So, which are his best works?
I find the releases I have very up and down, today I listened to the one-sided LP on Multimood from mid-80's "Zwingburgen des hedonismus" and it was as I remembered one of the worst imaginable. One long track of synthesizer patterns, random (synth-) piano streaks, synth choirs. No real evolution and pretty much sums up my ideas of total nonsense pretentious academic experimental music. Thinking someone actually enjoys this for the "modern" classical patterns makes me want to vomit. The "Eisgang" LP from 1995 and "Linia" cassette (both on Korm Plastics) also struck me as very uninspired and tiring.
However - there are other works, like "Die nacht aus blei" CD on Walter Ulbricht which is really good. Darker and more focussed on evolving structures and maybe more "traditional ambient" soundwaves. "Stockholmer totentanz" CD on Artware is also similar in that style.
something like this order:
Notturno (if you like dark piano music, as I do)
Formen Letzter Hausmusik
Raum 318
Seuchengebiete
Das Fest Ist Zu Ende (I hope this is the correct one, the one that is a collage collection as one track)
I'd go into loose descriptions, but I find that I either strongly dislike his albums or truly enjoy them. Very good or complete boredom. I'm not sure I've ever had a tepid response to one of his albums.
Hey LoveR, not that I'm much of a Tietchens fan, but I picked up a few releases that I ran into over the years. Here's a short rundown of what I have...
Spät-Europa and In die Nacht, both from his early 80's stint with Sky Records. Features sort of goofy, whimsical synthesizer pop with state of the art electronics, vocoders, and rhythm boxes. Next to one of the track titles on the cover of my Spät-Europa LP, a previous owner has scribbled "Ralf Lundsten" which should give you an indication of the merits of the music. However, at it's best moments, I think some of the material resembles the Residents. Spät-Europa also embraces a sort of punk aesthetic, in that all tracks clock in at around two minutes. On In die Nacht Tietchens lets the tracks evolve more, which they certainly benefit from. But apart from their status as historical artifacts, these records don't have much for them anymore. I believe even Der Man himself frowns upon the Sky years today.
Abfleischung -- the coolest thing with this record is the subtitle, "Festmusik zum 3. Symposium der Aktionsgemeinschaft Pädophagie als postnatale Geburtenkontrolle". Sounds like the name of an Einleitungszeit album, right? This is a pretty scattershot affair that displays loads of different styles that Tietchens have explored. From very abstract musique concrete pieces to more droning, industrial soundscapes. Some is OK, some is darn near unlistenable, to my ears at least.
Marches Funebres -- I have the CD reissue which also tacks on the Zwingburgen... piece. I agree, it is quite horrible. But the two other tracks, the A and B sides of the original LP respectively, are probably the best I've heard of any Tietchens. This could also be filed under "dark piano music" of a kind of cyclical nature... repeating patterns and such. Parts have a very orchestral feel, even with some neofolk elements... snare and pounding tom-toms.
Sinkende Schwimmer -- I remembered this as quite good, but renewed listening stifled my previous enthusiasm. Most of it is very difficult to digest, very abstract, academic, austere sounding experimentations. There are some tracks that rely more on reverb and other effects that have a Cranioclast feel to them, which saves this album for me. Thomas Köner supplied the sources for some of this material, btw.
7 Stücke -- a collaboration with Jon Mueller, some American improv drummer I've been told. Here we have collages of concrete sounds, I believe Mueller's percussion that have been processed by Tietchens. The result reminds of some Kapotte Muziek. A quite decent effort, for those into that style.
Then I've listened to some of Asmus' more recent "menge" albums, that positions him in a more contemporary glitch/clicks'n'cuts context. I don't like it at all, but perhaps it's just an honorable effort to push him into the arms of a new audience.
I would say that Seuchengebiete is the best Tietchens I have heard, but then again there are tons of his releases that I haven't heard. Need to pick up the CD reissue since I sold the LP.
