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CD
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CCO 049CD
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Swod are Oliver Doerell and Stephan Wöhrmann, two musicians who met in Berlin in 1991. Ever since, they have been collaborating on various projects. Oliver plays guitar, bass and takes care of electronics, Stephan plays drums and -- most importantly -- the piano, the instrument which sets Swod's trademark sound and reputation. Oliver Doerell is also a member of Dictaphone, the band with which he has released two albums and an EP on City Centre Offices so far. With Raz Ohara, he has recorded two albums so far under the Raz Ohara And The Odd Orchestra moniker. While not working on Swod, both musicians are busy working on theater productions. After 2004's Gehen and 2007's Sekunden, this is Swod's third album. There is no other instrument which experienced such a glorious renaissance over the last couple of years like the piano. Heavily tempered with or as pure as possible, the piano has re-established itself as a driving force in innovative music. Ever since the release of their first album in 2004, Swod have been among the most respected acts in this genre which many falsely label "neo classical." With Drei, Swod take their unique sound to a new level. "Sans Peau" for instance, a piece of gold for every DJ with an open mind, perfectly sets the stage for the new album. With heavy 808 toms, the right amount of noise and distortion and one of the most catchy hooklines of all times, the track is a perfect example of how the two Berlin-based musicians have fine-tuned, taken apart and reassembled both their style of composing and cutting-edge production. Fear not, though, Drei is a carefully-crafted evolution of the well-established Swod sound. It's all there, and more. The melancholy of the piano, found sounds, delicate bass and guitar, the always-present samples of a woman we all love and worship. For the first time, however, Drei showcases inspirations and influences more prominently which had been present in the band's earlier work, but which had been somewhat carefully buried. A deep love for the minimalists, which gives tracks like "Hellerau" or "I Am Here" an almost mechanical, sequenced feel, opens up Swod's body of work to a whole new audience.
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LP
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CCO 049LP
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LP version. Swod are Oliver Doerell and Stephan Wöhrmann, two musicians who met in Berlin in 1991. Ever since, they have been collaborating on various projects. Oliver plays guitar, bass and takes care of electronics, Stephan plays drums and -- most importantly -- the piano, the instrument which sets Swod's trademark sound and reputation. Oliver Doerell is also a member of Dictaphone, the band with which he has released two albums and an EP on City Centre Offices so far. With Raz Ohara, he has recorded two albums so far under the Raz Ohara And The Odd Orchestra moniker. While not working on Swod, both musicians are busy working on theater productions. After 2004's Gehen and 2007's Sekunden, this is Swod's third album. There is no other instrument which experienced such a glorious renaissance over the last couple of years like the piano. Heavily tempered with or as pure as possible, the piano has re-established itself as a driving force in innovative music. Ever since the release of their first album in 2004, Swod have been among the most respected acts in this genre which many falsely label "neo classical." With Drei, Swod take their unique sound to a new level. "Sans Peau" for instance, a piece of gold for every DJ with an open mind, perfectly sets the stage for the new album. With heavy 808 toms, the right amount of noise and distortion and one of the most catchy hooklines of all times, the track is a perfect example of how the two Berlin-based musicians have fine-tuned, taken apart and reassembled both their style of composing and cutting-edge production. Fear not, though, Drei is a carefully-crafted evolution of the well-established Swod sound. It's all there, and more. The melancholy of the piano, found sounds, delicate bass and guitar, the always-present samples of a woman we all love and worship. For the first time, however, Drei showcases inspirations and influences more prominently which had been present in the band's earlier work, but which had been somewhat carefully buried. A deep love for the minimalists, which gives tracks like "Hellerau" or "I Am Here" an almost mechanical, sequenced feel, opens up Swod's body of work to a whole new audience.
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CD
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CCO 041CD
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This is the second full-length release by Swod (Oliver Doerell & Stephan Wöhrmann), following 2004's highly-acclaimed Gehen album. If there's been one positive trend emerging from the ruins of what used to be called electronica for the last couple of years, it has been the comeback of acoustic instruments, especially the piano. Swod, without a doubt, are among the founding fathers of this new, almost neoclassical approach and the success of their debut only proved them right. Sekunden is more than a simple follow-up, more than what bands just do... keep on recording and eventually coming up with a second album, even though it is made of the same ingredients: Wöhrmann's piano and drums, Doerell's guitar, bass and electronics. And yet Sekunden is bigger than even the band's die-hard fans could have hoped for. The melodies are catchier, the bass is tighter, the electronics catch the general mood of the tracks even better and the drums, in all their subtlety, are funkier. On tracks like "Ja" or "Belgien," the voice of a long-dead cinema icon perfectly sets the mood, "Deer" feels like a long-awaited breeze in the blistering heat, "Sekunden" brings back dreamy memories of the long-gone ambient tradition of the late '70s, "Insects" kindly disturbs the listener with its delicate mixture of field-recordings, warm synth patterns and almost sequenced piano and "Patinage," in all its speed and glory, lets all Swod is famous for culminate in an endless loop of beauty. Then the piano fades and all one can do is to start from the beginning.
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