Cluster – Berlin 2007

From Sam....
Gawd!! I hope the walls don’t cave in on us THIS SUNDAY, Strangers!!
Sunday, May 13 will be the loudest Stay Strange yet!! Frank Melendez and Riververb! Also on the bill is the equally loud Actuary from Los Angeles. Plus a rare performance by artist Gerritt Wittmer.
SUNDAY, MAY 13-
RIVERVERB/ACTUARY/GERRITT WITTMER
THE KAVA GALLERY - 2804 KETTNER BLVD - 7PM - $5.00 - ALL AGES SHOW!
Riververb is always in a constant change, and I hear that the latest incarnation is the best so far! Judge for yourself! it’s some heavy stuff! Face morphing grinder sludge. Last time Riververb played, no slayed, the smoke turned black from monolithic chunks of acid-noise.
Actuary shake the shit loose! Los Angeles breeds some sick stuff and this by no means drops the ball. Not only are this tunes in your face, it’s in your skull too! Mean ass nitro venom. Gory!!
Gerritt Wittmer is an artist in the darkest sense possible. I’m not sure what he’ll be doing at this month’s Stay Strange, but if it’s anything like his performance at LUFF, it’s going to be scary!!!

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Cluster – Berlin 2007 ( Important Records) Keith Boyd 4.28.8

Cluster is, like Tangerine Dream, Popol Vuh or Amon Duul, one of those iconic names gathered under the rubric of, “Krautrock”. While this term is much derided amongst musicians and critics (I mean what is at all similar about Agitation Free and Kalacakra?) it is simply a signifier indicating a certain, “Kosmische” strain of German sonic artistry. Amongst this motley horde Cluster ( or Kluster) has always stood out. Less grandiose than Tangerine Dream, more coherent and sparkling than Amon Duul, on many tracks you can hear the birth of ambient music. In fact, for a bit in the early seventies, they were co-conspirators with Brian Eno.
There has been a recent upswing of interest in the music of Messers Roedelius and Moebius. A boxed set of their first three albums was recently issued and now Important Records have outdone themselves. With the discs Admira and Volcano they have documented the latter period of the band and now, with Berlin 2007, they have given us Cluster’s rebirth. Recorded live in September 2007 at Ballhaus Naunyn Strasse, this must have been one hell of a show. Composed of two long tracks, Berlin 2007 is an hour+ voyage of sound. Its washes, pulses and waves cascade and swoon through your head with compelling and organic warmth. It’s not all lightness and hope, however. Dark and sinister edges jut through the fabric like broken glass cutting silk. There’s a story being told here; fortunately the plot is being left up to the listener.
Recurring cycles of sound emerge from the tracks like bands of a rainbow, or the rings around a planet. They bounce and Doppler into twisted curlicues, undulating in full glory then surrendering to the swell. From this cosmic and crystalline soup arise elements of rhythm. And while these elements are present, they are never allowed to join forces. This edgeless music denies rhythm its tyranny. It’s a wonderful sound growing itself into existence. We are like botanists in some galactic greenhouse, bearing witness to the birth of a new classification of life. With Berlin 2007, Cluster has reemerged as a valid and exciting group. This is a deep listen and one worth spending some of your life with.