I must say, the Best Work is always on Stage and not on CD/LP/MC
That doesn't apply to my experiences - when he toured Europe a few years back and stopped by at Fylkingen here in Stockholm his performance was god damn awful - but then again I don't particularly enjoy his later computer based works. Reminds me of Mikkos question somewhere about "known" artists does not equal selling a lot of records and I hereby relate that also to concerts - even though Tietchens is nowhere near Merzbow in terms of fame in the experimental music scene I was amazed not to see more than, say, 20 people in the audience that night. Undoubtedly, he doesn't really have a fan base here in Sweden...
Oh yeah, the show where he performed playing a DAT with an overlong composition of R2D2-stuck-in-a-submarine sounds. That was a real yawn-fest...
Quote from: bogskaggmannen on September 25, 2010, 12:30:21 PM
That doesn't apply to my experiences - when he toured Europe a few years back and stopped by at Fylkingen here in Stockholm his performance was god damn awful - but then again I don't particularly enjoy his later computer based works.
I agree that it wasn't particularly interesting. But when talking about Tietchens in the context of his performances, one should keep in mind that it is not a regular "concert" - he himself calls them "presentations". In other words, it's just playback... a mix of DAT and CD recordings. Thus, if you don't like his records, nor will you like his performances.
Then just a minor correction; it wasn't a European tour, it was a matter of two Swedish dates, Malmö and Stockholm. In Stockholm I'm pretty sure that most of the tiny crowd came to see Henrik Rylander supporting.
He tries to create Soundscapes. I think you should remind that he is no Power Eletronics Performance Act, who will just Provocate.
Its really harder to make such than crying in the micro all the time ;)
Don't want to make this into a "aha, that kind of thread...", but I think I have a fair good idea of what Tietchens is doing - after all I have around 10-15 of his works and I really prefer "soundscapes" to "power electronics".
Not doing anything on stage is ok with me as long as the music is interesting but that was not the case here.
Hmm, not doing anything on stage, maybe you have seen really shitty live concerts. But there is not really much, he can do on Stage while playing...
speaking of, anyone picked up the new werkbund lp?
Quote from: jc on September 30, 2010, 12:29:22 AM
speaking of, anyone picked up the new werkbund lp?
Are you implying that Tietchens is Werkbund? :-) Now you're opening a can of worms...
formen letzer hausmusik is really outstanding, you couldn't do much better. dark, abstract, noisy..
as for his abilities live - if i recall, the only performance of his i've ever seen began and ended in the lobby. i was denied entry as i had the audacity to walk in a few minutes late. obviously entering the room after the correct time would ruin the music for everyone. and apparently this strict lockout policy is de rigueur for teichens' performances. sound artists eh?
Quote from: post-morten on September 25, 2010, 03:29:45 PM
Quote from: bogskaggmannen on September 25, 2010, 12:30:21 PM
That doesn't apply to my experiences - when he toured Europe a few years back and stopped by at Fylkingen here in Stockholm his performance was god damn awful - but then again I don't particularly enjoy his later computer based works.
Then just a minor correction; it wasn't a European tour, it was a matter of two Swedish dates, Malmö and Stockholm. In Stockholm I'm pretty sure that most of the tiny crowd came to see Henrik Rylander supporting.
Yes i was there as well, for mr. T (don´t even know who Henrik Rylander is... some "dark ambient" star? probably the music genre i find the least appealing of all...) and indeed it was a utter bore. An old tired man sitting behind a laptop that made a standard sounding drone, a few times interrupted by computer crackle... come on.
I´ve had some of his stuff on tape, like the United Diaries stuff, and it´s good enough, but must say i lost all interest after that concert...
Quote from: magnus on February 24, 2011, 09:06:46 AM
don´t even know who Henrik Rylander is... some "dark ambient" star? probably the music genre i find the least appealing of all...
