Browse by Label: KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)

Artist:	KANDIS
Title:	1996-1999
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 007CD

"The history of Kandis is to some extend the history of Karaoke Kalk, too. Jens Massel is Kandis. But he also gave birth to two other projects: Senking and Fumble. All three together are quite different but somehow live in the same neighbourhood. Jens Massel is a sound exploring path-finder. He is a willful guy, with an own definition of groove, a kind of stoical groove. Anyway always surprising, anyway astonishingly playful. And Jens Massel is the man behind nearly half of all Karaoke Kalk releases. No wonder that his music, his style, his skills set the tone of the company. Kandis is his most popular project. Kandis 1996 - 1999 is a survey of tracks and songs which were so far only available on vinyl. Shortly before the arrival of his new regular album we knew the time is now to release this CD compilation. Take a view back and dip in the world of Kandis. Discover a different world of music. Discover a different kind of pop. Discover the vision of Jens Massel."

Artist:	HAUSMEISTER
Title:	Unser
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 008CD

"The Hausmeister's new album is Ours (Unser). Ours means something to share or to share something. Ours is just the opposite of me myself and my -- as in selfishness, but as in loneliness, too: ours life, ours thoughts. Hours of pleasure. Our friends, our family, our house. Or simply our music. Ours describes a relationship. Coincidental also the ending of it. To come apart. To part company. Ours is something we share. Even if we beg to differ. The creation of ours is tied to a certain moment of communication. The Hausmeister's Ours doesn't dare to speak. But his music does. And so his ours is an ours for all of us: together with the Hausmeister, but also an our of you and me both."

Artist:	KUCHEN
Title:	Kids With Sticks
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 010CD

"Kuchen is Meriel Barham. She's living and working in Leeds, England, and Kids with Sticks is her first album. Subdued and friendly is her music. It consists of brief, sometimes very personal stories that do entirely without words. The seven tracks on this album are little pleasant bricolages of colourful sounds that walk up softly until they stand right in front of us with all the courage they could muster and say hello. Kids with Sticks can also be the perfect soundtrack to withdraw, together or alone, under the sofa blanket in cold winter months."

Artist:	DONNA REGINA
Title:	Northern Classic
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 011CD

"If only it wasn't that drab and miserable outside. Yes, if, then this here text may read completely differently. But as it is, the new Donna Regina album hits right into the author's winter depression. Not knowing what to write about these new enchanting songs by this duo, he instead starts rambling about sense and nonsense, possibility and impossibility of casting into words the unique qualities of music -- until it all comes down again to music. 'Blue' is the track we're listening to. And if we didn't know better, one could think this would be the last we'd ever get to hear from these two. It cuts deep into your heart, sounding so very much like the last time, that dreadful moment of parting for ever, to be surpassed a couple of tracks onwards by 'Who's You Who's Me', until the title track 'Northern Classic' leaves us standing alone in the dark and the rain. Music is always at its best when it gets to you where it hurts most -- where you're most capable of feeling: fear, loneliness, despair, doubt, longing, dreams, beauty and, yes, love ... All of these words rush past when listening to Northern Classic. And the best thing is: You want to be part of this trip, you start losing the fear of words because you know there's someone walking right beside you who feels the same. Yes, music can still do that."

Artist:	GARLAND, WECHSEL
Title:	Liberation Von History
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 012CD

"Liberation Von History somehow reminds one of a jumbled up jigsaw puzzle. You are easily tempted into trying to fit together the obvious pieces in your mind according to your customary logic -- until those few little pieces turn up that just wouldn't fit in, and you realise that it isn't meant to be rearranged at all, that, rather, it's those stereotypes lodged in your head that are to be tidied away. On liberation von history, Wechsel Garland is playing a lot with seeming contradictions. The two very different facets of his music whose cohesion is not immediately accessible correspond to the album's two sides: while side one sounds sad and melancholic, side two appears very at ease and liberated from musical conventions. J�rg Follert has come a long way since his Wunder album. With Liberation Von History, he in a way liberates himself from the stereotypes or clich�s that had then been attributed to him. you will nonetheless find everything you used to love about his music, everything that fascinated and enticed you, here again -- only different, taken much further. The album features guest performances by Jens Massel (the person behind the Karaoke Kalk projects Kandis, Fumble and Senking) at the bass, Jacques Palminger (member of the Hamburg-based band Universal Gonzales) and finally the voice of Japanese singer Hirono Nishiyama."

Artist:	MARZ
Title:	Love Streams
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 013CD

"Sometimes you think all has been said about some music, and maybe there is always a bit of truth in that. However, the good thing about music is that it is never confined to one 'true' moment but is with us in many different ones. And just like these moments change, the perception of and emotional response to the music you are listening to change as well. the music of M�rz again creates new sensations and emotions once you let yourself be captivated by it -- some moment or other: at home, in the park, in the evenings in the company of friends. Some things on Love Streams will sound familiar, yet new -- as if having moved to a another neighbourhood, which is neither better nor worse than the old one. The overall composition of each separate piece and of the encompassing whole is so self-contained and dense and at the same time so close to us that one feels like sinking into it. This fascination might best be compared to that of some classic singer/songwriters, who by way of the lyrics let us share in their pain, melancholy, joy -- and their personal revelation. Only here, it's not the words but the music that is doing this to you. Maybe this is 'new folk'." Last copies, deleted item.

Artist:	KANDIS
Title:	Airflow
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 015CD

"Kandis by now has become something like a good old friend on Karaoke Kalk. This time, it's nine tracks that come across as a well-rounded, self-contained whole. Musically, Airflow alternates between gloom or even detached coolness and little conciliatory sounds and melodies that suggest and create closeness or intimacy. Following an imaginary script, the pieces evolve like a soundtrack. There is an atmospheric development and, for the first time, a glimpse of the classical album. However, there is never so much as the impression that Jens Massel is trying to draw clear lines or to set fixed limits. Too many open questions remain, too many possibilities of how to proceed. Once again, as with all the other releases by Jens Massel on Karaoke Kalk -- as Fumble, Senking or, like here, as Kandis --, this multi-layered complexity, this apparent openness in all directions does arise from the diversity of the individual projects on the one hand and the numerous parallels and points of contact between them on the other. Here, many elements we already know from neighbouring releases reappear, such as the soundtrack-like character of Senking, without copying or repeating themselves -- though with the knowledge that all these different pieces of music are at home in this one individual person. It reminds one of that contradiction lodged inside all of us, only that rarely someone gives sound to it so honestly."

Artist:	HAUSMEISTER
Title:	Weiter
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 016CD

"Here is the third Hausmeister album to be released on Karaoke Kalk. And like its predecessor unser (our) it bears a plain and modest name: weiter. This inconspicuous word -- which means 'further', 'forward', 'onwards', 'additionally', 'moreover' and also, in a different sense of the word, 'wider', 'broader' -- leaves room for every imaginable individual interpretation. At the same time, it can simply be left standing on its own, even if, or indeed because, Christian Przygodda would surely have had his very own reasons for bracketing his new tracks with this title. All sorts of things may be 'weiter': the music, life, love, sorrows, thought -- or oneself, as an individual, as a person. Most of all, whatever 'weiter' may mean for any one of us in any particular moment, it is a word full of hope, it speaks of looking forward, no matter what might be standing beside or behind. And this is a wonderful thing because it is really so simple -- though still rarely accomplished in life by most of us. To forget or just to let go and look forward can sometimes be very hard, since you do not know what awaits you and are afraid to take the step. Hausmeister had the courage to take that step. With the newly added vocals his music presents itself in a new light and moves much more than before in traditional song structures. melody and composition are still prominent, as is the passion for conventional instruments, but everything appears clearer, more self-contained and as naturally proceeding from his previous works. The title track is the last one on this release by Hausmeister. The album thus appears as a review or re-working of things past, closing with a hopeful look forward, on whatever is to come. in this sense, weiter is a beautiful declaration of love to life with all its tricks and traps..."

Artist:	FUMBLE
Title:	Melo
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$8.50
Catalog #:	KK 016EP

"Jens Massel is a true artist. He is a curious person, like every artist should be. but sadly enough we are positive that only a handful of them are. Jens Massel is never satisfied. He is longing. He is struggling. He is gain by fighting for every single note. And -- be sure -- his yields even surprises himself. After feeling at home with Senking anhd Kandis, you may rate his debut as Fumble (KK#12) as too ostensibly playful -- for all its nice and friendly melodies. Now with Melo you'll be definitely caught from the first take on: the airy chip starts with tight and dry beats. And you'll have to listen quite conscientiously to discover all the cuteness of Fumble's tonality. Melo is a light and delicate record. We're not talking about a playground at midnight. We're talking about slightness in its Taoistic sense: gentle, relaxed and awaken. with a grown self-confidence since the first release of Fumble. Melo is direct, clear and straight-ahead. And in catch you can watch both of Jens Massel's eyes focusing the dance-floor."

Artist:	ROMAN
Title:	5 Minutes To Match
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 017CD

"Sometimes it can be very difficult to say something about a work of music, even if you feel at home with it immediately. With Roman's debut 5 Minutes To Match, this is the case. Certainly, countless possible references spring to mind to describe what you hear. Vocals, arrangements, melodies and lyrics may remind one of the pop music of someone like Kid Montana or Aztec Camera. But what do you say when you find out that the person who made this music has just nothing in common anymore with the references we could possibly establish and that everyday history has placed him somewhere else completely? How do you proceed when it becomes clear that his music does not connect to those references from your own past and the seemingly detectable comparisons are nothing more than an awkward sheet anchor to put into words what you hear because we simply have forgotten how to see music as what it actually is, namely an accumulation of sounds brought to life by someone who tells a new and personal story through it? Roman's lyrics tell stories -- beautiful, short, long, strange, funny, and sometimes a little sad; and with his music he brings them to life for all of us; so much so that you sometimes even catch yourself singing along to the tracks. Rarely can this be said about music nowadays -- though at the same time it's one of the nicest qualities of pop music to obliterate for a brief moment the memory of your many, constantly repeated connections and references."

Artist:	LE ROK
Title:	Hausarbeiten
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 018CD

"Le Rok is from Hanover, is in his everyday life called Christoph D�hne, and Hausarbeiten is his musical debut. It is not easy to put a definite name to his music, as the twelve tracks on his album are all rather different. Sometimes minimal, then again pop-like, sometimes even with a trace of rock; sometimes gloomy, then again cheerful; twice with vocals and otherwise without. There is one thing all tracks have in common though: the beat is always prominent. This quality provides the album with continuity, forms a bracket to include its diverse parts and turns it into a unified whole. With this compilation of tracks created between 1997 and today, Le Rok demonstrates how playful and cheerful music can sound. And this may be the reason why he has found his home on Karaoke Kalk, which has never been about the pursuit of one particular idea of music but about presenting music in its diversity and confusion."

Artist:	TOYAMA, TAKEO
Title:	Hello 88
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 019CD

"The first impression of Takeo Toyama's music on his album Hello 88 is playful, colourful, cheerful. A bit like the illustrations by Jungo Terade on the cover showing a manikin in a kind of sailor suit and a cute little bird. But just as you start wondering, after looking at the pictures a bit longer, if they couldn't be part of a very sad story indeed, a feeling of melancholy sneaks in now and then whilst listening to the tracks. Thus, Takeo Toyama's music alternates between funny little creaking sounds and atmospheric flute and violin arrangements, making Hello 88 a very narrative piece of music with a lot of highlights. sometimes even vocals are added, as in 'Hello Birds', which reminds one of the pop of the Beach Boys."

