CONSOLE – Herself
———————————————– Tracklisting: |
Howdy! Four years after the last Console release “Mono” it’s been time for some new vivid life signs of the famous Weilheim based collective. This time the new album titled “Herself” is a bit more of a solo attempt. Due to mastermind Martin Gretschmann’s always packed calendar it’s no surprise that first drafts of „Herself“ came to life on his laptop whilst on tour with The Notwist. The final recordings then took place in his studio together with singer Miriam Osterrieder and a bunch of electronic toys. Martin Gretschmann can be called – in best sense – a creative factotum: The Notwist’s electronic wizard since 1997, as well as member of the allstar combo 13&God (a collaboration of The Notwist and the Anticon HipHoppers of Themselves). Under his alter ego Acid Pauli he does not only perform extraordinary club sets but – thinking of tracks like „Billy The Killy“ and „I See A Darkness“ – he also brought some humour onto the minimal dancefloor. “Anything goes“ – a maxim sometimes also showing up in his never ending eagerness to experiment, e.g. playing electronic music live on stage via Wii controllers. Over the years Console – in coop with Andreas Ammer – has also discovered another interesting playground: the radio play. „Herself“ is not a born-and-bred ambient album, but bristles with bright pop appeal. Gretschmann, the alchemist, synthesizes beats, sounds and samples creating melodies and atmospheres which take unpretentiously possession. Miriam Osterrieders’ voice is much more present and smelts the sentiment between pop and ambient into just wonderful songs. Verses like „the code is clear / the child is safe / we leave the nerds / inside / their caves” may reveal a little about how prudent the album is. Just not kitsch, but its complete antithesis! Console have already caused quite a stir with their releases for different labels like the major Virgin as well as for seminal indies like Payola and Matador (e.g. the Singles “14 Zero Zero“ and “Freiburg V.3.0“, the records “Rocket In The Pocket”, “Reset The Preset”). They did a live album (“Live At Centre Pompidou“), several radio plays as well as collaborations with Björk, Tocotronic and Depeche Mode. After „Mono“ (2006) and the re-release of the debut „Pan-or-ama“ the new album „Herself“ is another step in Console’s band history on Disko B. |