Wrong, but I think you know who he is, Magnus. He used to be the drummer in Union Carbide Productions back in the 80s/90s, and is the drummer in Skull Defekts these days. On his own he's been entertaining a solo career over the last decade, doing noisy electronics with tone generators, shortwave transmitters and similar gadgets, quite similar to Pan Sonic sometimes.
Ah, ok thanks, i actually did recognize the name but couldn´t place it... (there is a swedish dark ambient guy namned Henrik though, isn´t it? sorry for so clearly showing my ignorence, he) Can´t remember a thing about his gig though, from your description it sounds like it could have been pretty good. Maybe i made the mistake of only catching Tietchens...
By the way, i´m a bit too young to really have been a Union Carbide fan, so maybe i can be excused.
I got bunch of Tietchens works. But it's quite rarely they end up to turntable or CD player.
Now happened to buy 2nd hand copy of Asmus Tietchens & Terry Burrows - Burning The Watching Bride LP.
Belongs to series of 4 LP's, which were recorded & released late 80's. This vinyl came out about decade later. Can't compare with the other parts so much, but find myself enjoying this quite a lot. The little I previewed of former part titled "Watching The Burning Bride" at youtube, that one appears much more musical, more cut up and perhaps in some ways little more "dated" than this one. Not to mention that songs in former appear to be very short, while this new one Asmus has side long track and Terry also has few tracks where he keep things going further than mere 2 minutes per piece.
Each side has one artist working with other artists source sounds. Result works out on both sides very well. Lots of calm and relaxing moments, but always active in sculpturing sound to new directions. Available pretty cheaply.
Some samples of the older collaboration is here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLlLOnWY5aM
My personal favorite Tietchens is every release originally released by Discos Esplendor Geometrico. Geboren, Um Zu Dienen is probably one of his most industrial with very mechanical rhythms. Notturno is more restrained but even more sinister, the most darkest album I ever heard him do. Stupor Mundi is my favorite though, I like to think it's a combination of all of his periods at once. They kind of have a repetive structure like Esplendor Geometrico, but instead of a full pounding there is hums and glitches from his fairlight that are coldly reverberated.
I also like his ambient 90s stuff like Eisgang and Dammerattacke, favorites to go to sleep with. And as mentioned, Seuchengebiete series is great.
I'm not familiar with all of his releases, but generally speaking i'm not so into his computer/electronic rhythmic material.
My favourite would be 'Raum 318' and his tracks on the Journey into Pain compilation tape.
If anyone can point me to more releases sounding like these, please do.
This material I mentioned in previous message, is of course (due era of material) without computers and also not overtly rhythmic. If it was sold as sort of "ritualistic rough ambient", I wouldn't be objecting that much.
Should re-visit Tietchens VOD box soon. Very vague recollections of it. Basically only that I own it, but barely anything about music itself. Being very early recordings, I'd assume good material.
Quote from: FreakAnimalFinland on March 28, 2015, 08:22:14 PM
Should re-visit Tietchens VOD box soon. Very vague recollections of it. Basically only that I own it, but barely anything about music itself. Being very early recordings, I'd assume good material.
This box is very good. I have the vinyl version. I guess this is one of the best in Tietchens' music.
"Biotop" & "Litia".
Quote from: ImpulsyStetoskopu on March 28, 2015, 08:27:48 PM
Quote from: FreakAnimalFinland on March 28, 2015, 08:22:14 PM
Should re-visit Tietchens VOD box soon. Very vague recollections of it. Basically only that I own it, but barely anything about music itself. Being very early recordings, I'd assume good material.
This box is very good. I have the vinyl version. I guess this is one of the best in Tietchens' music.
CD version coming *with bonus CD
I bought two of the "Menge" CDs ten years ago and, listening to them every couple of years, thought they were OK but not really my cup of tea. Then a few months ago they just clicked. Since then I've heard most of these works and while by no means is every track on them equally good, there are a number of very good ones and overall I've come to really like the sense of space that these usually sparse albums evoke. It may just be a couple, often digital-sounding sounds in the foreground and some others in the background (although a lot of the tracks are fairly dense), but when it works well, it's quite beautiful music in an odd way. I think the best album I know in the "Menge" series is ε-Menge.
