Review Heathen Harvest
Conscientia Peccati - Culpa Somniorum. Monoid - Virtual Violence. Still Stand - Peace (is the end of all media transmissions ) & Ordnung. All acts with one association. Martin Steinebach. I know this because I’m looking at the covers of these four releases as I type. Fuck knows how long it is since I last listened to them. That’s a shocking statement to make. True though. Sometimes you can just have too much music in your collection. Releases are so easy to forget about. You play them. Enjoy the moment. Play them again. Then promptly move onto something else. The Chinese meal effect. That’s my defence and I’m sticking to it.
Compest. An amalgamation of letters taken from Martin’s previous incarnations. You work it out. I can’t do everything for you. ‘Kryptozoologie’ is his second release under this name. Haven’t heard the first one. No point in bullshitting. Titled ‘Wrack’ wouldn’t you know. Probably not. The cover of ‘Kryptozoologie’ features a drawing of a three headed thing on a mans body. Could this signify Martin’s previous three acts? Or maybe the way the music on ‘Kryptozoologie’ covers three different musical genres? Then again maybe he picked the picture just because it was different. Just like his music on this release. And just what the fuck does ‘Kryptozoologie’ mean? My poor head heats to boiling point trying to work that one out.
Comprising of five unnamed tracks the recording starts innocuously enough. A nice 11+ minute track introduces the multi facets that will remain throughout the recording. This piece of music features a ethnic / tribal beat with sampled female voice being manipulated over quality electronics before slowing down with the sudden inclusion of dark ambience over a throbbing Industrial setting. Fascinating stuff. Track two, 9+ minutes, hits out with bells tolling before strident beats take over and the ethnic sensibilities kick in. Very SPK circa ‘Zamia Lehmanni’ in execution…but with other worldly effects thrown in. Track three, 5 minutes dead on, has a more experimental aspect to it with dark shades being splashed around the oriental melodies. Track four, 8+ minutes, goes for more stripped down approach with the reoccurring beats being overlaid by simple and refined electronics. The finale, 11+ minutes, is a piece of purist macho music that brings the recording to a fitting climatic end. Here the bombastic approach works well as the tempo is ever changing and developing. The basic humongous tune is replayed over quieter mournful passages before ending in a piano led piece that provides the calm after the storm.
‘Kryptozoologie’ is the sort of recording that swells the emotions. A voyage of musical discovery that each track lays bare for all to follow. There’s this under laying current of darkness that’s just hidden from view throughout. A bit like shadows that are seen in a graveyard that you don’t want to accept are there. For all said and done ‘Kryptozoologie’ is a highly polished piece of work that, although breaking no new ground musically, has enough up its sleeve to impress the ardent music fan. Which is recommendation in itself.
By Alan Milne
