August 6 2008
If you flipped through many techno producers' CD collections, I'd bet you'd find more than a handful of Depeche Mode albums. (Hell, Booka Shade probably has their entire discography twice over.) There's no doubting Matias Aguayo is a big fan as well, as revealed in his work as the vocalist of the moody Kompakt duo, Closer Musik with Dirk Leyers. The reference point survived the duo's 2004 demise and carried into his solo work, wherein Aguayo's love for spontaneous parties serves as a light-hearted counterweight. (He even "performs" as Bum Bum Box with two friends who take boomboxes into the night and gets passersby to shake it.)
Unorthodox and dark would be a good way to describe "Minimal," Aguayo's newest single for Kompakt. Laden with organic percussion and sudden shards of guitar, the bumpy tune finds Aguayo excoriating minimal techno for having "no groove, no balls, no man." But it's the DJ Koze remix which will get minimal crowds to overlook the lyrics, sliding the vocals over a breezy, guitar-led house beat. Kompakt was kind enough to offer us an exclusive download of the radio edit of Koze's good natured remix, so get on it!
EXCLUSIVE DOWNLOAD: Matias Aguayo - "Minimal" (DJ Koze Radio Edit Remix)
Matias Aguayo @ Facebook
Matias Aguayo @ RCRD LBL
Buy Matias Aguayo releases
July 30 2008
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Overstating the impact of Wolfgang Voigt and Jörg Burger on electronic music would be nearly impossible as their music together and apart is still used as touchstones today. Voigt is most famous for founding Kompakt Records, an institution of German techno, but his ambient works as Gas, his bone dry Studio 1 project and acid tracks as Mike Ink are just as important. Burger hewed more to the melodic side of things, but his music as The Bionaut, The Modernist and Triola are no less enjoyable. And together they recorded one of the few purely electronic entries in Matador's catalog, the seminal [Las Vegas] album. One might imagine they're ready to take it easy, but reality is much more interesting.
Last year they started performing and recording music together again, starting with the aptly titled "Bring Back Trance." 2008 will see a new album from the pair, as well as the teaser single, "Roter Platz." Its three tracks streamline the electronic/rock hybrid they wove together on [Las Vegas]. The track explores the astral plane with a bouncing low end and blurry guitar leads, while the buzzing energy "Ebert Platz" sends tingles down listeners' spines. But "Wand Aus Klang" ("wall made of sound") is the real treat, drifting through fuzzy, shoegazing drones and strums before the pair cross axes and contemplative vocals. Burger and Voigt may be old hands, but those hands are still turning out great tunes.
Sounds like: My Bloody Valentine, Air, Stereolab
Stream: Burger/Voigt - Wand Aus Klang
Kompakt Records
Jörg Burger's website
Buy Burger & Voigt on Kompakt mp3
February 28 2008
It's not that we're bored or think that it's super cool to run a blog, but there are things that bother us beyond the norm and superbrain suggested we let off some steam this way. The following items were stolen in the line of duty from us and close friends:
1. iPhone at the ParisParis in Paris, February 15, 2008
2. Gray pullover with black clown print at Sankie's Soap in Manchester, November 9, 2007
3. Black Rick Owens leather jacket at Fabric in London, November 10, 2007
4. Grey handbag by Hobo with Sony Ericson and Black Cashmere gloves inside at L'Espace Pierre Cardin in Paris, February 15, 2008
Please send stolen goods securely wrapped to Kompakt att. Supermayer, Werderstrasse 15-19, 50672 Cologne, Germany.
Supermayer totally agress with Moses, that stealing really sucks and is a deadly sin. We're gonna hunt down each and every one of you thieves. Unless you send our things back today (okay - you can do it anonymously if you want, villain!), there will be serious consequences.
That said, have a look at this vid of the I Love Art party at L'Espace Pierre Cardin on February 16. There was a power outrage. Insanity ensued.
THERE WILL BE NO MERCY!
Download: Supermayer - The Art of Letting Go (Ewan's Daft Funk Vocal Edit)
Stream: Supermayer - Saturndays
Stream: Supermayer - Please Sunrise
December 11 2007
Here at rainy, cloudy Kompakt HQ, I recently had to hear Gui attempt to complain about how hot and sunny it's been in his hometown of Sao Paulo...I couldn't have been less sensitive to this preposterous wisecrack. Just as we were about to throw his ass on a one-way trip to Antarctica, he saved himself by posting this most generous thank you gift to fans which all being well means you too. Download this alternative version of what became this summer's genuine feel good dance anthem "Beautiful Life". Truth be told, this is actually the original take on the song and we freaking love it - proper synth-pop that should make the nu-gazer's well happy. Another thing about Gui is that we honestly don't know how his finds time in his day to keep up a continuous flow of new releases and remixes. When it's this good who cares and there's plenty to keep you warm and roasted like a chestnut thanks to singles on DE:FRAG, GALAKTIKA and SYSTEMATIC. For those that need continuity don't for get to get his mix CD "ADDICTED 2" . To toot our own horn, let's direct you to his new SPEICHER single "MATRYOSHKA" on KOMPAKT EXTRA which you buy digitally here.
