Echtzeit

The third incarnation of the legendary krautrock project Kluster/Cluster expands it's audience with the contemplative, mature, and intelligent electronic music of Echtzeit. Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Onnen Bock, and Armin Metz are Qluster, founded under the name of Kluster in 1969 by Roedelius, Dieter Moebius, and Conrad Schnitzler. Kluster were responsible for two milestones of electronic music. Schnitzler quit the band two years later, leaving Roedelius and Moebius to carry on as Cluster. When the duo disbanded in 2010, Roedelius continued to fly the K/Cluster flag, this time as Qluster, joined by keyboardist and electronic musician Onnen Bock. The duo again became a trio in 2013, when multi-instrumentalist Armin Metz joined Qluster's ranks. Echtzeit is Qluster's sixth album. After the pure piano work on Tasten (BB 206CD/LP, 2015), the group returns to their electronic equipment with renewed vigor on Echtzeit. Yet Roedelius's favorite instrument, the piano, also receives it's due. Large parts of the album were recorded in a church. The principle behind the creative process for Kluster/Cluster/Qluster has always been much the same: musical structures arise from the moment. The pieces on their albums are passages taken from long improvisations that feature a special atmosphere and engaging patterns or figures. Playful experimentation with new instruments and effects or settings is often what leads to the creative spark. Despite their high affinity for experimentation, the term experimental music would be misplaced here. Dissonance, noises, or glitch sounds are largely absent. Echtzeit is consistently more harmonious and accessible than the group's previous electronic albums, moving further in the direction previously indicated on 2013's Lauschen (BB 123CD/LP).