Fred Und Luna – Im Klanggarten

Fred und Luna say: "The vinyl version is sold out at label and distributor."

What a great discovery I made with this band. As is so often the case in life, you stumble every now and then and then fall with your nose directly on something you thought you had been looking for for ages. Fred and Luna, the name says it all, takes us to a land full of electronic poetry. In the tradition of Moebius, Roedelius and now and then there are also reminiscences of La Düsseldorf and Neu! Quite calm, exciting music. Something like this should not be missing in any good electronic household. Highly recommended. *****

Frank Wiedemann, co-founder of Innervisions and the visionary producer involved with leading electronic acts Âme, Howling and Schwarzmann, has started a new record label, Bigamo, to release quality undiscovered music that “wouldn’t fit on the Innervisions label”. The label’s debut offering is Im Klanggarten by Fred und Luna, the moniker of Karlsruhe-based musician, video artist, author and DJ Rainer Buchmüller.

Wiedemann describes Buchmüller - whose debut EP, Glück Auf (Optimo, 2016), went down very well with critics - as a “long-term hero, but for just as long unknown to the public.”

This all stands to change with the release of Im Klanggarten, an intriguing collection of downtempo ambient tracks that blend ‘vintage’ Kraut sounds of the 1970s and 80s with atmospheric swells, curious rhythmic variations and bold compositional gestures.

Whether laying 80s-style synth stabs over a dark and tribal backbeat (“Die Tropfenkarawane”), using cascading, delayed melodies to create lush dreamscapes (“Die Frau Kommt”), or exploring the textures of more dancefloor-ready rhythms (“Du Gefällst Mir”), the album is an expertly-judged example of what Wiedemann calls electronic “listening music”.

With compelling repetitive rhythms through, and an incredible range of both old and new sounds to beguile the ear, Im Klanggarten is a fantastic debut from Fred und Luna and an exceptionally promising start to life for Bigamo Records.
(Katie Hope, Subscape)