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Musical Memories 1

  Tobias

Once an underground phenomenon receives a name, it is mostly already past its prime. So when the "Mille Plateaux" label from Frankfurt released a double CD compilation in the year 2000 and called it “Clicks & Cuts”, it was merely describing to a wider audience a development that had been shaking and stirring up things in electronica for the past three years. The impact of the sampler was nonetheless devastating. Here were 25 artists with names as dry and German as Frank Brettschneider or Ester Brinkmann or as weird as Vladislav Delay or Stilluppsteypa – and their tracks were so different from anything one had heard that the new millenium was off to a great start right away. Worlds of weird, far away sounds and surprising structures opened and for some reason they all seemed to be summed up by the work of one man: Stefan Betke, aka Pole.

Betke had moved to Berlin just shortly before “Clicks & Cuts” was published; at a time, when Germany’s capital was already in a state of econmic decline and the era of euphoria, when every self-respecting student or artist had to go there, had evaporated. Which was not to say that the scene had bled dry. But it had lost all contact with the rest of the republic. The city was a sort of an enclave which sent pulses and signals to music magazines, trendsetters and, at least sometimes, to MTV, but mostly “happened” in dirty cellars and the floors of huge, but empty buildings. There were probably more CDs being released in Berlin than anywhere else, but they were not finding their way to Hamburg or Munich (except for strict Techno records).

All of this didn’t bother Betke, who found inspiration in the restless and ever-changing nature of the three-million metropolis. When still living in Cologne, things moved slower and it was this relaxed atmosphere, the friendly nature of its population and a deep love for dub (reggae’s brother from the echo chamber) that set the tone for his trilogy that for a short second turned into the pivotal point of experimental music. Stefan was different from other acts in that the club scene interested him but didn’t directly reflect in his music. He was looking for something that made sense in an entirely different environment and could be listened to both attentively and in the background – and which sounded up-to-date while refusing to scream for attention. While most prefered radical changes, he favoured an approach that took you by the hand and on a gentle journey. The concept of a music made up of minimalistic developments and an “intimate distance” was born, it was merely a question of finding the necessary tools of expression. Betke stumbled upon them by accident.

While playing around with an old Waldorf Pole Filter, he discovered that the machine was broken. Instead of working properly, it would emmit weird crackles, hisses and noises in apparently random, but rhythmical patterns. Stefan was immediately fascinated. These noises, he thought, were remarkable enough to reach listeners’ conscious attention, yet subtle enough to disappear when focussing on something else. They could be used in conjunction with a piece’s beat, alongside, or even “against’ it. In fact, its nature enabled him to build a composition from multiple layers which moved like little streams in various directions and yet had one common delta on the surface. Guiding them was a warm bass, which functioned both as a catalyst and a centre – a very distinct and recognisable style was born.

“Pole 1” was released in 1998 on smallish label Kiff SM and immediately grabbed the attention of journalists and music lovers. Like following releases, it was packaged in a unicoloured jewel case, with a purple booklet and even titles merely written in a slightly darker shade of the same colour. Its appeal extended well beyond a “scene” and the German edition of the “Rolling Stone Magazine” (usually a source for rock and roots music) awarded it five out of five stars. Part of the success could be explained by the fact that newspapers could now write about modern music and “pop culture” without sacrificing their sacredpretensions. But the most important reason was that listeners were simply fascinated by an album which initiated a revolution in the most sympathetic manner. Autechre and Aphex Twin were becoming increasingly noisy and drastic and here was someone who had a very own vision, which drew you in completey and still left your mind free to wander. Betke, meanwhile, had found a way to fully express himself and was quickly following up the groundbreaking debut with two more records, which slowly extended the borders of the original.

“Pole 2” lasted just over thirty minutes, was more melodic and dreamy and integrated the Pole-clicks more organically. Possibly the best out of the series, it offers a surprisingly direct emotional impact. It is connected by themes and sounds and has a generously free flow, without worries or headaches: “Fahren” (“Driving”) lasts for a total of nine minutes and is made up of two contrasting and yet complementing parts and “Hafen” (“Harbour”) is a dense mind picture. In 2000, Betke rounded everything up with “Pole 3”, in which bass and off-beat declared victory and the Waldorf was forced to serve as a background – even though its influence was invaluable and still made these tracks so characteristic. The most accesible of the trilogy, it cemented Betke’s position as one of Germany’s most important musicians and transported his concept to the masses.

By this we do not mean the aforementioned compilation, but the use of “Taxi” (one of the “Pole 3”-pieces) in an advertisement for Jeans manufacturer Levi’s. We don’t know if the campaign was succesful, but it sure was one of the strangest TV clips we ever saw. Stefan then took a sabbatical from Pole and witnessed the “Clicks & Cuts” scene disintegrate (if it ever really existed) and disappear from most people’s radar. Betke concentrated on his ~scape Label and collected fresh inspiration for a new album, which was released on the acclaimed mute-imprint of Daniel Miller in 2003. Its hiphop-references and more organic instrumentation didn’t go down too well with old fans, but paved the way for something equally exciting in the near future. Whatever happens, however, the first three albums will remain classics of electronic music for quite some time.

Homepage: Stefan Betke / Pole
Homepage: ~scape music