenstern - 2000 Re.Death Before Disko
Info here.
Christian Morgenstern - 2000 The Lydia EP
Info here.
Christian Morgenstern - 2001 Hawaii Blue
Info here.
Christian Morgenstern - 2003 Carolea
Info here.
Morgernstern
Adventures In Techno Soul
From Russ Gabriel's label, here are the two compilations that along with the '[313] Soundtrack' should be enough to establish Ferox in our minds as a forward thinking label to respect and cherish. With tracks and remixes by the likes of Carl Craig, Derrick Carter, Bjørn Torske, Aubrey, Mark Broom, etc., etc., these are a must for all lovers of the '90s sound, be it techno, house or whatever.
The first one is in 192kbps, found around the net; the 2nd one is a typical 320kbps CD rip.
VA - 1996 Adventures In Techno Soul
Info here.
VA - 1998 Further Adventures In Techno Soul
Info here.
P.S. New 'Further' link added. I think it's OK this time; although I noticed that ripping took some extra time, so it's probably a typical damaged CD case. First posted 2010-10-24.
The Vault
He used to call himself Prince of Techno.
Well, I don't know about that. But the first time I heard 'When We Used To Play' I almost cried. I like his DJ style, hard and fast yet accessible and definitely sexy for the ladies. He played his part in the whole Detroit-Berlin thing, with his Tresor collaboration - I think he was the first one to go there to live and work and DJ. And his vocal contributions, his trademark and an example to many (the recent ones no less) are always interesting, either mood-fueled stoned whispers and deepnight mumblings, or mating calls and aggressive declarations. As a musician he's not the greatest you've listened to, but his tracks' power drive and his expressive persona are reasons enough to get you moving.
This is a Disko Bomb.
It's a house record; with its raw, percussive tracks spiced with disco samples and vocal snippets, the whole album points directly to Chicago. Still, he's an artist from Detroit releasing in a label from Munich, so things get complicated - he's quirky, rough and all-out house at the same time. Speed these tracks up and they fit in any techno set, can even be used as tools and blended together with little effort. House for bangers, fit for DJ Hell's sets. The 'techno' label underneath is there just to give you a hint of this.
When I first heard it, I honestly didn't like it much. As time passes, while its age is showing, I feel I get it better now in a way. It's not rare, but I don't remember to have seen it anywhere, especially around the share net.
Blake Baxter - 1995 The Vault
Info here.
P.S. I was informed that the rip had accidentally been a 128kbps one, so I re-uploaded it in 320. First posted 2009-06-18.
P.S.#2 Link updated
Internal Empire
Everybody's talking about the 'Minimal Nation' album as the tour de force of the '90s minimal wave of Detroit techno; in which I partially agree, since it's definitely a landmark, a real classic. For me though the absolute masterpiece of that era was this one; the ultimate, mature definition of the minimal sound from the Man himself, out through Tresor. Only for 'Minus' and 'Home', it should be immortalized in techno's Top Ten list; yet it's out of print at the time...
And I thought, what the hell... Until it's repressed (hopefully by M.Plant), here it is.
Robert Hood - 1994 Internal Empire
Info here.
Ripped from the Tresor 77 repress (there are no differences, as far as I know).
P.S. Link removed due to the 2010 Tresor repress. Glad it's back on the shelves. Please go buy it. Original post 2010-03-28
Blue - Red - Yellow
This is the famous trilogy that made Stefan Betke aka Pole known to music fans everywhere, released on Kiff SM label (a '90s sub of PIAS Germany that mostly published Kreidler, B.Friedmann and of course Pole).
Back then, Betke had a good name as a mastering engineer (and I can assure you, he cares a lot for his sound as I found out later in a concert) and a malfunctioning filter, a combination which gave him a distinctive sound, perfectly in the middle between the then rising clicks 'n' cuts movement and the Basic Channel/Chain Reaction type dub. I remember that comparisons with Maurizio made him nervous and he tried to distinguish himself from that posse from early on. The truth is that back then there just weren't many others playing some combination of dub and electronics or techno. Anyway, I believe his work lies closer to Jan Jelinek or Friedmann (whose works he released in ~scape a lot) or Vladislav Delay (who also built his sound on a cracked echo or something).
The Blue one came as a shock to the world with his new bold cracking and hissing proposal, covering a wide spectrum of tastes, satisfying critics, academics and dope-heads alike. Either seen as an experiment or as an urban chillout album, it still sounds really well and should be considered as a milestone in experimental minimal techno and dub music. The Red one, the shorter in duration, kept in the same track, although the previously understated melodies became (occasionally) more obvious and spiced his sound up; yet the minimalist vein was still running strong. The Yellow one might as well be considered his 'pop album' of the three, in the sense that the intricate bass lines form complex and groovy rhythms while sweet melodies jump out of the cracking sounds in a practically accessible way. Almost a 'song' album, it emphasizes the dubby elements and is danceable at parts. A great record to listen when walking or in a train through the city. Overall, if you haven't heard anything of Pole, start at the Yellow one but don't miss the other two.