Artist:	KUCHEN MEETS MAPSTATION
Title:	Kuchen Meets Mapstation
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 020CD

"One & 1/2 years ago, Meriel Barham from Leeds released her debut album Kids With Sticks as Kuchen on Karaoke Kalk. With Kuchen Meets Mapstation now follows the second release by Meriel, former member of the British Pale Saints; though this time, as the title reveals, it's a joint project with Stefan Schneider from Dusseldorf, the person behind Mapstation and also part of To Rococo Rot. To those who are already familiar with the music of Mapstation and Kuchen, the title will also give away something about what we are about to hear: two people, two musicians, meet; each of them bringing with them their very own idea of music and together trying to merge these into a unified whole. Rather by chance, their paths crossed last year. There was a liking for each other and for each other's music. Ed Martin from Leeds had the idea, that Kuchen and Mapstation should do a record together, more a kind of remix album at the first step. And finally the result is the album at hand, which took two years to realize it. In between this time sometimes they both did work together on the realization and sometimes for themselves, until they finished it together in Berlin this year. it's ten tracks, reminds one of a long, intense and also very personal dialogue. A dialogue between two individuals who nevertheless harmonize in their ideas and who seem to like each other -- even when at variance. Kuchen's sometimes more playful music connects seamlessly with Mapstation's perhaps more serial sound; and yet each one's distinctive qualities remain in the foreground without challenging or levelling the other's. Rarely has the attempt to bring together two different projects been so successful."

Artist:	PLURAMON FEAT. JULEE CRUISE
Title:	Dreams Top Rock
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 023CD

Repressed. "The new album is Pluramon's most accessible work today and features the voice of 'Twin Peaks' actress Julee Cruise. The songs on Dreams Top Rock have a powerfull, yet almost melodramatic 'wall of sound' impact that at points almost drifts away to return with a darker, even more striking song. 'For A Lie' might remind you older folks of rock-bands from the early 90s with a sound of today. The work for the album was very extensive and the collaboration between Julee and Marcus was intense not to say manic, if you know what we mean. But we're happy to present this kicking result as their first release on Karaoke Kalk. The man behind the scenes, Marcus Schmickler, is well known in a lot of different contexts related to electronic music, let it be techno, improvised music or even classical music and needs no further introduction (if so, check out the additional info). As well as earlier Pluramon albums featured appearances of guest musicians by Jackie Liebeziet (Can) or Jan Werner (Mouse On Mars), Dreams Top Rock features musicians Julee Cruise, Kevin Drumm, Marcus Schmickler, Jochen Rueckert, Hayden Chisholm, Felix Kubin and Keith Rowe."

Artist:	HAUSCHKA
Title:	Substantial
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 025CD

"The Scene: The Welsh mountains, remote and harsh, a special place. A good place to produce a special album. The characters: Volker Bertelmann in his friend Adam Fuests' studio, equipped with only a piano and a laptop. The Project: To record a album of piano music. Title: Hauschka. Substantial is a snapshot of a life spent with the black and white keys, and is simultaneously both moment and history, thought and feeling, yet without turning into a unduly meaningful concept album. Rather, Substantial is based upon the least conceptual of all concepts: Improvisation. Each track is based upon an opening sequence, the theme of which is extended, modulated and varied with, as far as form or length is concerned, no specific objective in mind. What has come out is music of a differing, well, substance: Eleven atmospheric pieces in which a variety of different techniques overlap and rhythmical images with narrative depth unfold; in which further instruments, such as double bass or vibraphone make a fleeting appearance, at once lending a hint of pop, but at no time detracting from the piano as central instrument; in which experimental and electronic music is accessed without compromising the directness and ease of the improvisational approach."

Artist:	SCH�FER, PASCAL
Title:	Dawn
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 026CD

"After his EP Melodyexpress had already gained much attention, instrumentalist and DJ Pascal Sch�fer has now released his first longplayer on Karaoke Kalk. And again Sch�fer is surprising the listener with his fine sense for atmosphere/moods, composition and arrangement and his individual, unusual and associative use of a great variety of musical references including electronic, exotica, techno , ambient, jazz and minimal. Fine spun melancholy, emotional deepness, playful curiosity, contemplative introspection and bewitching still lives ... Dawn is a declaration of love to the suggestive power of music, to its open limits and its subtle magic. This is what dreams are made of."

Artist:	POTO & CABENGO
Title:	Poto & Cabengo
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 027CD

"Here it is, Jens Massel's new project together with Michael Cramm, who has already accompanied him occasionally on his Kandis releases. Listening to Poto & Cabengo for the first time will probably be a surprise -- contrary to expectation, you have to search for the familiar creaky crackly sounds of Jens Massel . . . they are still there, still fundamental to the cohesion of the music, but at large, the two of them follow very different tracks. Poto & Cabengo's music is influenced by country and folk, not without humour and not without the corresponding seriousness and a thorough knowledge of the typical characteristics of these styles. They have dug up the instruments again and combined them with their electronic gear to create an album so unique, so bare of reminiscences and so far from anything labelled 'zeitgeist' today that it can hardly be described. This is an album that is musically more than surprising, offers incredibly much to listen to and expresses something rarely found -- the fun in making music."

Artist:	TOOG
Title:	Lou Etendue
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 028CD

Feat. Asia Argento on vocals! "September 1914: the french poet Guillaume Apollinaire meets a fascinating young woman, Lou, in Nice. Seduced but quickly disappointed, he joins the troops in Nimes and starts to write the wonderful poems that will be collected and named 'Poems to Lou', after his death. September 2001: a few days before his flight to New York, Toog meets Asia Argento. The twin towers collapse. Having to stay in Paris, Toog imagines 'Lou Etendue', a musical piece in a threatening world, with Asia as the new Lou. He asks Digiki to produce the project. Toog is a french musician, born in Mulhouse in 1966. His first album, 6633, released in 1999, is a collection of electronic vignettes, often surrealistic. Easy Toog for Beginners, his second album, released in 2001, develops more sounds and structures. Both albums were released in the USA, Europe and Japan. Toog is an explorer, searching for new territories for contemporary chanson. Toog is also a poet, co-editor of TO, a bilingual poetry magazine.

Born in 1980, Digiki is a french sound artist, with a unique sense for re-contextualising sounds. After a series of remixes and collaborations in Europe and Japan, including a tour of Japan in 2003 with Momus, he's currently working on his own album. With influences ranging from hip hop, electronics, to guitar pop and classical, Digiki blurs the line between pop and experimentation, and delivers with Lou Etendue, a subtle mix of melodies and sound glitching. Asia Argento, daughter of 'giallo' movie director Dario Argento, is an actress, a model, a photographer, a writer, a painter, a mother and a critically acclaimed film director. Her second movie, The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things (2004), is based on JT Leroy's autobiographical memories. The film packs an all-stars cast (Winona Ryder, Peter Fonda, Marylin Manson, and Asia herself). Argento recently lent her inimitable voice for the Trash Palace project and Hector Zazou's last album."

Artist:	MARZ
Title:	Wir Sind Hier
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 029CD

"M�rz's follow-up to their 2002 d�but Love Streams on Karaoke Kalk. Eleven new songs by Albrecht Kunze and Ekkehard Ehlers. It's all about positioning, i.e. the question of where you / I / we are standing now and here and in this particular moment; and M�rz's songs describe the Here from their own personal perspective. It would seem to be the aspect of someone looking out from a park, if the titles 'M�rz Im Park' ('Park in March') and 'Oktober Im Park' ('Park in October') are anything to go by; and yet it remains uncertain as to whether the fenced-off area of a park, with its circumscribed freedom -- simultaneously including and excluding -- is a place of relaxed tranquility, (deceptive) security or indeed a place of pacification. Places both conceivable and inconceivable superimpose themselves upon one another, and what remains is a feeling of uncertainty as to whether one should like to stay here or not. M�rz seem to value the tension, which such unclear positions generate; or, put another way, they seem to want to endure it, for in the manner of a counter-design to this uncertainty, Wir Sind Hier evinces them continuing to fashion their inviting and seductive landscapes out of folk, pop and club influences: explicit, prodigal, subtly differentiated, but also displaying a greater desire to take risks than on Love Streams, so much so that only an idiot would chose not to tarry here a while. Tarry in the interstices of their world, between song and track, guitars and glockenspiel, banjos and bass drums, hounds and Hawaiian guitars, plug-ins and trombones . . . A musical world however, which does not try to emulate the park itself -- a separate, enclosed area; and yet is aware of the danger of being fenced-off and occupied, which is why M�rz keeps the borders open, both musically and lyrically and provides enough space for typically hymnal offerings, such as 'Biber & Enten' ('Beavers & Ducks') (which moreover considerably augment their arsenal of strange and self-generated sounds) as well as space enough for improvisation and songs, which proclaim: was uns ver�ndert / holt uns am Ende ein / was uns ver�ndert / k�nnte ein Anfang sein. (the things that change us / will catch up with us in the end / the things that change us / could be just a beginning). Songs, which, for all the self-evident guise of High Pop, perpetually pose the question about positions, about themselves, itself, and thereby about me as well; songs, which circle around the question of position, of place and the quality of that place and thereby circle and encircle me until at some point or other (and almost automatically so), their question is my question: where am I -- here?"

Artist:	VA
Title:	Kalk Seeds: A Karaoke Kalk Compilation
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 030CD

From the Cologne school of minimal techno and electro-acoustical elements comes a compilation of the Kalk label's most inspired and quintessential artists. Kalk Seeds documents the spreading of the Kalk herb, particularly in Japan and in Germany. Sixteen tracks, (most of which have never been released) and one video-clip display the open and yet so specific profile of the (now Berlin) label that has been continuously releasing for eight years and running. Karaoke Kalk assembles music that is not happening anywhere else -- always docked on the here and now, exposing the most diverse sound-worlds, recently even those far from the electronic realms. Kalk Seeds starts off with Roman's elegantly formulated pop -- a fascinating preview of his second album. Listen to Hauschka's lyrical miniature on a manipulated piano, followed by Le Rok's odd beats and gentle harmonies, as well as Takagi Masakatsu's amazing song-excursions in Japanese melancholy, full of dramatic and beguiling fragility. In addition, you'll find Kalk classics like Donna Regina and M�rz, whose music is as characteristic of the label as is that of the old heroes in new sounds like Sora/Garland and Kandis. From techno-structures, Beach Boys-harmonies, abstract electronics, minimal music or pop-experiments, Kalk Seeds lives in a special kind of energetic space in between artists like Pascal Sch�fer and his rhythm constructions just as well as in Takeo Toyama's moving composition "Der Meteor." Other artists included feature Hausmeister, Toog, Pascal Sch�fer, Kuchen, Mapstation, Leichtmetall, Kan Daisuke, and Poto&Cabengo. Some call it avant-pop, others ''Les Disques Du Cr�puscule," Karaoke Kalk is the antithesis of Gem�tlichkeit and genre-boredom -- it's growing and thriving.