Overall, I also think Tietchens is hit and miss. Seuchengebiete is a solid if somewhat standard experimental album. YAK (with Y-Ton-G and Kouhei Matsunaga) is pretty good (sort of modern musique concrete). I love the Marches Funebres CD (I have the version released by Multimood), even the first track: it's kitsch for sure, but still great. Sinkende Schwimmer, on the other hand, is disappointing. Grav (with Merzbow and PGR) is awesome. Formen Letzter Hausmusik has some good moments, but overall it leaves me cold.
His duo Kontakt Der Jünglinge with Thomas Köner is fantastic though - top-notch sound art that sometimes has quite a dark atmosphere. I've got 3 CDs and am getting everything else too.
One of the Menge cd's i have is nice.. Have to check out more of his earlier works. I have the same live-experience as some of the above. He was sitting on a chair just playing cd's haha..
Musik Unter Tage
In Die Nacht
I heard these at a radio station, and I thought they were great. They're more evocative of soundtracks than the "coldness" that he's known for. I can't bring myself to spend $40 on something with such lazy (academic) cover art, but I did enjoy the sounds.
I can't help but mention the "Ptomaine" 3LP, as it is nothing but short tracks that lead into locked grooves. As a listener, it requires work to listen to the whole thing, but as something of a locked groove fanatic, I enjoy it. I do have to say that there aren't too many loops that blow my mind on it though.
I think a lot of people have intellectual conceits about their noise being "unemotional", but then prefer to listen to "aggressive" this and "brutal" that. I do appreciate a guy that makes genuinely cold, mathematical work and tries to take away the human element. This doesn't mean that all of it is good, but when it is good, there's an absolutely otherworldly element to it, beyond that of nostalgia or sentiment.
Been giving Tietchens a lot of attention recently. I think this thread has mostly covered all the essentials- Seuchengebiete was mentioned a few times and is my pick, together with Sechengebeite 2 and 3, possibly the darkest and droningest of all his efforts (though perhaps Tietchens himself would reject such descriptors).Sechengebeite 2 (1992) could be the preeminent though it's hard to choose favorites. Just get them all. To complete the picture you'd also need to grab the "Hydrophonie" appearing on the 1992 split-collab with Vidna Obmana and the Formen Letzter Hausmusik collection from 1984. There may be a couple comp tracks too. There was word some years back of more "Hydrophonie" coming out, but I don't know what came of that.
I do seem to gravitate toward the more droning efforts, which may be an attempt to escape the colder sensations the more open-ended/experimental compositions often leave in me. Another source of escape, perhaps even for Tietchens himself, is the collabs. The mentioned split-collab with Vidna Obmana is a good example, as is their '99 collab Motives For Recycling. The Shifts Recycling (2002) is also quite great, on which Tietchens and Obmana each spend a whole disc remixing The Shifts (Frans de Waard) source material, and on which Tietchens emerges the winner- perhaps ironically so, given the above averred, as it is the studied, patient, explorations of the material, the more subtle textures, that serve to elevate above that of mere "droning efforts".
Didn't so much like the collabs with Arcane Device, though I am a big AD fan. About the only one that has really stood up is Flussdichte, credited to Tietchens and David Lee Myers. Here subtle bass frequencies float in a bit more heft, lending the pieces a hushed and stately, atmosphere, a good and much appreciated remove from the experimentalism of their other combined efforts.
Five Manifestoes, with PBK, is perhaps my favorite of all the collab work, though it probably helps that I am a huge PBK fan. A fine set of mostly sedate, if occasionally loud, darkened textural investigations. Almost exactly what I would have imagined from these guys.
Tietchens has released a veritable shitload of work together with his old pal Okko Bekker, but to my ear the best is the straight-ahead droning meisterwerk of Stockholmer Totentanz. This comes off as a kind of mix-master reworking several classics, including Die Nacht Aus Blei. Among his most "classically" ambient perhaps, up there with the mentioned Burning The Watching Bride and almost approaching the dense evocative meanderings of Dammerattacke.