After these and few 12''s, Betke started his own very well known ~scape imprint, and the rest is history as they say. His sound changed a little bit, but still he sounds great and he's been supportive for a lot of old friends and new talents alike through ~scape. Respect.
Pole - 1998 CD1
info.
Pole - 1999 CD2
info.
Pole - 2000 CD3
Part 1 - Part 2
info.
Some more info here.
If you can find the vinyls of these three (or his early ~scape releases), try switching rotation speeds at the turntable. They still sound good!
P.S. Original post 2007-11-15. Added new link for CD1.
I Don't Like Music
A tribute to Telex, the late '70s futuristic electro disco pop band from Belgium, from the likes of Carl Craig, Matthew Herbert, I:Cube, Ian O'Brien, Glenn Underground, Antony 'Shake' Shakir, etc. More or less a housey affair, contains some interesting covers and a few gems.
Telex - 1998 I Don't Like Music
Info here.
Thanks to Musicus, here's Vol.2 as well:Don'tLikeMusic.RemixesVol.2.jpeg)
Telex - 1999 I (Still) Don't Like Music. Remixes Vol.2
Info here.
Thanx man.
P.S. First post 2010-04-21
Detroit Audio (and more)
Although I've stopped downloading DJ mixes and live sets from everybody I knew (it became an addiction at a time), some names are still hard to resist to.
A lot of sites/ blogs are devoted to posting live sets; I'm not actually going that way. I just want to propose a couple of 'official' sites of Detroit and like labels with interesting sets or videos that may easily get overlooked while searching the 'illegal' sharenet.
So:
Detroit Techno Militia. Huge mix data bank here.
Kenny Larkin's Art Of Dance. Few mixes here.
Technoir Audio. Listen here, down here.
11th Hour. Here.
Bvdub mixes. Here. Press on third icon.
Bootleg DJ Cafe. DJ sets here.
Open Mind Recordings. Here.
EevoNext. Yes, the old Eevolute. Here.
Soma Records. Some videos.
Dave Angel. Mixes & videos here.
D1 Recordings & DEAFestival. Archive.
Modern Music. Tons of oldschool mixes from the States here.
The Black Dog. You know who they are. Mixes here.
NEW:
Vuistdikkeramlat. Blog of great mixes. Here.
This list will be updated sporadically (when I find new stuff, you know) and reposted.
(first post: 10th of April 2008)
Punished By Machines
What a title! Oldschoolish yet fresh and throat-grabbing electro released on Mikrolux, the electro oriented sublabel of Elektrolux.
MAS 2008, also known as the Electronic Corporation nowdays publish almost exclusively on their adorable label of the same name. To my ears they sound really close in attitude and style with the likes of Bolz Bolz, Kitbuilders, the C.B.S. guys or Das Drehmoment. Or with the respected Twilight 76 label, where they've released two 12''s, or others that represent the darker side of Detroit bass (without the booty factor, though). Similar to the really strong Central and Eastern Europe underground electro communities' sound, the E.C. boys combine pure electrofunk 808-style elements and the european '80s underground minimal synth sound (that had influenced the Detroit pioneers in the first place), with a light touch of circa 1989 EBM elements and the occasional trancey sweeps.
This CD represents their glossier side, production-wise (it's for Elektrolux, after all). Still, it's neat without becoming sterile and all songs come out really well. It's an album that I kept playing for some time when I bought it and from time to time I go back to it. Found it after some digging, so here it is.
MAS 2008 - 2002 Punished By Machines
Info here.
P.S.1. Check the EC compilation CD here.
P.S.2. Repost. First posted 2007-10-22.
Sensorama
We knew them as Acid Jesus, now as Alter Ego. Jörn Elling Wuttke and Roman Flügel need no introduction, so I won't bother. Sensorama is the name they used for their Ladomat 2000 (*) releases.
Sensorama - 1995 Welcome Insel
Info here.
Sensorama - 1996 Zu Gast Auf Der Welcome Insel
Info here.
Sensorama - 1998 Love 2LP
Info here.
Sensorama - 2000 Projektor
Info here.
Someone had asked for one of these in the comment box. I meant to post it properly, then went for the big one. 'Su Gast..' is a remix compilation on the 'Insel" album.
All rips are 192kbps, none mine - thanx to the original uppers.
P.S. Originally posted 2009-12-04. Modified thanks to Jens, who sent a link for 'Projektor' (320kbps) that helped us fill this hole. Thanx again man.
Secondhand Sounds
Compilation of remixes by Herbert - a simple guide to some of his legendary experimentations in pop, swing, house, jazz and clicks 'n' cuts.
I cannot recommend it strong enough.
Herbert - 2002 Secondhand Sounds. The Remixes.
CD1 - CD2
Info here.
Another Peacefrog record, by the way.
P.S. New rip.
Anyway, you'll find all his albums as streams at his site...