Download: Gui Boratto - Beautiful Life
November 21 2007
Please say hello to KOMPAKT's dynamic duo SUPERMAYER. The union of KOMPAKT’s most loved DJs SUPERPITCHER and MICHAEL MAYER under the guise SUPERMAYER recently went global with their full length Save The World - a labor of love and a creative leap for both artists that we expect to keep you grinning ear to ear from beginning to end. The critical mass have put these lads in a mist of controversy - the many who expected a 'minimal techno' masterpiece were in for a a shocking surprise with "SAVE THE WORLD" thanks to Schaufler and Mayer dipping in so many different musical honey pots. Regardless of opinion, it's safe to say that they stayed true to the core with KOMPAKT's never-ending love for one of the most extravagant sources of entertainment on the planet - dance music, and came up with something ingeniously refreshing and exciting. It's only fitting that one of SUPERMAYER's most vocal supporters would be called upon to tackle a firm fan-favorite track from the album The Art Of Letting Go.
EWAN PEARSON remains as one of today's most in-demand producers to emerge out of the dance music community. He's remixed everyone from Franz Ferdinand to Goldfrapp (as can be found on the new retrospective 2XCD collection entitled PIECE WORK now available on !K7). Ewan's production credits run deep with The Rapture, Tracey Thorn, Ladytron, M83 amongst others. We were thrilled he had time to remix SUPERMAYER and were flabbergasted when came up with THREE edits for the boys. Our righteous vinyl fans will see that the 12" version features 2 mixes so we'd like to offer you his "Ewan's Daft Funk Vocal Edit (Ewan Pearson)" on the house - exclusively available (legally) here for free on RCRD LBL of course!
Download: Supermayer - The Art Of Letting Go (Ewan's Daft Funk Vocal Edit)
Purchase it here (mail order) or here
November 15 2007
It only makes sense to roll things off right by letting you get to know a bit about one of the most beloved artists to have emerged on KOMPAKT ever--THE FIELD.
Goes without saying that it's been one hell of a whirlpast year for Stockholm-based Axel Wilner--a year ago none of us (including Axel) ever imagined everything that's happened to the guy... his album From Here We Go Sublime immediately leaped to become the biggest crossover indie-dance releases on KOMPAKT since BURGER/INK's Las Vegas was licensed to MATADOR way back when... we've been elated by the many people would be touched by his 'nu-gaze' style of combining familiar music sources into layers and layers of blissful repetition.
Hopefully some of you witnessed the fitness as he opened for !!! on their recent tour of the states, or heard his brand-spanking new remix of our favorite BATTLES song Tontoon fellow RCRD LBL-mates WARP... Brazilian readers can now go see him out on the road with LCD SOUNDSYSTEM... we'll be posting a tour diary from that jaunt soon, so stay tuned.
In the meantime, for those of you that yet uninitiated with our sailor boy, we're glad to offer you this firm fan favorite for free, "Over the Ice".
Download: The Field - Over The Ice
Purchase THE FIELD's full length From Here We Go Sublime here:
Well, why hello there and welcome to KOMPAKT's first 'official' place on the world-wide web where you'll be able to get in one place music, recipes, stories and news about what is making us tick... we've been asked by the fine folks at RCRD LBL to let you know a bit about ourselves so here's an official blurb we have about KOMPAKT which should explain what we do here.
"Believe it or not it¹s almost 15 years since Kompakt emerged as a small record store in Cologne, Germany, uniting a collective of local musicians that included co-founders Jurgen Paape, Wolfgang Voigt (aka Mike Ink, GAS, Wasserman to name a few), his brother Reinhard Voigt and DJ/producer Michael Mayer. Today, Kompakt remains a community-driven business, expansion has allowed the record store to offer arguably the world¹s largest selection of electronic music, a distribution centre that houses over 60 exclusive record labels and over 200 others, booking agency, recording studios, the online shop KOMPAKT-MP3 and of course our Kompakt in-house record labels. Oh, and there's a kitchen, too."
Thank you for having us!
-Michael Mayer, Kompakt