Perhaps the preeminent mix-meisterwerk is Raum 318, which at times sounds like darkambient re-presentation of Stupor Mundi, among perhaps others. Quite active and busy, even muscular by Tietchens standards, but never really losing focus, a legit industrial-grade classic.
I find myself returning for more and more of the Menge series, which has against initial expectations really grown on me. I must say I usually have to be in the right, slightly distracted, state of mind. Far from an early morning blast of harshness to get the day going, rather something that requires a good amount of patience to absorb. I will say there are moments when the shit sounds exactly like someone dicking around and it takes hella patience not to skip. One solution is to crank this shit to the nth. Obviously far from as intended, and in truth not my preferred listening mode, but it's hard under such circumstances not to appreciate the extreme and angular dynamics/frequencies ripping through the decidedly abused system. Also good fodder for fm-wanking; though I suppose this depends on how "hands on" you like your Menge.
Fans of the Menge series might also wish to check out the two collabs with Richard Chartier, Fabrication and Fabrication 2. Quiet, understated, never suggestive of someone dicking around, the sort of thing I might enjoy in between extended sessions of harsh blasting. Both cover quite the wide range of non-obstrusive, mellowed-out, quietly droning movements, very well put together, very much inviting of serious, concentrated, listening.
Yet another collab, yet again with a favored artist: Repetitive Movement, with Achim Wollscheid. Well, here Tietchens is paired with a personal industrial-experimental hero so I would be quite disappointed if the shit were anything short of good. So, it's good, if as the title would suggest, quite minimal in scope. Definite periods toward the end where I'm conscious of trying hard to follow a bunch of electro-acoustic dicking around, but the first fifty or so minutes are quite absorbing, cold, gray, buzzing n droning atmospheres.
The final word would have to be the mentioned Kontakt Der Junglinge, a mostly live project series with Thomas Koner. Again, the choice of collab mate is the clincher: practically everything Koner touches is genius, full stop. I'm frankly amazed that the project has gone on as long as it has. Figured the 1999 debut a one-off, but there are now four full releases from the live series and, surprisingly, a recent studio release (2014). I would say the stronger influence on the sound is Koner, insofar as every release is anchored in the deep and ominous bass tones which pretty much define Koner. Intrestingly, this collab moves more freely into near industrial-strength textures, at moments incorporating what sound like site recordings at a factory, or possibly loading dock. Interesting for me anyway, as Koner has often professed a love for heavy duty machine sounds, but this love is not necessarily in evidence in his solo recordings, even his recent The Futurist Manifesto- though of course if you crank the shit, any of the shit, through a proper system it often feels as though the building is about to shaken off its foundations. With Tietchens in the mix we often move into satisfyingly grim, grainy, textures, a most consistent and satisfying project.
Perhaps to sneak in a last note on the ultimate collab: Grav, with PGR and Merzbow. Truly among the great industrial-strength classics, this has stood the test of time, and ranks among my favorite recordings of all three artists! Dense, heavy, occasionally fairly harsh metal-scraping n whining factory machinations, ending with extended, minimal, gray-walled, PGR furnace fucker. I occasionally imagine this is how tibetan ritual music would sound if the monks were performing their rendition of Merzy's Music For Bondage with scrap metal in an abandoned warehouse, or deep and ancient cave dwelling. The funny moment for me is just how dominant a particular Tietchens track- "Fron" from Stupor Mundi- stands in the mix, really lending the final outcome, as the pace hets up, a properly dramatic pitch.
I have more or less the same opinion as Bloated Slutbag about the Tietchens works that I know that he mentioned. However, even though I like Seuchengebiete, I also find it a bit predictable and without surprises. Somehow it's an example of a solid but a bit unremarkable experimental music album for me. I heard Seuchengebiete 3 a long time ago and loved it. Would love to hear it again, but it's expensive if it can be found.