Artist:	HAUSCHKA
Title:	The Prepared Piano
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 031CD

Pianist and composer Volker Bertelmann releases his second album with Karaoke Kalk, The Prepared Piano. With his debut release, Substantial, Bertelmann proved himself a master of deconstructed piano sounds, experimenting with form and the interplay of single, sustained piano notes against the backdrop of a few selected instruments. In the same way, The Prepared Piano is focused on just one piano, and a smattering of synthesizer, bass and drum, though it sounds as if there is an entire orchestra accompanying him. Tracing back his roots, and continuing a new tradition expressed by current composerArvo P�rt, Steffan Schleiermacher, Frangis Ali-Sade, Edison Denissow, and Philip Corner, Bertelmann rediscovers the masters of the prepared piano such as Bartok's contemporary Henry Cowell, John Cage, and Otto Schrager, with echoes of Satie and Ravel. Hauschka finds the possibilities in nontraditional technique, clamping wedges of leather, felt or rubber between the piano-strings, preparing hammers with aluminum paper or rough films, placing crown corks on the strings, or weaving in guitar strings. The result is small rhythmic sound-vignettes and quiet ballads which all have their roots in East Asian harmonies and minimalism. These are vivid, unconventional pieces of music that are made of playful research and child-like enthusiasm -- academically illuminated.

Artist:	DONNA REGINA
Title:	Slow Killer
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 032CD

Slow Killer is the new Donna Regina release by the Cologne-based melancholic electro pop duo Regina (vocals) and G�nther Janssen (guitar). Slow Killer is a melodic tribute to their travels to foreign lands and unusual places, and the album fairly breathes with the excitement of meeting new people amidst the rush of getting from place to place. Since their last release late in September 2003, Regina and G�nther Janssen together with their DJ and samples-trustee Steffen Irlinger have had more live appearances than in the preceding eleven years together. Thus, more new friends and old acquaintances have participated in Slow Killer than on any other previous release. The French musician and producer Bertrand Burgalat -- who set to music an album by and with Michel Houellebecq -- produced parts of "Lazy Heart." Sebastian Carreras, the musician and composer of the successful Argentinian trio Entre Rios wrote the lyrics to "Mirame, Miraba," which is Donna Regina's first track in Spanish and the first and only one which Regina Janssen didn't write herself. Thomas Fehlmann, a very early fan of the band himself, always wanted to remix one of their songs, but Donna Regina have taken it one step further and asked him to produce "Enemy - No Enemy." Labelmate Pascal Sch�fer plays saxophone on two tracks and "Mirame, Miraba," and Theo Roos plays the mouth organ. With their sampled rhythms and analogue sounds, their swift and light changes from track to song and back, Donna Regina occupy their very own spot within the great world of beautifully-arranged pop music.

Artist:	ROMAN
Title:	So Ghost?
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 033CD

This is Cologne-based musician Roman's second album on Karaoke Kalk. Created out of pure, genuine pathos, So Ghost? is great pop meeting great gesture, with enthusiastically-raised arms waving from every corner. This is a highly demanding Janus-head-like album that changes its face with every track. Concerning his sounds and arrangements, Roman turns out to be a true daredevil: female choirs, over-amplified basses, staked-out keyboards and fan's noises from the background contrast with professional a cappella interludes. And overlaying everything is this voice somewhere between Aztec Camera, Style Council and Jacques Brel. An acoustic guitar (slightly out of tune) meets plastic synthies and a bolting drum computer. Skillfully-arranged beautiful string themes butt heads with a Gameboy's buzzing noises. Genuine club-stompers shake hands with samba-esque romances. And despite all its pomp and glory, So Ghost? still preserves the DIY charm of the bedroom production. Designed to elicit lighter-waving, teddy bear-throwing and misty eyes.

Artist:	SCH�FER, PASCAL
Title:	Melody Express
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$8.50
Catalog #:	KK 033EP

"Melody Express is the name of Pascal Sch�fer's debut EP on Karaoke Kalk. Holding it in your hands for the first time, it might come across as a little old-fashioned. The sleeve design, colouring and the title itself all bring to mind the aesthetics of early jazz singles. But don't be misled by this first impression, as these are only playful and maybe also a little faddist details. In fact, Melody Express turns out to be largely what the name already tells us: a series of melodies, harmonies, combined with curious beats and sounds. a musical train journey -- sometimes slow, then again faster, passing through six stations. The train never stops too long, nor does it carry any overload. On the contrary, the arrangements as well as the chords gain in charm by their simplicity while taking us through the most different moods on this short ride -- from the much cited melancholy to simply feeling like going to a caf� with old friends, sharing a huge piece of cake and talking about past experiences. And when you've finally reached the end of 'szczescie', it makes you want to start all over again because it's been so much fun. Even if this is all quite everyday stuff."

Artist:	GARLAND, WECHSEL
Title:	Easy
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 034CD

This is the third full-length release on Karaoke Kalk from Cologne-based J�rg Follert, aka Wechsel Garland. Easy finds Follert lending his voice in song to his dreamy electroacoustic instrumentations. There have been elements of both singing and song in his work before but not as distinctly arranged and not as forcefully set in scene. Approaches to more song-oriented tracks have been inherent from his Wunder project and Follert has been following his idea to travel in sound with various sketches that become more and more concrete. Creating delicate interplays between songs and instrumentals, these songs take their cue from minimal music and cool jazz, letting their elements communicate in a non-dogmatic manner. Various guests support the eclectic range of rhythms and sound details, including guest singers Yvonne Cornelius (aka Niobe) and Tusia Beridze, while Argentinan artist Gustavo Cerati extends the musical arc with his guitar, basslines and some additional sounds. J�rg Follert's second step is to take care that between the multitude of ideas, both songwriting- and sound-wise there still remains some gentle air to breathe. Touches of bossa nova, reggae, jazz pop and hints of Caetano Veloso make various lightweight appearances. Easy is the aural expression of a long, lazy afternoon.

Artist:	LEICHTMETALL
Title:	Wir Sind Blumen
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 036CD

This is the second full-length release on Karaoke Kalk for Munich-based Marion Dimbath and Nicola Sch�pferling. Wir Sind Blumen is evocative of carefree springtime, easy weather, and stepping outside for a breath of fresh air on a slightly rainy day after a particularly cruel winter. The title translates to "we are flowers," and the title track was a perfect inclusion on the Kalk Seeds compilation -- a German pop song resplendent with a samba beat, tuba and French horn. And yet, if you dip a little deeper into the record there's more to it than just a sunshiney association. For one there's this remarkable openness that Leichtmetall demonstrate with their music and their way of dealing with everyday occurrences. Although filled to the brim with olde style, charming female vocals, chimes and music boxes, this record avoids coyness or naivete. Leichtmetall achieve a precious wholeness with few words and very basic imagery. Their musical appliances are reduced, almost sparse, but very classic. And above all they are unpretentious. Maybe even "dilettantish."

Artist:	LEICHTMANN, HANNO
Title:	Nuit du Plomb
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 037CD

This is Berlin-based Hanno Leichtmann's (Pole, Static, Vulva String Quartett, Kosmischer Pitch) first release under his own name. Nuit du Plomb conjures memories of days when every party, besides the obligatory dancefloor, had an ambient floor, too. Days when ambient served as a niche for creating music that just wouldn't have been possible in a band's collective and when musicians together with their entire electronic gear crouched on the floor and started jamming. Yet Hanno Leichtmann's new album has nothing to do with a glorification of the past. This is not least due to the fact that the music on Nuit du Plomb was originally made for a scenic lecture of Hans Henny Jahnn's novel The Night of Lead. It is rather a soundtrack recorded to illustrate the various scenes of the relatively unknown novel, the music supporting the sensation of images and spatiality. So although it wasn't his aim to make an ambient album, Hanno Leichtmann pushes this very diversified musical genre a little more to the fore again, proving that it hasn't been exhausted in all its possibilities. Hanno Leichtmann is best known through his current solo projects Static (City Centre Offices, Earsugar) and Vulva String Quartett (Combination), and here is another tantalizing aspect of his persona.

Artist:	HAUSCHKA
Title:	Versions of the Prepared Piano
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 038CD

How do you remix a piano solo? Artists �glantine Gouzy, Barbara Morgenstern, Nobukazu Takemura, Wechsel Garland, Takeo Toyama, TG Mauss, Vert, Frank Bretschneider, Mira Calix, Chica And The Folder and Tarwater remix, rework, and redefine the fragile experiments on Hauschka's 2005 release, The Prepared Piano, which opened many ears to the multiple sound possibilities of the piano. Versions... features reworks that redefine composerly piano work. Hauschka selected different musicians who each picked up one of his compositions as a basis. The results transgress the boundaries of ordinary remixes: material being added en masse, Hauschka's complete, perfected works all at once function as basic tracks on which more and more layers are stacked. This can be at times opulent as with Vert, or tranquil like �glantine Gouzy's finished piece. Hauschka's piano integrates itself as both a rhythmic and melodic element and presets the conditions for composition. TG Mauss' melancholic pop track demonstrates this procedure to an almost exemplary extent. We are dealing with something quite extraordinary apart from the original. Hauschka himself changes one track into a sensitive Beach Boys experiment. Nobukazu Takemura introduces a new impressionistic texture -- with vocals that add space. This is piano pop that really stretches its sounds. Sometimes Hauschka is featured in the background, as with Barbara Morgenstern or sometimes he is the lone accompanist, as with Mira Calix. Chica and the Folder make it completely impossible to divide the different complements, while Tarwater accompany you to the home of the prepared piano: "He wonders how far he had travelled," they sing. Indeed, this album represents a long journey to most astonishing places.

Artist:	MARZ
Title:	The River
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	10"
Price:	$10.00
Catalog #:	KK 038EP

"The River offers two new tracks by M�rz that give us a little foretaste of their new album, Wir sind hier. The title track as well as the B side with 'Blaue F�den' are with their instrumentations and arrangements slightly reminiscent of tracks like Durutti Column's 'Summer'. But this comparison doesn't quite work, because the use of strings and melodies or personal moods and remembrances the music awakens are not enough to relate this kind of reference to an outside world usually very different from one's own and to the present. And M�rz are present."

Artist:	LE ROK
Title:	Approx Twelve
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 039CD

This is the second full-length release by Christoph D�hne, aka Le Rok. His debut, Hausarbeiten, was a choice collection of home-recorded tracks which may have been produced in the course of six long years, but put together, resulted in an album with varied themes and a close stylistic connection between tracks. Le Rok and his songs need and take their time. Now, three years later, enough new tracks have coalesced to come to life as Approx Twelve. Every single track on the new album has an individual history, starting out with the idea for a song in the classical sense of the word. Going on from this solid foundation, Le Rok rather casually collects the elements from which the tracks are put together like mosaics. This results in a specifically relaxed setting (not necessarily slow or quiet) while lots of little things cling themselves tightly around the spine that is the basic song. This method only works when the necessary time is taken for those small pieces to grow together into a whole. In the end, everything is one unit comprising all the elements from the initial song to the final beat. Although the tracks take shape as a construction of digital bits and cuts, the songs never lose themselves inside the technical devices from which they derive. In between all the tight textures remains a slight sense of melancholy. All the while the beats may stay up front, but do not consume. D�hne hails from Hanover in northern Germany, and perhaps this non-urban setting is the reason for his relaxation.

