BLACK TO COMM/AOSUKE

THIS VINYL-ONLY SPLIT-LP RELEASE IS A MEETING OF TWO OF THE MOST INTERESTING BANDS COMING OUT OF HAMBURG, GERMANY AT THIS MOMENT, BOTH CONTINUING THE LONG TRADITION OF BOTH CHALLENGING AND EXPLORATIVE MUSIC COMING FROM THIS CITY IN THE LAST DECADES. FROM KRAUTROCK TO THE ORIGINS OF THE SO-CALLED NEUE DEUTSCHE WELLE FROM EXPERIMENTAL SOUND ARTISTS TO SOME OF THE FINEST POP AMBIENT, HAMBURG IS REGULARLY SPITTING OUT SOME OF THE MOST SINGULAR ARTISTS ON THIS PLANET. BOTH AOSUKE AND BLACK TO COMM HAVE ABSORBED INFLUENCES FROM ALL THESE SOURCES (AND A MILLION OTHERS) WHILE WORKING TOWARDS THEIR VERY OWN INDIVIDUAL VISION. THE TWO BRAND NEW TRACKS BY BLACK TO COMM ARE CONTINUING THE MASSIVE ORGAN/VOICE DRONE ALCHEMY OF THE LAST DOUBLE-LP WHILE REFINING AND PERSONALIZING HIS SOUND, REACHING NEW HEIGHTS OF BLAZING SONIC MYSTICISM. AOSUKE HAVE DECIDED TO HOME-RECORD THEIR NEW MATERIAL, CONTINUING THEIR LOOP-ORIENTED, MONOTONE YET HIGHLY MELODIC AMBIENT JOURNEYS. WORKING WITH REPETITION AND SMALL ABSTRACTIONS, ALL INSTRUMENTAL "LOOPS" ARE PLAYED BY HAND AND RECORDED LIVE WITHOUT OVERDUBS (ONE OF THE MAIN PRINCIPLES OF THE GUITAR/ELECTRONICS DUO), CREATING SURPRISINGLY CONCRETE DORMANT AND SOMNAMBULISTIC SOUNDSCAPES WHILE FORTUNATELY COMPLETELY LACKING THE WASHY AND DROWSY EFFECTS OF MOST AMBIENT MUSIC. BLACK TO COMM IS THE ONE-MAN PROJECT OF MARC RICHTER WHO IS THE BRAIN BEHIND THE DEKORDER LABEL AS WELL. SO FAR HE HAS RELEASED TWO ALBUMS ON HIS OWN LABEL ("RÜCKWÄRTS BACKWARDS" AND "WIR KÖNNEN LEIDER NICHT ETWAS MEHR ZU TUN..."). AOSUKE IS THE DUO OF TOBERT KNOPP AND ULF SCHÜTTE, THE LATTER BEING A LABEL HEAD AS WELL (TAPE TEKTONIKS). LAST YEAR THEY HAVE RELEASED THEIR DEBUT "MONOTONE SPIRITS" ALBUM CO-RELEASED BY HAMBURG'S AUDIOLITH LABEL AND SOUTH GERMANY'S MEUDIADEMORTE LABEL. (label info)