Rhythmism.comQ&A with Paul Kalkbrenner | Sonar Barcelona
by rhythmism
Thursday, Jun 9th 2011, 11:58 AM
Paul Kalkbrenner is a producer and performer with allegiance and awareness. Allegiance to his studio gear and production methods, and an awareness of his influences and their impact on his life.
Born in East Berlin, 1989 brought a new era for the city and Paul's steady progression towards artistry. With the fall of the wall came acid house and techno, and a burgeoning love of music that eventually blossomed in the late '90s, leading to half a dozen releases on BPitch Control through the past 12 years, multiple EPs, an epic soundtrack and starring role in Berlin Calling, plus an oft-crazy touring schedule that has seen up to 162 gigs a year. Through this, Paul has developed a loyal following of fans, all addicted to his deliberate, delicate, sensitive, and overpowering productions that strike soft at home yet hard in the club or live arena.
His newest release, Icke Wieder, is another detailed, melodic, and consistently high caliber effort, with many similarities to his Berlin Calling soundtrack in timbre and vibe: not a surprise since the album was 3 years in the making, delayed by a touring schedule congruent with the stardom and public response to the film. While there is no massive standout single like "Sky and Sand", Paul is an artist whose prowess as a producer consistently delivers rock-solid tracks. While the homogeny between his past two releases is discernable, and could possibly be posed as a criticism, such critiques miss the big picture - Paul Kalkbrenner's sound and music is unique unto itself. It sounds like, for lack of a better description, Paul Kalkbrenner. That makes it a great release, as electronic music needs more voices such as his that differentiate themselves from the crowd and stand out on their own.
Paul is out on the road right now, and will be throughout the summer, including a set at Sonar by Night in Barcelona on Saturday, June 18th. Rhythmism.com will be there covering this year, so stay tuned for full reviews and details.
Hello, this is Paul Kalkbrenner.
Hi Paul, how are you?
I am good, very good.
Great, happy to chat with you. Tell me a little bit about where you grew up.
I grew up in the German Democratic Republic of East Germany, in Berlin. I was from the socialist party, it was, um, well, it looked a bit like the Hitler Youth, what can I say. But, then I got out, and as the wall came down in '89, it all changed my life. I think that if the wall hadn't come down I would never have been in music, would have been running a business... Maybe. Something boring.
What are some of your first memories of electronic music back then?
During unification, maybe (when I was) 13 or so, I just remember 8 bars, and somebody rapping [laughs]. that's all we had, a bit of music and somebody rapping. I had a double tapedeck, two tapes with the same short song. I would pause one, and start the other at the beginning. That's how I started.
You're well known for not DJing: you have a specific set up of gear that you stick with for performance and also in the studio. Do you think that's where it came from, the limited access from your youth?
Yea, I think so. The fact that there were no laptops, no software, we had all analogue gear, and you had to get it right on the first try. If I would have learned how to make music on Ableton live, with samples, then I wouldn't be able to play live like this.
So what do you think about the effect of Ableton Live, and kids who don't even know what quantization is?
If you look at music these days, its so overproduced, so fluffy. You can do good music with very simple tools. When you're admiring technology or aesthetics it's just blinding you, it's hard to explain, but do you know what I mean?
I definitely know what you mean. So lets talk about your early career, how did you meet Ellen Allien?
Oh, just at one of those brilliant parties. I wanted to give her music, but I didn't have CDs or digital, we had cassettes. She laughed, said that it sounded okay, but you have to get something that sounds better. It was '98, something like that.
There is a well-established association between you, her, and BPitch Control in general. Who are some of the people who influenced your career that we wouldn't know about?
I would usually say general things, Detroit, acid (house). Maybe "Minimal Nation" (Robert Hood), mainly it was heavy Detroit techno. I can't really name specfiics as much as general musical styles.
Over the years you have used lots of the same gear, but your sound has changed: how would you describe those changes?
I think the biggest thing for a musician is to guide your sound through the times. My music, even just by tempo, is slower now, a bit more chill, I'm not 20 anymore, you know? [laughs] When I play live I always alter my songs a bit, make them better for concerts.
I don't care so much about the labels anymore (techno, electronica), My ideas, the way it's done, that's what is important. Over the years my music has been called many different things, electro in France, even trance in some spots. To me the secret to success with music is to create something you can't copy, so genres don't matter.
Tell me a bit about your new label?
It's not a label, it's just a platform for what I'm doing right now. I grew out of the whole scene a bit, and so created a legal platform for my own work.
So you don't see yourself as ever becoming a label manager or anything like that?
No no no.
Tell me a bit about the new album.