Artist:	ROUEN, MAX
Title:	Magnetic Wave Of Sound
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 040CD

A short interview with Max Rouen reveals the theme of Magnetic Wave Of Sound: "Belgian Surrealism, but with sound instead of images." Fascinated by reel-to-reel tape recorders since his youth, Rouen cuts and pastes tape with the expertise of a true Dadaist, lending the recording a very gritty and satisfying noise. Riding tape loops, reversing bits, cutting tapes into minute pieces and then overmodulating the whole thing, taping it to another machine and experimenting with tape speed reveals new and exciting results each time for the composer, and for the listener. Magnetic Wave Of Sound is a true deconstructionist's fantasy.

Artist:	DONNA REGINA
Title:	More
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 041CD

More is the tenth Donna Regina release by the Cologne-based melancholic electro-pop duo Regina (vocals) and G�nther Janssen (guitar). On the road somewhere -- alongside foreign waters, beneath foreign skies -- More is the echo of your favorite memories. A warm and fuzzy feeling arrives immediately with the first few beats of the opening song, a vague elation arises with the entry of the bass. This is music that carries the world inside of it, rather than getting bogged down by it. More is music that is present without being trendy, with lyrics that don't describe heroic battles but those little private battles that sap our energy within our everyday life. The melodies and arrangements transport a playful easiness along with precious harmonies whose preciousness is evoked by the lyrics. The pop hit aspirant, "Dream On" seems like a cheerful children's song with its clear bells and the fair and sober voice of Regina -- but it is sharply tempered by declarations of war against a complacent life. This is an album for that very special moment when you catch yourself thinking: this is exactly how it's supposed to be, finally.

Artist:	PLURAMON
Title:	The Monstrous Surplus
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 042CD

This is the fifth full-length release by Marcus Schmickler aka Pluramon. The Monstrous Surplus bears three different vocalists and as many narrative voices. The songs do not simply present a singer or songwriter self: they push the envelope of what it means to tell a story. Completely contemporary, yet unabashedly diving into moods, the album succeeds in capturing the fragmented, yet sophisticated soul of urban life: "Can't Disappear" is a story about a secret threesome relationship, "Fresh Aufhebung" is a spoken pamphlet for a break-up and "If Time Was On My Side" is a melancholic story about bad timing with love. Listeners of the previous albums will recognize a style that remains dreamy and atmospheric with pop songs that are sometimes laid-back yet melancholic, even enigmatic, at other times dramatic and intense. Featuring appearances by Julia Hummer, a prominent young German actress who tours with her own band Too Many Boys, Julee Cruise, who was already featured on the last album, and New York-based German artist and writer, Jutta Koether, who is also known as co-founder of leading German pop magazine, SPEX. The fourth vocalist is Marcus himself on one song as well as background on other songs. Also responsible for the production, Marcus Schmickler is well-known in a lot of different contexts related to electronic music, let it be beat-oriented, improvised music or classical music.

Artist:	DONNA REGINA
Title:	Slow Killer
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 042LP

LP version. The Cologne-based melancholic electro pop duo Regina (vocals) and G�nther Janssen (guitar). Slow Killer is a melodic tribute to their travels to foreign lands and unusual places, and the album fairly breathes with the excitement of meeting new people amidst the rush of getting from place to place. Guests include The French producer Bertrand Burgalat, Sebastian Carreras,Thomas Fehlmann & Pascal Sch�fer. With their sampled rhythms and analogue sounds, their swift and light changes from track to song and back, Donna Regina occupy their very own spot within the great world of beautifully-arranged pop music.

Artist:	23S, THE
Title:	Bolivia
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 043CD

Bolivia is the debut album by the D�sseldorf-based band, The 23s. With The 23s, Karaoke Kalk is putting forward yet another hitherto unknown project. And still the first notes already sound strangely familiar -- not a familiarity that originates from a sound that you have heard a million times before but rather some sort of heimatgef�hl (trans. "homeland feeling"), evoked by the free performing of music that embraces all its varieties in spite of depending on preconceived sound worlds. Take a look at the cover of Bolivia and already you'll be finding yourself fully absorbed and looking for clues. Hmm, let's see... "a great escape," "ultra chilled electronics," "subliminal," "a soundtrack album..." these are words you'll give yourself up to all too willingly from the first track of the album to the last. The ten tracks are at times wry and gentle, at times harmonic and twirly, and certainly, they are wonderful all the time.

Artist:	MALUCO
Title:	Right Time
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 044CD

This is the debut full-length release by Maluco, a collaborative project by international musicians Max Loderbauer, Pier Bucci and Argenis Brito. Maluco are sure to delight listeners with this summer-fresh release of atmospheric dub soundscapes with electronic pop appeal. Tracks like "Dreamer" carry you away to warm summer nights on the Mediterranean, and whether you are driven into instrumental intoxication ("Evandro") or seduced by Argenis' highly-accented yet excellent vocals ("Passport"), Maluco make you feel comfortable. Flowing rhythms and melodies unite various musical periods; "River" is a cover of the Brian Eno and John Cale song, good old-fashioned reggae is evident in "Sam" and there are country music influences hiding within "Doped." All in all, it's the softer sounds that take the foreground and stimulate your sensitive synapses. Argenis Brito was born in Venezuela and is the singer of Se�or Coconut. He scored an international hit with Chilean-born Pier Bucci ("Hay Consuelo"), and together they formed the duo Mambotur. Max Loderbauer is one-half of Chica And The Folder with Paula Schopf, works with Tom Thiel as Sun Electric, and formed NSI with Tobias Freund. These three dignitaries of electronic music have composed an acoustic experience that is drenched in sunshine. Right Time makes your wanderlust grow and day-to-day worries disappear. Maluco -- soothing summer sounds in a rush of electronics.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Kalk Seeds: Karaoke Kalk Compilation No. 2
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 045CD

This is the second label compilation from Berlin's Karaoke Kalk, including many previously-unreleased tracks. Kalk Seeds: Karaoke Kalk Compilation No. 2 presents the listener with small and mighty (re-)discoveries by well-known performers and each and every track convinces with individual compositions, skewed beats, cheerful sound-systems and brain-fusing text passages. For example, there's the Leichtmetall sisters with their harmonized vocals, folksy trombones and glockenspiel, singing of forbidden apples, flowers and birds. There are sensual melodica sounds from Japan's Takeo Toyama, and Maluco's languorous "Kokain," is a song originally by rock musician Boris Bukowski with Argenis Brito on vocals. Also included is electronic's favorite pop-indie star Roman, who on this release is unusually loud and partygenic. Wechsel Garland continues to take care of the tender moments in life with "Tiny Stars," featuring warm piano sounds and bell chimes. The up-and-coming Leeds-based indie band Dakota Suite is also featured, and "Underpowered" is a melancholic trip to a broken heart. The guitar, usually wailing in the foreground, presents itself melodically, together with a piano and chary beats of the brushes. Finally, Le Rok's "Feierabend" features inconsistent beats but solid harmony -- just perfect to put your feet up to at home. This felicitous compilation will get you through the cold months. Other artists include: Hausmeister, Omo, Max Rouen, Donna Regina, Pascal Sch�fer, The 23s, Poto&Cabengo, Toog, Hauschka, and Pluramon.

Artist:	DAKOTA SUITE
Title:	The End Of Trying
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 046CD

This is the first release for Liverpool's Dakota Suite on the Karaoke Kalk label. Chris Hooson is the main singer/songwriter for the trio and it is an extremely personal guitar project that deals with tragedies in Chris' life and the constant ups and downs in the success of his favorite team, FC Everton. One thing's for certain, we're not talking about happy music here. The track titles on the albums Alone With Everybody (1996), The Way I'm Sick (2002) or Waiting For The Dawn To Crawl Through And Take Away Your Life (2007) on Glitterhouse Records already point out some of this sensitive man's feelings. Deeply sad melodies and melancholy pain are also the main emotions on The End Of Trying, but we're not talking about sadness in the form of self-pity. Hooson focuses on understated sounds like flowing piano chords and a flexible cello arrangement, while fellow members David Buxton and Colin Dunkley take turns on the piano. American cellist David Darling wonderfully accentuates Hooson's harmonic sadness with his stylish string instrument. Darling has made soundtracks for Wim Wenders and also was nominated for a Grammy Award for his album Cello Blue. Together, Dakota Suite and Darling form a striking ensemble which by no means only have depressing moments -- their music is very soothing, too. The recordings were made in various houses in Leeds and at Darling's home in Goshen, Connecticut. Chris realized a life long dream recording the album with his all-time favorite cellist. He doesn't usually find life so great. He only gets the strength to survive from collaborations like this, a healthy portion of cynicism which he otherwise channels into his lyrics, and above all, through his peaceful and sentimental sound experiences.

Artist:	RITORNELL
Title:	Golden Solitude
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 047CD

This is the debut full-length release by Ritornell, a collaboration between Austria's Richard Eigner and Roman Gerold. Karaoke Kalk's head Thorsten L�tz first met Eigner back in 2006. That was in Melbourne during the Red Bull Music Academy. They got along with each other instantly and stayed in touch. Eigner and Gerold had already worked together on music for the dance performance Urgent Appetite by Canadian choreographer Laura Kappel. Golden Solitude ranges between cheerful dance tunes and high-brow audible music. Playful yet respectful, Ritornell explore the aesthetic achievements of 20th century pop and avant-garde, experimenting with bits and pieces from pop culture and acoustic and electronic sounds. As to the technical polish of this fresh emulsion of sounds, the duo was assisted by legendary leftfield electronic musician, Patrick Pulsinger. Eigner works mainly as a composer and sound-artist, but he has also contributed as a drummer to various productions, such as Patrick Wolf's album Magic Position. In 2005, he won the Elektronikland award for experimental electronic music. Besides quite a few other musical projects, he runs his own label, Wald Entertainment. Roman Gerold, an awardee himself, has been working as a pianist for various jazz bands in Austria, and composes music freelance for theater and film. Live, Ritornell showcase their material as a electro-acoustic trio together with Gerhard Daurer. They focus on improvisation with a very reduced instrumental set-up. While Gerhard Daurer maxes out the possibilities of his specially-devised gamepad-granular-synthesizer, Roman Gerold adds subtle melodies and vivid drones as well as processing the live-inputs of the acoustic instruments. Richard Eigner provides the electronic improvisations with fine acoustic rhythms and textures, playing his ride-cymbal with the use of diverse utensils such as bass bows, sizzle-chains or a toilet brush. Golden Solitude provides the listener with a modern and extremely human sound experience that unites passion and irony.

Artist:	LE ROK
Title:	Approx Twelve
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$10.00
Catalog #:	KK 047EP

12" vinyl version, including exclusive tracks not available on the CD format. Going on from this solid foundation, Le Rok rather casually collects the elements from which the tracks are put together like mosaics. This results in a specifically relaxed setting (not necessarily slow or quiet) while lots of little things cling themselves tightly around the spine that is the basic song. This method only works when the necessary time is taken for those small pieces to grow together into a whole. In the end, everything is one unit comprising all the elements from the initial song to the final beat. Although the tracks take shape as a construction of digital bits and cuts, the songs never lose themselves inside the technical devices from which they derive. In between all the tight textures remains a slight sense of melancholy. All the while the beats may stay up front, but do not consume.

