Nick Ray of Speculator is really into kraut stuff muffled under nine tons of tape hiss. So are we. Ray took the time to mix together a few of his favorite blokes from across the pond and beyond. The I See A New World Mix is 56-minutes of piston-pumping motorik, proto-sleeze and sprawling rainy day jams. Speculator's Nice LP is out now on Underwater Peoples.
Download the I See A New World Mix here.
Below is Ray's track by track descriptions:
- Popol Vuh / Werner Hertzog / Josef Bierbichler – “…Ich sehe eine neue Erde..” (Heart of Glass, 1976) I used the audio from the film since this particular mix is not on the ‘soundtrack’, released later as ‘Coeur de verre’ in ’77. Here we have a rare lead guitar shred sesh from a typically more subdued group.
- Faust – “Läuft…Heißt das es läuft oder es kommt bald…Läuft”; “It's a Bit of a Pain”; “Jennifer” (Faust IV, 1973) One of my favorite records, from the best band Richard Branson ever signed. A really beautifully produced, all over the place album; jams range from ‘near-pop’ to ‘motorik’ to ‘near-ambient’. Tape hiss is added.
- Neu! – Lila Engel (Neu! 2, 1973) Feel like Neu! should get mentioned more for their proto-punk contributions, and not exclusively for motorik. One of my favorite tunes from a schizophrenic group.
- Fripp and Eno – Swastika Girls [Excerpt] ((No Pussyfooting), 1973) Some tasty noodling. Pre-dates Eno’s collaborations with Cluster/Harmonia. Gotta love Fripp’s tone.
- Cocteau Twins – Blind Dumb Deaf (Garlands, 1982) I really love this first Cocteau Twins album. Sounds a lot like Joy Division. Admittedly of a tangential relation to kraut, but still a sick sounding song!
- New Order – Procession (Single, 1981) Their second single, a really under-appreciated track I think. A band that was very influenced by German culture, although the myopic UK press only referenced the most superficial WW2 correlations.
- Cluster – Sowiesoso (Sowiesoso, 1976) I like this Cluster record; its much more mellow than some of their other stuff. An excellent rainy day listen. Recorded over a weekend, it also has a nice spontaneity and jammy feel to it.
- Neu! – Leb Wohl (Neu! 75, 1975) Ahhhhhh. Klaus Dinger recorded these water sounds on a date with his girlfriend (how romantic). This piece could easily gel on any number of soothing, new-age compilations, yet it manages to express so much more emotion than a typical ‘ocean waves’ tape.
