Roedelius/Schneider:
Tiden:
Bureau B:
Out 24th June:
7/10
Two creative minds come to an inventive head on this sophomore selection, the follow-up to 2011's Stunden. Taking inspiration from each others' deep chasm of experience and composition wizardry, Cluster's Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Kreidler's Stefan Schneider have, once again, assembled a mixture of atmospheric Eno-esque hyperbole, by incorporating motifs from their own catalogues with nods to Plone, Frahm and Schubert, turning it all into a pleasing drift through thirteen piano-electronica jams, without either musician ever breaking sweat.
The opener Umstunden slowly builds around cyclical interplay between treated piano and the gradual introduction of 'effects', while Indie Woogie thankfully continues this trend rather than attempting to blend Beady Eye with Jools Holland - sometimes a title can evoke the very worst in my imagination. Frankly almost passes for upbeat - mildly insistent synth-patter with minimal beats - and Toast pulsates like something Isan or, indeed, Cluster might espouse with a downwind.
Despite the age differential, Roedelius and Schneider make perfect studio playmates, engaging in simple unhurried art that is both rich in texture and ripe with subtlety. A few pieces meander like eddying craft without an anchor, but the overall impression left by Tiden is elegiac enough to warrant repeat plays.
Tiden:
Bureau B:
Out 24th June:
7/10
The opener Umstunden slowly builds around cyclical interplay between treated piano and the gradual introduction of 'effects', while Indie Woogie thankfully continues this trend rather than attempting to blend Beady Eye with Jools Holland - sometimes a title can evoke the very worst in my imagination. Frankly almost passes for upbeat - mildly insistent synth-patter with minimal beats - and Toast pulsates like something Isan or, indeed, Cluster might espouse with a downwind.
Despite the age differential, Roedelius and Schneider make perfect studio playmates, engaging in simple unhurried art that is both rich in texture and ripe with subtlety. A few pieces meander like eddying craft without an anchor, but the overall impression left by Tiden is elegiac enough to warrant repeat plays.