Artist:	TOYAMA, TAKEO
Title:	Etudes
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 048CD

This is Takeo Toyama's second full-length release for the Karaoke Kalk label, previously released on the now-defunct Japan Overseas label in 2003. Takeo Toyama was born in Osaka, Japan, and his classical influence is owed to his mother who would listen to Beethoven and Chopin. Coming from a rock/pop background, the trained pianist soon discovered the world of pure instrumental sounds. His first remixes were for the well-known Japanese producer and label boss Nobukazu Takemura. 1998 saw the release of Toyama's first solo album Ground Piano, for which he recorded almost all the instruments himself, where discordant harmonies and fast-changing beats became the trademark of Takeo's sound variations. Right now, what he's becoming more and more known for throughout Europe are his digital compositions for analog instruments. Electronic transformations were the characteristics of Toyama's first release, Hello 88, on Karaoke Kalk (2003). The highlight of the album were vocal parts that reminded very much of the Beach Boys, proving Takeo's great affinity for pop music. He has now started to arrange tracks for various artists, TV shows and animation and is also in great demand as a composer for modern dance choreographies. Takeo Toyama's songs sound very cheerful, as if they were made for Saturday morning cartoons. But despite their cheeriness, the compositions drift into saturnine realms, too, occasionally awakening the evil monster in a classic silent movie. His new release, Etudes, features an extraordinary spectrum of sounds: piano, melodica, strings, accordion. The catchy melodies are flattering to the ears before explosive and melancholic thunderstorms pierce the mind. Recurring structures don't materialize. Takeo tells us his little stories in a kind of blue and very authentic manner, browsing all the different worlds of international sound-design. Classical music and jazz meet buzzing electronica.

Artist:	MOBIUS, GUIDO
Title:	Gebirge
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 049CD

This is the third full-length release by Berlin's Guido M�bius. First of all, Gebirge sounds quite different from everything M�bius has previously released. His first two albums, Klisten (Klangkrieg) and Dishoek (Dekoder) featured melodies on a collision course with sounds, styles and idiosyncrasies, melancholy and humor. Everything was interwoven, multi-layered and contrasting. But despite their complexity and their finesse, neither of the two records sounds severe or academic; instead, they delight with genial and intelligent instrumental music. Whereas these two predecessors operate to a great extent without any beats or basses, Guido M�bius makes full use of the latter on Gebirge. Here they are: straight bass drums, sub-basses and handclaps. Also present: all kinds of machinery noises serving as snaredrum-surrogates, clanking metal, spluttering cables and funk-guitars. Furthermore: brass sections that sound as if the inmates of a tuberculosis sanatorium had reluctantly reached for their trumpets. It is out of these elements that Guido M�bius constructs rough, creaking tracks that, despite their strangeness, prompt swaying hips, every time. After all, Gebirge was greatly inspired by M�bius' live sets, which fervently dovetail funk with experimental, noise and techno. And yet Gebirge has another surprise: vocals. M�bius used 4-track-virtuoso Andreas Gogol aka go:gol as a lead singer for this record. Gogol, a multi-instrumentalist himself with a preference for grotesque sound constructions, employs a multitude of onomatopoeic, imaginary tongues on Gebirge. At times, it sounds as if James Brown's body had received Kurt Schwitters' soul. M�bius masters the art of subtly slipping us radical sounds and keeping a track in its flow even with the hardest breaks. An industrial groove mutates into a main-floor rave and eventually into a beatboxing solo. Meditative/Kraut-y guitar-string hammering turns out to be the priming for a tight beat, which again runs into playfully-filtered organ grooves, which again sound the bell for techno-rock and polyphonic brass arrangements. Guido M�bius' music is instantly recognizable because of its wit, its wealth of ideas and its very own humorous, inventive, and charming musical dialect.

Artist:	PLURAMON
Title:	The Monstrous Surplus
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 049LP

LP version. This is the fifth full-length release by Marcus Schmickler aka Pluramon. The Monstrous Surplus bears three different vocalists and as many narrative voices. The songs do not simply present a singer or songwriter self: they push the envelope of what it means to tell a story. Completely contemporary, yet unabashedly diving into moods, the album succeeds in capturing the fragmented, yet sophisticated soul of urban life: "Can't Disappear" is a story about a secret threesome relationship, "Fresh Aufhebung" is a spoken pamphlet for a break-up and "If Time Was On My Side" is a melancholic story about bad timing with love. Listeners of the previous albums will recognize a style that remains dreamy and atmospheric with pop songs that are sometimes laid-back yet melancholic, even enigmatic, at other times dramatic and intense. Featuring appearances by Julia Hummer, Julee Cruise & Jutta Koether. The fourth vocalist is Marcus himself on one song as well as background on other songs. Also responsible for the production, Marcus Schmickler is well-known in a lot of different contexts related to electronic music, let it be beat-oriented, improvised music or classical music.

Artist:	WELLS/ANNIE WHITEHEAD/STEFAN SCHNEIDER/BARBARA MORGENSTERN, BILL
Title:	Paper Of Pins
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 050CD

With the release of the album Paper Of Pins, Karaoke Kalk brings you a truly harmonious collaboration between Scottish composer and pianist Bill Wells, Annie Whitehead (Penguin Cafe Orchestra), Stefan Schneider (Mapstation, To Rococo Rot) and Berlin electronic singer/songwriter Barbara Morgenstern. Bill Wells is already known, among other things, for his 2006 release Osaka Bridge (KK 035CD) together with Maher Shalal Hash Baz, and for his release Pick Up Sticks in 2004, on which these 4 players also feature together. Mr. Wells is responsible for arrangements and samplers, while Barbara Morgenstern experiments on the keyboards, Stefan Schneider controls the synthesizers and bass and Annie Whitehead plays trombone and melodica. The coming together of this quartet on Paper Of Pins has resulted in mature, yet unforced sounding compositions. The touching number "Brown Recluse" wins you over with its catchy piano sounds and subtle trumpet which is rounded off by electronica. It's a small orchestral gem in a jazz style, which is still edgy despite its perfection. This is highlighted, for example, by the fact that you can hear the brass player drawing breath on some tracks. Certainly, the Scottish composer is no perfectionist. Far more important is the melting together of melodies and a certain strangeness in the notes used. Things start to get more abstract on pieces like "Rowing Without Oars." It's a lively mish-mash of various, sometimes piercing tone variations and swirling keyboard sounds. Occasionally fragile or impressively impulsive. Every now and then, the strongly accented horns come into play, and they couldn't sound more improvised. All in all, this is a fascinating album with emotional and also artistically-ornate melodies. In this way, every track contains its very own unique beauty and fervor.

Artist:	DAKOTA SUITE
Title:	The Night Just Keeps Coming In
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 051CD

The Night Just Keeps Coming In is the legitimate follow-up to Dakota Suite's The End Of Trying, featuring mostly subdued sound animations, flowing piano harmonies and smooth cello arrangements. Mind you, this is not a new Dakota Suite album, but a collection of adaptions and remixes, created and produced by an illustrious band of musicians -- well-known protagonists in the spheres of classical composition as well as new electronic music. The mixture could be looked at as a remake of Dakota Suite's previous album, too. The original tracks recount the sorrow and the pain the composer from Leeds is suffering from. Without any vocals or guitars, each song construes its own emotional history. The American cellist David Darling contributes to the sublime atmosphere along with artists such as Machinefabriek, Peter Broderick and The Boats who all breathe new life into the individual songs, amplifying either their gracefulness, as in Jasper Leyland's mix of "Hands Swollen With Grace," or their tragedy; for example, when Hauschka sets to music "A Quietly Gathering Tragedy" from his own perspective. Elegi's version of "All The Love I Had Was Not Enough" will send shivers down your back, "Very Early One Morning On Old Road" keeps the tension high, too. Although The End Of Trying is unique in its originality, the different adaptions just as well manage to find a suitable harmony between neo-classic and classical electronica. Particular, but very intriguing. Other artists include: Deaf Center, Arve Henriksen, Greg Haines, Hannu, Tape, Swod, Jacaszek, Emanuelle Errante, Loscil, and Dakota Suite and Nick Hawley.

Artist:	TOLOUSE LOW TRAX
Title:	Mask Talk
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 052CD

This is the debut full-length release by D�sseldorf's Detlef Weinrich aka Tolouse Low Trax. Mask Talk a distillation of the sounds of the night, possessing a musical intensity that bodes well for a different kind of dancefloor. Cool, atmospheric new wave sharpness, and a cushioned beat rate between 107 and 116 bpm call out a mechanical functionality that doesn't bow to any contemporary doctrine. This is urban music, and a true club album, harkening big city lights in Africa with chilly neon sounds from D�sseldorf. As a member of Kreidler, Weinrich has contributed to a group's cosmic vibes. Now, with his solo project, he demonstrates that an MPC and a small synthesizer ensemble are enough to bring alive futuristic dance music in the here and now. Bedroom-recorded under tense creative circumstances, the 10 tracks invoke, mostly instrumentally, an eerie atmosphere that would fit in perfectly with an early John Carpenter movie. With plenty delay on the bass figures, compact analog effects, percussive dabs and a rough blend of layers, Weinrich has, without any digital support, created quivering drum machine music, whose danceability he was able to test regularly as a resident DJ and co-owner of a D�sseldorf club/ bar. These tracks breathe the hypnotic power of his DJ sets, where he arranges diverse rhythms between Krautrock, cosmic, electronic and acid. They are also reminiscent of analog-electronic pioneers such as Cluster or Peter Baumann. Also, 1980s avant-gardists Cabaret Voltaire and Zazou Bikaye have left their mark, without Tolouse Low Trax explicitly referring to them. Mask Talk is a dark, urban solanum, full of reverb, whose melodies are never prankish, but whose minimal nonchalance is sure to help not only the dark creatures through the night. "Form is essence brought to the surface," Victor Hugo wrote 150 years ago. Mask Talk reasserts this theory as a distillate of an operating procedure seeking to subvert ingrained listening habits and to resharpen the contours of the audible.

Artist:	RITORNELL
Title:	Golden Solitude
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 052LP

LP version. This is the debut full-length release by Ritornell, a collaboration between Austria's Richard Eigner and Roman Gerold. Karaoke Kalk's head Thorsten L�tz first met Eigner back in 2006. That was in Melbourne during the Red Bull Music Academy. They got along with each other instantly and stayed in touch. Eigner and Gerold had already worked together on music for the dance performance Urgent Appetite by Canadian choreographer Laura Kappel. Golden Solitude ranges between cheerful dance tunes and high-brow audible music. Playful yet respectful, Ritornell explore the aesthetic achievements of 20th century pop and avant-garde, experimenting with bits and pieces from pop culture and acoustic and electronic sounds. As to the technical polish of this fresh emulsion of sounds, the duo was assisted by legendary leftfield electronic musician, Patrick Pulsinger. Eigner works mainly as a composer and sound-artist, but he has also contributed as a drummer to various productions, such as Patrick Wolf's album Magic Position. In 2005, he won the Elektronikland award for experimental electronic music. Besides quite a few other musical projects, he runs his own label, Wald Entertainment. Roman Gerold, an awardee himself, has been working as a pianist for various jazz bands in Austria, and composes music freelance for theater and film. Live, Ritornell showcase their material as a electro-acoustic trio together with Gerhard Daurer. They focus on improvisation with a very reduced instrumental set-up. While Gerhard Daurer maxes out the possibilities of his specially-devised gamepad-granular-synthesizer, Roman Gerold adds subtle melodies and vivid drones as well as processing the live-inputs of the acoustic instruments. Richard Eigner provides the electronic improvisations with fine acoustic rhythms and textures, playing his ride-cymbal with the use of diverse utensils such as bass bows, sizzle-chains or a toilet brush. Golden Solitude provides the listener with a modern and extremely human sound experience that unites passion and irony.