I also remember Five Manifestoes and Stockholmer Totentanz as being great and rather bleak albums. I'm looking forward to getting them soon.
I don't find parts of the Menge-series annoying, although not all tracks are great. But when that stuff is good, it's very good. Even the lesser tracks are at least good background listening. And I agree that the volume has to be turned up because there are many delicate and soft details.
Fabrication with Richard Chartier is indeed great too. So is Grav, and I also have an image of metal sheets being scraped and banged in a cave while listening to it. On the other hand, I remember being disappointed by the monotony of the Repetetive Movement CD with Achim Wollscheid. However, I saw them play live together around 2001 and they were fantastic. A couple years ago I saw Tietchens play solo, and while there were a few great parts, overall it was a rather disappointing concert.
I've already praised Kontakt Der Jünglinge in this thread. Top notch stuff. I'm supposed to be getting all their missing stuff sometime in the future, as well as some other Tietchens (some 7 inches, the split LP with Kouhei Matsunaga, and I'll most likely order his new CD, Parergon, too).
Forgot to mention Werkbund (although Tietchens has always denied his involvement): Aquis Submersus is awesome. Reverb-heavy, dark metallic rumblings is the name of the game. Haithabu I liked less, but it's not bad at all. I don't know anything else by them, nor by Mechthild Von Leusch, who seem to be somehow related.
The one I always liked by him - and I don't see it mentioned here - was an LP called Monoposto with Liquidski. Restrained rhythms that never quite explode (all the more effective for that, too!), and the best of what I've heard of his collaborations w/ Liquidiski. Also the single Von Mund Zu Mund I remember for being pretty creepy. Haven't listened to either for a good while, so I'll have to dig 'em out...
I have the Von Mund Zu Mond 3 x 7" set. Remember liking them!
I heard I think the first Von Mund Zu Mund 7" a long time ago, and I remember liking it. I'm gonna get that one and one of the other ones soon.
One release I couldn't get into was the collab CD 7 Stücke with Jon Mueller. Tietchens manipulates Mueller's drum sounds, but there's very little manipulation and the album is just dry snippets of drum sounds throughout that I just can't appreciate.
Surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a thread for the New Blockaders, so I'll post this here. TNB's classic Changez Les Blockeurs album has just been reissued on LP by Urashima, newly remastered by Asmus Tietchens. I'd be curious to hear from those who get the record as to how different this version is from the original? I have the Gesamtnichtswerk 4CD set which includes the original version, so I don't plan to buy the LP, plus I usually don't hear pretty much any difference when it comes to remasters, but who knows, maybe this time there's a substantial difference.
I have the 4CD and VOD LP-version of Changez so I won't be buying this either. Also, don't really see the point of remastering this. But I was listening to a lot of early 80's Tietchens over the last few months and there really are a lot of great tracks to be discovered.
'...Diving deep into 'Changez Les Blockeurs' I noticed some interesting phenomenons... Perhaps 'Changez...' was recorded in a room with open windows? Because (really fascinating) here and there I can hear distant voices (although, regretably, I cannot make out any words.)... In my opinion 'Changez...' is a document of the early '80s and should not sound as if recorded in 2021. So, when re-mastering I did not 'clean' it and did not create a 'club version.'' Asmus.
You don't have to dive in really deep to hear these sounds in the background. I remember playing it for the first time and wondering if they forgot to close the windows or if their house had really thin walls..
Anyone pick up the Changez Les Blockeurs LP reissue yet? Wondering about the pressing quality more than the remastering. Discogs has complaints about bad pressings on some other Urashima releases.
I have about 20 Urashima LP's here and i'am quite happy with the quality of the vinyl.
'...I remember playing it for the first time and wondering if they forgot to close the windows...'
David Jackman mentioned in an interview that 'Changez Les Blockeurs' was recorded in a shed. The 'extraneous' sounds were apparently intentional.