Hard to describe, often trying to talk about music is like trying to dance architecture. I've stopped trying to talk about it. This album took me 3 years, especially after Berlin Calling, I was very lazy, I wasn't in the studio at all. The time it took to complete also makes it difficult to describe.
I think that doing a 162 shows in a year doesn't qualify as lazy.
Well, last year was less actually, maybe about a hundred. Right now I dont want to see the studio again for a long time. I will leave it alone now, at least until next year.
So what do you see as your next project?
Lots of touring, touring for the new album.
And if you weren't a musician what would you be doing?
Ahh, I don't know. If I wasn't so lazy, my dream would have been to be a huge, well… What would be a quarterback in the US, playing football here.
A rockstar in many forms.
[laughs] Right! That's why I'm just so happy that the wall came down, because otherwise I would definitely do something shitty right now. If I would see something cool I wouldn't be able to do it. It was so isolated back then. If you are dilligent, and I consider myself diligent, now you can do whatever you want.
Even now, I'm just very happy, very happy that the wall came down. You did good America, first from the Nazis, then from the Bolsheviks, you freed us twice.
So this brings up something interesting, something that lots of people in America don't know much about… Describe the effect of the wall falling on electronic music in Germany and Berlin.
Berlin is always a changing city. There is a saying, Berlin never is, it's always on its way to becoming something. The city divided, and then it comes down, it was enormous, and when combined with acid from the UK and techno from Detroit, all the ingredients were there, new music, new freedom.
And over the past dozen years or so Berlin has changed again, and electronic music lovers around the world now want to come.
The Mecca of techno.
Exactly, the Mecca of techno, so what do you think about this influx?
I think that at the moment, the guys who play here every weekend in front of 50,000 people, they play to all the people who come in on Easy Jet and Ryan Air. I think that with Berlin Calling we catch the peak of the scene. Sometimes it becomes a little bit too much. I'm actually glad that on the weekends I'm usually not in town, or I'm living just out of town.
So you're going to be playing Sonar in Barcelona this year, we are looking forward to that show.
We had usually a label showcase in past years, with BPitch. This time I play Sonar by Night. I remember the date, the 18th of June, it's on a Saturday, although I don't want to look forward too much because I like to live in the moment, stay in the now. I have so much going on now I don't want to know too much about it. [laughs]
paulkalkbrenner.net
www.facebook.com/paulkalkbrenner
2011.sonar.es
www.facebook.com/SonarFestivalOfficialPage
twitter.com/sonarfestival
Paul Kalkbrenner at Movement Electronic Music Festival 2011
Photo Credit: Chris Soltis for Movement Festival 2011
Born in East Berlin, 1989 brought a new era for the city and Paul's steady progression towards artistry. With the fall of the wall came acid house and techno, and a burgeoning love of music that eventually blossomed in the late '90s, leading to half a dozen releases on BPitch Control through the past 12 years, multiple EPs, an epic soundtrack and starring role in Berlin Calling, plus an oft-crazy touring schedule that has seen up to 162 gigs a year. Through this, Paul has developed a loyal following of fans, all addicted to his deliberate, delicate, sensitive, and overpowering productions that strike soft at home yet hard in the club or live arena.
His newest release, Icke Wieder, is another detailed, melodic, and consistently high caliber effort, with many similarities to his Berlin Calling soundtrack in timbre and vibe: not a surprise since the album was 3 years in the making, delayed by a touring schedule congruent with the stardom and public response to the film. While there is no massive standout single like "Sky and Sand", Paul is an artist whose prowess as a producer consistently delivers rock-solid tracks. While the homogeny between his past two releases is discernable, and could possibly be posed as a criticism, such critiques miss the big picture - Paul Kalkbrenner's sound and music is unique unto itself. It sounds like, for lack of a better description, Paul Kalkbrenner. That makes it a great release, as electronic music needs more voices such as his that differentiate themselves from the crowd and stand out on their own.
Paul is out on the road right now, and will be throughout the summer, including a set at Sonar by Night in Barcelona on Saturday, June 18th. Rhythmism.com will be there covering this year, so stay tuned for full reviews and details.
Hello, this is Paul Kalkbrenner.
Hi Paul, how are you?
I am good, very good.
Great, happy to chat with you. Tell me a little bit about where you grew up.
I grew up in the German Democratic Republic of East Germany, in Berlin. I was from the socialist party, it was, um, well, it looked a bit like the Hitler Youth, what can I say. But, then I got out, and as the wall came down in '89, it all changed my life. I think that if the wall hadn't come down I would never have been in music, would have been running a business... Maybe. Something boring.
What are some of your first memories of electronic music back then?
During unification, maybe (when I was) 13 or so, I just remember 8 bars, and somebody rapping [laughs]. that's all we had, a bit of music and somebody rapping. I had a double tapedeck, two tapes with the same short song. I would pause one, and start the other at the beginning. That's how I started.