Artist:	TOOG
Title:	Goto
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 053CD

This is the second album on Karaoke Kalk for French musician, poet, blogger and director, Toog. He started his musical career in 1999 when he met the widely-venerated Scottish singer/songwriter Momus. They went on an extensive tour together, playing almost 150 shows. In 2004, Toog released his album Lou Etendue on Karaoke Kalk together with Italian actress and director Asia Argento. Goto is a collection of musical ideas, references, nostalgia and gags -- background noise with coarse exaggerations, where madness and graceful levity go hand-in-hand. Whistles and explicit statements try a balancing act between humor and serious contemplation. A musical diary, reflecting memorable encounters, experiences and oddities. Toog is helped on some tracks by David Fenech and Fashion Flesh, who the artist admired for his work with Matmos, Cornelius and Momus. The artist's wife Florence Manlik, who designed the cover, can also be heard on some songs. As Toog himself explains, "Goto is narrative, meditative. It's travel with an electronic donkey, where the fern tree line at the top of the mountains is nothing but a miniature. Slow is how my heart beats: 56 bpm."

Artist:	TOYAMA, TAKEO
Title:	Etudes
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 053LP

LP version. This is Takeo Toyama's second full-length release for the Karaoke Kalk label, previously released on the now-defunct Japan Overseas label in 2003. Takeo Toyama was born in Osaka, Japan, and his classical influence is owed to his mother who would listen to Beethoven and Chopin. Coming from a rock/pop background, the trained pianist soon discovered the world of pure instrumental sounds. His first remixes were for the well-known Japanese producer and label boss Nobukazu Takemura. 1998 saw the release of Toyama's first solo album Ground Piano, for which he recorded almost all the instruments himself, where discordant harmonies and fast-changing beats became the trademark of Takeo's sound variations. Right now, what he's becoming more and more known for throughout Europe are his digital compositions for analog instruments. Electronic transformations were the characteristics of Toyama's first release, Hello 88, on Karaoke Kalk (2003). The highlight of the album were vocal parts that reminded very much of the Beach Boys, proving Takeo's great affinity for pop music. He has now started to arrange tracks for various artists, TV shows and animation and is also in great demand as a composer for modern dance choreographies. Takeo Toyama's songs sound very cheerful, as if they were made for Saturday morning cartoons. But despite their cheeriness, the compositions drift into saturnine realms, too, occasionally awakening the evil monster in a classic silent movie. His new release, Etudes, features an extraordinary spectrum of sounds: piano, melodica, strings, accordion. The catchy melodies are flattering to the ears before explosive and melancholic thunderstorms pierce the mind. Recurring structures don't materialize. Takeo tells us his little stories in a kind of blue and very authentic manner, browsing all the different worlds of international sound-design. Classical music and jazz meet buzzing electronica.

Artist:	DONNA REGINA
Title:	The Decline Of Female Happiness
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 054CD

Cologne-based melancholic electro-pop duo Donna Regina release their sixth album for the Karaoke Kalk label. G�nther and Regina Janssen have been around longer than electronica and the term never really fit their music that well. After all, the duo from Cologne are really all about writing songs, not just producing tracks, and certainly not electronica. But you can't take such categorization so literally. They fit all the characteristics that we attribute to withdrawn and playful electronic music with all its nuances. Donna Regina are masters of reservation, allusion and vagueness. Only they are capable of keeping listeners in suspense in the way that they do. For example, the piece "Vague," with its really stunning Giorgio Moroder bass-line, creates expectation right from the first note. They knowingly build up tension and consistently hold that level right through to the end without ever letting up. Donna Regina would rather play one note briefly than two for too long. They deliver a wonderful production that is sonically varied and full of ideas. Their sound and their songs are elegant and melancholy, in varying degrees. And for as long as anyone can remember, Regina Janssen has been singing like the great Nico, who after all, was also from the Rhein area. And yet The Decline Of Female Happiness is somehow different. But Donna Regina wouldn't be Donna Regina if this difference was noticeable at first glance. It seems as if the band, or at least its front woman, is taking stock with this album. Not only in the title track does The Decline Of Female Happiness deal with womanly situatedness and self-reflection. Loneliness, growing old and everyday life are also topics. These songs speak of experience and perhaps also of disillusionment. It's this sublime aloofness that makes The Decline Of Female Happiness such a special album, and the music sounds equally at ease and experienced. Donna Regina achieves a kind of unity with their songwriting that many strive towards, though few attain.

Artist:	WELLS/ANNIE WHITEHEAD/STEFAN SCHNEIDER/BARBARA MORGENSTERN, BILL
Title:	Paper Of Pins
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP+CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 054LP

LP version, including a CD version of the entire album. With the release of the album Paper Of Pins, Karaoke Kalk brings you a truly harmonious collaboration between Scottish composer and pianist Bill Wells, Annie Whitehead (Penguin Cafe Orchestra), Stefan Schneider (Mapstation, To Rococo Rot) and Berlin electronic singer/songwriter Barbara Morgenstern. Bill Wells is already known, among other things, for his 2006 release Osaka Bridge (KK 035CD) together with Maher Shalal Hash Baz, and for his release Pick Up Sticks in 2004, on which these 4 players also feature together. Mr. Wells is responsible for arrangements and samplers, while Barbara Morgenstern experiments on the keyboards, Stefan Schneider controls the synthesizers and bass and Annie Whitehead plays trombone and melodica. The coming together of this quartet on Paper Of Pins has resulted in mature, yet unforced sounding compositions. The touching number "Brown Recluse" wins you over with its catchy piano sounds and subtle trumpet which is rounded off by electronica. It's a small orchestral gem in a jazz style, which is still edgy despite its perfection. This is highlighted, for example, by the fact that you can hear the brass player drawing breath on some tracks. Certainly, the Scottish composer is no perfectionist. Far more important is the melting together of melodies and a certain strangeness in the notes used. Things start to get more abstract on pieces like "Rowing Without Oars." It's a lively mish-mash of various, sometimes piercing tone variations and swirling keyboard sounds. Occasionally fragile or impressively impulsive. Every now and then, the strongly accented horns come into play, and they couldn't sound more improvised. All in all, this is a fascinating album with emotional and also artistically-ornate melodies. In this way, every track contains its very own unique beauty and fervor.

Artist:	ROMAN
Title:	Roman
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 055CD

Roman's third album can only be described as pop: rhythmic, melodic, intelligent and straight from the heart. That's not to say that the Cologne-based singer-songwriter, producer and filmmaker has lost any of his desire to experiment. Indeed, there has always been an avant-garde element in pop music, in transforming and condensing something intimate into a 3-minute nugget, both accessible and popular. It's this contrast that makes Roman's music seductive: his songs tell intimate stories and the multi-faceted compositions make this personal element audible. As always, he wrote and composed the whole thing himself, but was joined at the production stage this time round by Henning Schmitz and Bertil Mark. The former has already written musical history as a member of the band Kraftwerk. The latter is a drummer and producer for artists such as Von Spar, The Notwist and Die Fantastischen Vier. The recording process has also become more extravagant, Roman turning his back on bedroom production in favor of a full band set-up. It's precisely the dynamic spirit and playfulness of the band that injects his new album with an organic energy. The screaming, howling and whispering, the poetic anecdotes about everyday city life and night time walks along the harbor, fleeting neon moments in the darkness and euphoric club scenarios don't just fuel the lyrics but drive on the songs themselves. This is reflected, for example, in the song "R.I.P. Music," a real rave anthem. Roman doesn't disguise his voice throughout. He turns away from technique in favor of pure verbal expression and makes innocent dilettantism into a discipline. Musically, he wanders freely through various genres with eyes wide open: smooth ballads, banging beats, relaxing folk, D.I.Y. techno and clap-along hip-hop. It's a stylistic carousel that never stands still, constantly translating the keys of Roman's heart into rhythms, harmonies and melodies. The sound is more lavish than before, with synthesizers, laptop, a string quartet and guitar, only occasionally reverting to a reduced lo-fi structure. All the recordings have been put back through a sequencer, edited and added to on a laptop, giving the whole thing extra rawness. It's a working method that unites Roman's nerdy bedroom-production past with band collaboration and catapults this homemade aesthetic into a new, punchier context. Includes a bonus video for the track "Agog Grammer."

Artist:	WELLS & STEFAN SCHNEIDER, BILL
Title:	Pianotapes
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 056CD

Glasgow's Bill Wells is a bassist, guitarist and pianist who has worked with the likes of The Pastels and the BMX Bandits, as well as recording an album with Isobel Campbell, formerly singer/cellist in Belle & Sebastian. Wells has always been interested in areas of the avant-garde that flourish on the borderline between electronica, folk, jazz and new music. His album Osaka Bridge, which he recorded with the Japanese amateur ensemble Maher Shalal Hash Baz, is legendary. And with his own trio and octet, he also creates a truly inspiring sound. He produced the album Pick Up Sticks in 2003, which was the first time he worked with Stefan Schneider (To Rococo Rot, Mapstation). Schneider and Wells developed the idea for Pianotapes together and presented it live for the first time at the piano festival Approximation, at Salon des Amateurs in D�sseldorf. Actually, what Bill Wells and Stefan Schneider are doing on Pianotapes is chamber music. Wells plays fragile scales on the Bechstein grand piano, while Schneider records them on two old reel-to-reel tape machines and plays the recordings back at altered speeds. This real-time recording process is reflected in Well's piano playing, who replies with modulation and key changes, building the sounds and ideas into his improvisation, playing with them and developing them. For the recordings, the two musicians only rehearsed the technical set-up, everything else came about through improvisation. And the result is a rich tapestry of sound. Occasionally, Schneider and Wells add synthesizer sounds into this counterplay of original and copy. The atmosphere has something of a fairytale quality to it, but it is never too eccentric. This is music that has been arranged with great clarity to make for something atmospheric and fascinatingly timeless. Cover design by Andr� Niebur, part of the artist's collective hobbypopMUSEUM.

