ASMUS TIETCHENS BIOTOP 1981 NEAR MINT ELECTRONIC LP

	£		35
	$		46

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ASMUS TIETCHENS ‘BIOTOP’ RARE 1981 ELECTRONIC PROG VINYL LP

Sleeve Condition: a tiny bit of sticker removal damage to rear of sleeve is about the only thing preventing a Near Mint grade.

Record Condition:  Probably unplayed before I tested it.  An amazing condition for a nearly 39 year old LP.  Near Mint without doubt!

1981's Biotop was only Asmus Tiechens’ second LP after 15 years of perfecting his craft, and should be right on time for folks down with futuristic pop like Cluster or Kraftwerk.

Perhaps you're wondering, "If this guy is so great, why haven't I heard of him?" My guess is that since albums such as Biotop, and others like Spat Europa and In Die Nacht scheduled for reissue on Die Stadt, have never been available on CD until now. Also, Tietchens (born 1947 in Hamburg) has done a pretty good job of hiding from anyone who might dig strange, tuneful synthesizer ditties by concentrating on more "serious," formalistic electronic works, and releasing albums on such notable experimental labels as Ritornell and Staalplaat. Klangkrieg's Felix Kubin has been an outspoken champion and collaborator of Tietchens, but for the most part, I'd say he hadn't exactly received much due outside of uber-hipster electronic music circles. With that in mind, Biotop is a delight, and with any luck, it will make Tietchens a household name-- at least in houses that already hold modern-day groups like Mouse on Mars, Kammerflimmer Kollektief and even The Notwist in high esteem.

"Modern Arroganz" is synth-pop taken to its logical endpoint: uptempo robo-funk and staccato snare over which minimal Moog hits pitter-patter to no end alongside a computerized vocal proclaiming who knows what scarifying mantra. "Trümmerköpfe" eases in with considerably less frantic precision, employing faux-exotica sound effects (Tietchens could have given Esquivel a run for his money) and a cha-cha 4/4 beat. In a bizarro universe (or the one in A Clockwork Orange), maybe this stuff is used as super-strength advertisement music, offering homemakers of the future everything they could possibly need.

Other pieces, like the title track, are more obviously experimental. "Biotop" begins on a single, piercing note and expands to include overtones from a whole range of synthesizer technology most musicians probably haven't even explored now, much less in 1981. As layer upon layer of bright, somehow comforting fuzz-ambience subsumes the original tone, it suddenly recedes like a supernova into a shadow of its former brilliance. Like most accomplished composers, Tietchens' had a way of making simple elements work wonders.

Studio Album, released in 1981

Songs / Tracks Listing

01. Futurum Drei (04:38)
02. Idyll (05:25)
03. In die Zukunft (02:23)
04. Miss Ann Trope (02:04)
05. Die elektrische Horde (02:04)
06. Räuschlinge (03:59)
07. Geisel des Monats (02:30)
08. Blutmund (02:23)
09. Cretin Statique (02:33)
10. Gasmaske in Blau (02:24)
11. Moderne Arroganz (02:38)
12. Stressmen (02:05)
13. Tango Fellatino (02:34)
14. Sauberland (02:03)
15. Trümmerköpfe (02:04)
16. Sekundentanz (03:31)
17. Träumchen am Fenster (02:31)
18. Biotop (03:12)

Line-up / Musicians

Asmus Tietchens & Zeitzeichenorchester

Releases information

LP Sky Records Germany 1981

I am currently listing, or am in the process of preparing to list in the coming weeks and months, several thousand Japanese, Krautrock, French, Dutch and Norwegian and UK prog rock.  I will also shortly be listing an extensive collection of Metal, Hair Metal, Heavy Metal and NWOBHM.  If any of this is your bag, keep an eye on my site.

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