You're well known for not DJing: you have a specific set up of gear that you stick with for performance and also in the studio. Do you think that's where it came from, the limited access from your youth?
Yea, I think so. The fact that there were no laptops, no software, we had all analogue gear, and you had to get it right on the first try. If I would have learned how to make music on Ableton live, with samples, then I wouldn't be able to play live like this.
So what do you think about the effect of Ableton Live, and kids who don't even know what quantization is?
If you look at music these days, its so overproduced, so fluffy. You can do good music with very simple tools. When you're admiring technology or aesthetics it's just blinding you, it's hard to explain, but do you know what I mean?
I definitely know what you mean. So lets talk about your early career, how did you meet Ellen Allien?
Oh, just at one of those brilliant parties. I wanted to give her music, but I didn't have CDs or digital, we had cassettes. She laughed, said that it sounded okay, but you have to get something that sounds better. It was '98, something like that.
There is a well-established association between you, her, and BPitch Control in general. Who are some of the people who influenced your career that we wouldn't know about?
I would usually say general things, Detroit, acid (house). Maybe "Minimal Nation" (Robert Hood), mainly it was heavy Detroit techno. I can't really name specfiics as much as general musical styles.
Over the years you have used lots of the same gear, but your sound has changed: how would you describe those changes?
I think the biggest thing for a musician is to guide your sound through the times. My music, even just by tempo, is slower now, a bit more chill, I'm not 20 anymore, you know? [laughs] When I play live I always alter my songs a bit, make them better for concerts.
I don't care so much about the labels anymore (techno, electronica), My ideas, the way it's done, that's what is important. Over the years my music has been called many different things, electro in France, even trance in some spots. To me the secret to success with music is to create something you can't copy, so genres don't matter.
Tell me a bit about your new label?
It's not a label, it's just a platform for what I'm doing right now. I grew out of the whole scene a bit, and so created a legal platform for my own work.
So you don't see yourself as ever becoming a label manager or anything like that?
No no no.
Tell me a bit about the new album.
Hard to describe, often trying to talk about music is like trying to dance architecture. I've stopped trying to talk about it. This album took me 3 years, especially after Berlin Calling, I was very lazy, I wasn't in the studio at all. The time it took to complete also makes it difficult to describe.
I think that doing a 162 shows in a year doesn't qualify as lazy.
Well, last year was less actually, maybe about a hundred. Right now I dont want to see the studio again for a long time. I will leave it alone now, at least until next year.
So what do you see as your next project?
Lots of touring, touring for the new album.
And if you weren't a musician what would you be doing?
Ahh, I don't know. If I wasn't so lazy, my dream would have been to be a huge, well… What would be a quarterback in the US, playing football here.
A rockstar in many forms.
[laughs] Right! That's why I'm just so happy that the wall came down, because otherwise I would definitely do something shitty right now. If I would see something cool I wouldn't be able to do it. It was so isolated back then. If you are dilligent, and I consider myself diligent, now you can do whatever you want.
Even now, I'm just very happy, very happy that the wall came down. You did good America, first from the Nazis, then from the Bolsheviks, you freed us twice.
So this brings up something interesting, something that lots of people in America don't know much about… Describe the effect of the wall falling on electronic music in Germany and Berlin.
Berlin is always a changing city. There is a saying, Berlin never is, it's always on its way to becoming something. The city divided, and then it comes down, it was enormous, and when combined with acid from the UK and techno from Detroit, all the ingredients were there, new music, new freedom.
And over the past dozen years or so Berlin has changed again, and electronic music lovers around the world now want to come.
The Mecca of techno.
Exactly, the Mecca of techno, so what do you think about this influx?
I think that at the moment, the guys who play here every weekend in front of 50,000 people, they play to all the people who come in on Easy Jet and Ryan Air. I think that with Berlin Calling we catch the peak of the scene. Sometimes it becomes a little bit too much. I'm actually glad that on the weekends I'm usually not in town, or I'm living just out of town.
So you're going to be playing Sonar in Barcelona this year, we are looking forward to that show.
We had usually a label showcase in past years, with BPitch. This time I play Sonar by Night. I remember the date, the 18th of June, it's on a Saturday, although I don't want to look forward too much because I like to live in the moment, stay in the now. I have so much going on now I don't want to know too much about it. [laughs]
paulkalkbrenner.net
www.facebook.com/paulkalkbrenner
2011.sonar.es
www.facebook.com/SonarFestivalOfficialPage
twitter.com/sonarfestival
Paul Kalkbrenner at Movement Electronic Music Festival 2011
Photo Credit: Chris Soltis for Movement Festival 2011