Artist:	ERRANTE, EMANUELE
Title:	Time Elapsing Handheld
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 057CD

This is the third full-length album by Italian experimental musician and sound artist Emanuele Errante. His debut album Migrations came out in 2007 on Apegenine to great acclaim. Along with Hauschka, Peter Broderick and The Books, Errante remixed his Karaoke Kalk label-mates Dakota Suite for their album The Night Just Keeps Coming In. This stunning album kicks off with the appropriately-titled opening track "Leaving To Nowhere," and immediately, the listener is captivated by the many layers Errante's delicately-interwoven soundscapes. What's fascinating about Emanuele Errante's work is the way he combines acoustic sounds and electronic production methods to great effect. "Made To Give" was written in collaboration with English sound artist Simon Scott who was formerly in Slowdive, and is now one member of Seavault (with Antony Ryan from ISAN) and has also worked with Brian Eno, Machinefabriek, Jasper TX and Nils Frahm, amongst others. Errante walks a fine line between an organic, analog timbre on one hand and the modern digital world on the other. While the guitar, piano and harp all play a great role, it's never too long before these instantly-recognizable acoustic tones become engulfed by synthesized strings, sampled noise or digital effects. Time Elapsing Handheld plays with our preconceived perception of music and temporality allowing us a refreshingly positive new outlook. The album is illustrated beautifully in Valentina Russo's stunning cover artwork, and with one amazing video for "Dorian's Mirror" already finished by director M�lanie Skriabine plus Errante's collaboration with Italian experimental theater group Acchiappastorie, there is no lack of visual stimulus to accompany the recordings contained within. Time Elapsing Handheld will appeal to anyone interested in serious new music and might be especially interesting for fans of artists such as Arvo P�rt, Marsen Jules or Deaf Center. This is definitely ideal music for contemplation while listening from the comfortable solitude of headphones. The calm and tranquil atmospheres that Emanuele Errante evokes lend themselves perfectly to sitting back and letting the music sweep you along on a sonic journey.

Artist:	TOOG
Title:	Goto
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 057LP

LP version. This is the second album on Karaoke Kalk for French musician, poet, blogger and director, Toog. He started his musical career in 1999 when he met the widely-venerated Scottish singer/songwriter Momus. They went on an extensive tour together, playing almost 150 shows. In 2004, Toog released his album Lou Etendue on Karaoke Kalk together with Italian actress and director Asia Argento. Goto is a collection of musical ideas, references, nostalgia and gags -- background noise with coarse exaggerations, where madness and graceful levity go hand-in-hand. Whistles and explicit statements try a balancing act between humor and serious contemplation. A musical diary, reflecting memorable encounters, experiences and oddities. Toog is helped on some tracks by David Fenech and Fashion Flesh, who the artist admired for his work with Matmos, Cornelius and Momus. The artist's wife Florence Manlik, who designed the cover, can also be heard on some songs. As Toog himself explains, "Goto is narrative, meditative. It's travel with an electronic donkey, where the fern tree line at the top of the mountains is nothing but a miniature. Slow is how my heart beats: 56 bpm." Includes a download voucher for the entire album, plus one extra track.

Artist:	CHANNEL IN CHANNEL OUT
Title:	The Author And The Narrator
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 058CD

Channel In Channel Out is the musical project of Portland, Oregon's Marcus Cotten and The Author And The Narrator marks his debut release on Karaoke Kalk. Channel In Channel Out fuses so many styles that it really is hard to know just what is going on between the input and the output that is this artist's creative process. His art is like some alchemical spell, fusing genres as diverse as good old fashioned singer-songwriting with moments of experimental electronica. At times, Channel In Channel Out's music verges on the psychedelic, but no matter how far-out the compositions become, they remain songs at heart. The songwriting has something of the throw-away, sketch-like approach of Guided By Voices, but there is clearly a profound message concealed within each of these songs, and although one might have to delve deep through many layers of figurative disguise to work it out, this is part of the enjoyment: much more than mere songs, the tracks are like a kind of emotional riddle. While the tunes generally defy comparison, Cotten's voice has a somewhat familiar quality to it. Then out of nowhere, there are moments of loopy, ambient bliss that quickly give way to almost bluesy acoustic guitar riffs, ending in an analog bubble-bath that could easily have been recorded by Delia Derbyshire or Raymond Scott. The Author And The Narrator is constantly full of surprises. One really never quite knows what to expect, other than a thoroughly delightful album and enjoyable listening experience.

Artist:	DONNA REGINA
Title:	The Decline Of Female Happiness
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 058LP

LP version. Cologne-based melancholic electro-pop duo Donna Regina release their sixth album for the Karaoke Kalk label. G�nther and Regina Janssen have been around longer than electronica and the term never really fit their music that well. After all, the duo from Cologne are really all about writing songs, not just producing tracks, and certainly not electronica. But you can't take such categorization so literally. They fit all the characteristics that we attribute to withdrawn and playful electronic music with all its nuances. Donna Regina are masters of reservation, allusion and vagueness. Only they are capable of keeping listeners in suspense in the way that they do. For example, the piece "Vague," with its really stunning Giorgio Moroder bass-line, creates expectation right from the first note. They knowingly build up tension and consistently hold that level right through to the end without ever letting up. Donna Regina would rather play one note briefly than two for too long. They deliver a wonderful production that is sonically varied and full of ideas. Their sound and their songs are elegant and melancholy, in varying degrees. And for as long as anyone can remember, Regina Janssen has been singing like the great Nico, who after all, was also from the Rhein area. And yet The Decline Of Female Happiness is somehow different. But Donna Regina wouldn't be Donna Regina if this difference was noticeable at first glance. It seems as if the band, or at least its front woman, is taking stock with this album. Not only in the title track does The Decline Of Female Happiness deal with womanly situatedness and self-reflection. Loneliness, growing old and everyday life are also topics. These songs speak of experience and perhaps also of disillusionment. It's this sublime aloofness that makes The Decline Of Female Happiness such a special album, and the music sounds equally at ease and experienced. Donna Regina achieves a kind of unity with their songwriting that many strive towards, though few attain. Includes a voucher for a free download of the entire album, including an extra track.

Artist:	DAKOTA SUITE
Title:	The Hearts Of Empty
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 059CD

Following the release of The End Of Trying (KK 046CD) on Karaoke Kalk in 2008 and 2009's The Night Just Keeps Coming In (KK 051CD), Dakota Suite are back with a new album of equally mesmerizing beauty. The band are led by Chris Hooson and completed by David Buxton and previously also Richard Formby. They released their first album in 1998 and The Hearts Of Empty marks the significant milestone of being the band's 10th full-length studio album. All the compositions on The Hearts Of Empty are performed by David Buxton with a perfectly sparse instrumentation. This sublimely minimal combination of piano, double-bass and percussive brushes makes for a truly captivating sound. David really exhibits a mastery both in the concise nature of the arrangements as well as in their precise delivery. Every note sounds as if it is played with directed emotion, carefully placed and skillfully executed. Of course, it's a clich� from the jazz scene, "it's the notes you don't play..." but the grain of truth within this generalization certainly applies to Dakota Suite. Their music is at times sombre, meditative and withdrawn, but never is it forced or over-cluttered. Every melodic and rhythmic change seems to flow naturally with the result that the music creates a wonderfully relaxed listening environment. Indeed, jazz has a strong musical influence on the style of the songs; most noticeable in the lilting piano refrain of "Eskimo Nebula" and the impeccable rim-shot and brushes drum work on "Vermont Canyon Road." And while this rich, organic acoustic timbre pervades the entire album, there are a few exceptions, such as the scientifically-titled interlude "M-Theory" and the entrancing ambient tune "The Ladder," which see a brief excursion into the more digital world of experimental electronics through the use of synths and looping. The energy of the recordings conveys a well-defined mood, such as on the title track, which is reserved yet uplifting at the same time. Although Dakota Suite may be inspired by jazz, they have taken it in an entirely different direction. The Hearts Of Empty goes way beyond the traditional concept of a jazz trio, foraying into fields such as new music, experimental and neo-classical, amongst other new terrains.

Artist:	ROMAN
Title:	Roman
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 059LP

LP version. Roman's third album can only be described as pop: rhythmic, melodic, intelligent and straight from the heart. That's not to say that the Cologne-based singer-songwriter, producer and filmmaker has lost any of his desire to experiment. Indeed, there has always been an avant-garde element in pop music, in transforming and condensing something intimate into a 3-minute nugget, both accessible and popular. It's this contrast that makes Roman's music seductive: his songs tell intimate stories and the multi-faceted compositions make this personal element audible. As always, he wrote and composed the whole thing himself, but was joined at the production stage this time round by Henning Schmitz and Bertil Mark. The former has already written musical history as a member of the band Kraftwerk. The latter is a drummer and producer for artists such as Von Spar, The Notwist and Die Fantastischen Vier. The recording process has also become more extravagant, Roman turning his back on bedroom production in favor of a full band set-up. It's precisely the dynamic spirit and playfulness of the band that injects his new album with an organic energy. The screaming, howling and whispering, the poetic anecdotes about everyday city life and night time walks along the harbor, fleeting neon moments in the darkness and euphoric club scenarios don't just fuel the lyrics but drive on the songs themselves. This is reflected, for example, in the song "R.I.P. Music," a real rave anthem. Roman doesn't disguise his voice throughout. He turns away from technique in favor of pure verbal expression and makes innocent dilettantism into a discipline. Musically, he wanders freely through various genres with eyes wide open: smooth ballads, banging beats, relaxing folk, D.I.Y. techno and clap-along hip-hop. It's a stylistic carousel that never stands still, constantly translating the keys of Roman's heart into rhythms, harmonies and melodies. The sound is more lavish than before, with synthesizers, laptop, a string quartet and guitar, only occasionally reverting to a reduced lo-fi structure. All the recordings have been put back through a sequencer, edited and added to on a laptop, giving the whole thing extra rawness. It's a working method that unites Roman's nerdy bedroom-production past with band collaboration and catapults this homemade aesthetic into a new, punchier context.

Artist:	STATIC
Title:	Freedom Of Noise
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 060CD

Static is Berlin-based musician and producer Hanno Leichtmann. Besides his work as a member of the trio Groupshow along with Jan Jelinek and Andrew Pekler, and Denseland with David Moss and Hannes Strobl, Static is his main solo project. While thinking of how to follow up his 2005 release Re: Talking About Memories (CCO 031CD/LP), Leichtmann kept busy with his many other projects. Then, during a festival for improvised music in Berlin, he struck upon the idea of working with free improvising musicians, but to deploy them in a pop context. The main collaborators for the production of Freedom Of Noise were harpist Clare Cooper, the trumpet player Axel D�rner and the saxophonist Tobias Delius. In this way, Leichtmann was able to perfectly combine Static's loop-based methodology with the additional expressive possibilities of having all those great musicians involved. So Static was able to move freely between arrangements and improvised passages. Leichtmann also brought the following players on board to enrich the compositions: Nicholas Bussmann on cello, Zoe Irvine on electronics, Magda Mayas on organ, David Moss on voice, Andrea Neumann on inside piano, Gert-Jan Prins on analog devices, Maura Rougieux on background vocals, Clayton Thomas on double bass, Kassian Troyer on table guitar and Sabine Vogel on flutes. All these musicians help to bring the vibrancy of a full live band to the album to make for a richly detailed tapestry of sound. On top of all these talented instrumentalists Leichtmann invited the vocalists Falko Teichmann from Berlin and Yanira Castro from Madrid to sing on a number of tunes, adding to the pop element of the album. The result of Static recruiting such a diverse host of other musicians is striking. Musically, the record is extremely multifaceted, ranging from moments of eclectic pop, to experimental periods of neo-folk ambient and cut-up electronica. No doubt, Leichtmann has succeeded in his goal of creating a new direction for Static. Freedom Of Noise is a refreshing and adventurous musical journey.

Artist:	WELLS & STEFAN SCHNEIDER, BILL
Title:	Pianotapes
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 060LP

LP version. Glasgow's Bill Wells is a bassist, guitarist and pianist who has worked with the likes of The Pastels and the BMX Bandits, as well as recording an album with Isobel Campbell, formerly singer/cellist in Belle & Sebastian. Wells has always been interested in areas of the avant-garde that flourish on the borderline between electronica, folk, jazz and new music. His album Osaka Bridge, which he recorded with the Japanese amateur ensemble Maher Shalal Hash Baz, is legendary. And with his own trio and octet, he also creates a truly inspiring sound. He produced the album Pick Up Sticks in 2003, which was the first time he worked with Stefan Schneider (To Rococo Rot, Mapstation). Schneider and Wells developed the idea for Pianotapes together and presented it live for the first time at the piano festival Approximation, at Salon des Amateurs in D�sseldorf. Actually, what Bill Wells and Stefan Schneider are doing on Pianotapes is chamber music. Wells plays fragile scales on the Bechstein grand piano, while Schneider records them on two old reel-to-reel tape machines and plays the recordings back at altered speeds. This real-time recording process is reflected in Well's piano playing, who replies with modulation and key changes, building the sounds and ideas into his improvisation, playing with them and developing them. For the recordings, the two musicians only rehearsed the technical set-up, everything else came about through improvisation. And the result is a rich tapestry of sound. Occasionally, Schneider and Wells add synthesizer sounds into this counterplay of original and copy. The atmosphere has something of a fairytale quality to it, but it is never too eccentric. This is music that has been arranged with great clarity to make for something atmospheric and fascinatingly timeless. Cover design by Andr� Niebur, part of the artist's collective hobbypopMUSEUM. Includes a free download voucher for the entire album, plus two extra tracks.

Artist:	CHANNEL IN CHANNEL OUT
Title:	The Author And The Narrator
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 062LP

LP version. Channel In Channel Out is the musical project of Portland, Oregon's Marcus Cotten and The Author And The Narrator marks his debut release on Karaoke Kalk. Channel In Channel Out fuses so many styles that it really is hard to know just what is going on between the input and the output that is this artist's creative process. His art is like some alchemical spell, fusing genres as diverse as good old fashioned singer-songwriting with moments of experimental electronica. At times, Channel In Channel Out's music verges on the psychedelic, but no matter how far-out the compositions become, they remain songs at heart. The songwriting has something of the throw-away, sketch-like approach of Guided By Voices, but there is clearly a profound message concealed within each of these songs, and although one might have to delve deep through many layers of figurative disguise to work it out, this is part of the enjoyment: much more than mere songs, the tracks are like a kind of emotional riddle. While the tunes generally defy comparison, Cotten's voice has a somewhat familiar quality to it. Then out of nowhere, there are moments of loopy, ambient bliss that quickly give way to almost bluesy acoustic guitar riffs, ending in an analog bubble-bath that could easily have been recorded by Delia Derbyshire or Raymond Scott. The Author And The Narrator is constantly full of surprises. One really never quite knows what to expect, other than a thoroughly delightful album and enjoyable listening experience. Includes free download voucher for the whole album.

Artist:	DAKOTA SUITE
Title:	The Hearts Of Empty
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 063LP

LP version. Following the release of The End Of Trying (KK 046CD) on Karaoke Kalk in 2008 and 2009's The Night Just Keeps Coming In (KK 051CD), Dakota Suite are back with a new album of equally mesmerizing beauty. The band are led by Chris Hooson and completed by David Buxton and previously also Richard Formby. They released their first album in 1998 and The Hearts Of Empty marks the significant milestone of being the band's 10th full-length studio album. All the compositions on The Hearts Of Empty are performed by David Buxton with a perfectly sparse instrumentation. This sublimely minimal combination of piano, double-bass and percussive brushes makes for a truly captivating sound. David really exhibits a mastery both in the concise nature of the arrangements as well as in their precise delivery. Every note sounds as if it is played with directed emotion, carefully placed and skillfully executed. Of course, it's a clich� from the jazz scene, "it's the notes you don't play..." but the grain of truth within this generalization certainly applies to Dakota Suite. Their music is at times sombre, meditative and withdrawn, but never is it forced or over-cluttered. Every melodic and rhythmic change seems to flow naturally with the result that the music creates a wonderfully relaxed listening environment. Indeed, jazz has a strong musical influence on the style of the songs; most noticeable in the lilting piano refrain of "Eskimo Nebula" and the impeccable rim-shot and brushes drum work on "Vermont Canyon Road." And while this rich, organic acoustic timbre pervades the entire album, there are a few exceptions, such as the scientifically-titled interlude "M-Theory" and the entrancing ambient tune "The Ladder," which see a brief excursion into the more digital world of experimental electronics through the use of synths and looping. The energy of the recordings conveys a well-defined mood, such as on the title track, which is reserved yet uplifting at the same time. Although Dakota Suite may be inspired by jazz, they have taken it in an entirely different direction. The Hearts Of Empty goes way beyond the traditional concept of a jazz trio, foraying into fields such as new music, experimental and neo-classical, amongst other new terrains. Includes a free download coupon.

Artist:	STATIC
Title:	Freedom Of Noise
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 064LP

LP version. Static is Berlin-based musician and producer Hanno Leichtmann. Besides his work as a member of the trio Groupshow along with Jan Jelinek and Andrew Pekler, and Denseland with David Moss and Hannes Strobl, Static is his main solo project. While thinking of how to follow up his 2005 release Re: Talking About Memories (CCO 031CD/LP), Leichtmann kept busy with his many other projects. Then, during a festival for improvised music in Berlin, he struck upon the idea of working with free improvising musicians, but to deploy them in a pop context. The main collaborators for the production of Freedom Of Noise were harpist Clare Cooper, the trumpet player Axel D�rner and the saxophonist Tobias Delius. In this way, Leichtmann was able to perfectly combine Static's loop-based methodology with the additional expressive possibilities of having all those great musicians involved. So Static was able to move freely between arrangements and improvised passages. Leichtmann also brought the following players on board to enrich the compositions: Nicholas Bussmann on cello, Zoe Irvine on electronics, Magda Mayas on organ, David Moss on voice, Andrea Neumann on inside piano, Gert-Jan Prins on analog devices, Maura Rougieux on background vocals, Clayton Thomas on double bass, Kassian Troyer on table guitar and Sabine Vogel on flutes. All these musicians help to bring the vibrancy of a full live band to the album to make for a richly detailed tapestry of sound. On top of all these talented instrumentalists Leichtmann invited the vocalists Falko Teichmann from Berlin and Yanira Castro from Madrid to sing on a number of tunes, adding to the pop element of the album. The result of Static recruiting such a diverse host of other musicians is striking. Musically, the record is extremely multifaceted, ranging from moments of eclectic pop, to experimental periods of neo-folk ambient and cut-up electronica. No doubt, Leichtmann has succeeded in his goal of creating a new direction for Static. Freedom Of Noise is a refreshing and adventurous musical journey.

Artist:	J.R.PLANKTON
Title:	Neon
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 065CD

Karaoke Kalk introduces another exciting new artist to their roster. J.R.Plankton is a collaborative project by Jens Str�ver and Robert Ohm. Str�ver also manages the M=minimal label. His first collaboration with studio-nerd and multi-instrumentalist Robert Ohm was an hour-long radio-play/sound collage about the legendary composer Moondog, repeatedly broadcasted on German radio nationwide. Now, their own pure musical work Neon is nothing less than a tour de force. From the word go, the album sets an incredibly high standard. Opener "Musique Electronique" is, without a doubt, a nod to the founding fathers of German electronic music, Kraftwerk. The highly-charged electro style laid down on this opening track sets the pace for what follows over the remaining 37 minutes of the album. Clocking in at a massive 8 minutes, "City Jungle" is epic. Musically, the track switches down a gear though entering a more atmospheric world of ambient oscillations and arpeggiated synth sounds, while the tune moves towards a more driving, industrial feel towards the end. "Sundance" kicks in with a throbbing slap bass part, soon to be followed by wah-wahed guitars, all of which make for a surprise disco-funk track on this otherwise electro-oriented album. This is clearly a feel-good track and is sure to have any room jumping in seconds. The penultimate track "Nakamura" starts as another downbeat foray into ambient but again builds to reach a powerful, minimal crescendo. The track makes powerful use of textures to paint a sonic landscape which is a world unto itself. And this superb album draws to a close with "Regen" (trans. "Rain"), which is another masterpiece of arpeggio action. The tune teasingly implies that it might kick off at any moment, but the beat remains absent, creating instead a hypnotic tension. Neon has all the elements one might wish for from a modern electronic record. The experimental nature of some of the more protracted interludes should appeal to fans of Kraut and electronica: these moments are ideal for losing oneself in the trance-inducing intimacy of one's headphones. At the same time, there's plenty on the album to interest all you DJs out there who would do well to drop some of the more uptempo tracks on Neon. Debut albums don't come any stronger than this.

Artist:	J.R.PLANKTON
Title:	Neon
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	KK 065LP

LP version. Karaoke Kalk introduces another exciting new artist to their roster. J.R.Plankton is a collaborative project by Jens Str�ver and Robert Ohm. Str�ver also manages the M=minimal label. His first collaboration with studio-nerd and multi-instrumentalist Robert Ohm was an hour-long radio-play/sound collage about the legendary composer Moondog, repeatedly broadcasted on German radio nationwide. Now, their own pure musical work Neon is nothing less than a tour de force. From the word go, the album sets an incredibly high standard. Opener "Musique Electronique" is, without a doubt, a nod to the founding fathers of German electronic music, Kraftwerk. The highly-charged electro style laid down on this opening track sets the pace for what follows over the remaining 37 minutes of the album. Clocking in at a massive 8 minutes, "City Jungle" is epic. Musically, the track switches down a gear though entering a more atmospheric world of ambient oscillations and arpeggiated synth sounds, while the tune moves towards a more driving, industrial feel towards the end. "Sundance" kicks in with a throbbing slap bass part, soon to be followed by wah-wahed guitars, all of which make for a surprise disco-funk track on this otherwise electro-oriented album. This is clearly a feel-good track and is sure to have any room jumping in seconds. The penultimate track "Nakamura" starts as another downbeat foray into ambient but again builds to reach a powerful, minimal crescendo. The track makes powerful use of textures to paint a sonic landscape which is a world unto itself. And this superb album draws to a close with "Regen" (trans. "Rain"), which is another masterpiece of arpeggio action. The tune teasingly implies that it might kick off at any moment, but the beat remains absent, creating instead a hypnotic tension. Neon has all the elements one might wish for from a modern electronic record. The experimental nature of some of the more protracted interludes should appeal to fans of Kraut and electronica: these moments are ideal for losing oneself in the trance-inducing intimacy of one's headphones. At the same time, there's plenty on the album to interest all you DJs out there who would do well to drop some of the more uptempo tracks on Neon. Debut albums don't come any stronger than this.

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Artist:	WUNDER
Title:
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 002CD

Artist:	SENKING
Title:	Thaw
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	12"
Price:	$8.50
Catalog #:	KK 012EP

Artist:	MASAKATSU, TAKAGI
Title:	Eating
Label:	KARAOKE KALK (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	KK 023LP