AM ENDE DER WELT

Weserbergland is made up of Norwegian progger Ketil Vestrum Einarsen who has been with the band "White Willow" for 20 years and has also worked with "Motorpsycho", "Jaga Jazzist" and others. In 2017, he released the first album "Sehr Kosmisch, Ganz Progisch" under this project name and that album, being a study in Krautrock born out of his love of his fathers record collection, landed the project under the Krautrock sub-genre.

In 2020, he gathered another set of musicians and created another album "Am Ende Der Welt". This album was aiming at a different kind of sound, and for that, he included Gaute Storsve on guitar, Jan Terje Augestad on piano, Maria Grigoryeva on strings and Molesom creating effects from turntables. These artists, along with himself manipulating sounds and etc on his computer, created this two track album, which is actually one track split into two tracks in order to place it on Bandcamp.

Listening to this wonderful and interesting melding of sound, the listener will notice that it is almost nothing like the traditional Krautrock at all. While it is true that Einarsen takes the basic idea of krautrock in creating a piece of art that follows the drone-like, seldom changing chord structure of the genre, he completely goes beyond any other boundaries of the genre, stepping freely into avant-garde and electronic territory and then surrounding everything with the organic sounds of traditional instruments. It takes the krautrock roots and transforms them into an almost alternative universe of "What if Krautrock ended up sounding more complex and sans melodies and constant rhythms?" The result is something almost completely unlike anything else.

The music starts off simple enough, seemingly naïve and almost ambient. But almost right away, there are some infusions of minimal electronics and effects that create this lovely soundscape. As the track continues with no real agenda or hurry of any kind, it transforms as it goes, until eventually you are in this drone-like atmosphere of otherworldly sounds and layers, all of the instruments contributing their usual sounds but being manipulated here and there by effects and etc. The music ventured away from anything resembling a melody as its real purpose is to explore sounds and combined layers of sound. The first part does rely on dynamics much more as it flows from walls of sound to softer and more intimate sections that all eventually build back up again. The second part of the track, however, is much more thick and heavy, most of it made up of several layers of improvised sounds that gel together by fluctuating around the same key. The center of the 2nd part is very dense and demanding, but listening closely, you will notice that each instrument has it's individual part as the effects continue to manipulate an growling and almost vocal sound along with it. During the last 4 minutes of the 2nd part, the sound all starts to deconstruct itself and Einarsen manipulates his flute by torturing the sounds that come out of it.

The translation of the title means at the end of the world. It really fits is you let your imagination wander. The album is dark and demanding, yet the instruments are bright. It is quite pleasant to listen to at times, but wanders off into extensive sections of noise and chaos. It all seems to hang on a very thin line between electronic avant-gard music and contemporary straight-out classical music. It is definitely not for everybody and those that love krautrock will probably be uneasy with the genre designation, but the basics of the genre are there, they are just overtaken by a modern impressionistic style. During the first half of the track, it was easily hinting at being a 5-star recording, but the long, noisy section that makes up most of the 2nd half brings it down a bit. However, I will still highly recommend this to someone that loves the avant-garde style with a lot of electronic manipulation paired with traditional sound. Definitely a very intriguing and interesting album, but very dense at times and difficult to penetrate. I can see it possibly getting better with more listens, but for now it is a 4.5 star album rounded down to 4 stars, but showing a lot of promise.

EDIT: Coming back to this album over and over again, I have come to appreciate it even more so much as to include it in my AOTY list for 2021. Honestly, now I don't know how I could have given it only 4 stars. It has grown on me immensely, so I changed my rating to 5 stars. This is one that takes time to be fully appreciated.

The vastly creative mind of Ketil Vestrum Einarsen and collaborators Matthias Olsson and Jacob Holm-Lupo are at it again. While their previous effort, 2017's masterful "update" of the Krautrock musical scene, Sehr Kosmiche, Ganz Progisch, this one is far more futuristic--employing extreme computer processing techniques in both the treatment and recording of the instrumental sounds captured here but also in the final rendering of said sound. While the album does have some similarities to Sehr Kosmiche, Ganz Progisch, but is definitely its own beast. The composition is intended to be singular but due to the limitations imposed by Bandcamp has been renderd into two "separate" entities. The music is, to my ears, some kind of modern classical music ' la Karlheinz Stockhausen. If one has the opportunity to hear Jacob Holm-Lupo's "binaural" rendering of the music, you will definitely feel the distinctive "classical" component parts and musical styles being here "modernized"; the other version gives more of the impression of a linear assault on the brain.

Line-up / Musicians: - Ketil Vestrum Einarsen / computer - J'rgen Mathisen / saxophone harmonics - Gaute Storsve / guitar - Jan Terje Augestad / treated piano - Maria Grigoryeva / strings - Molesome (Mattias Olsson) / turntables

1. "Am Ende Der Welt" (Side A) (24:18) The way this starts--with a kind of experiment in modern recording techniques and wave-treatment effects of strings, horns, electric guitar, and piano, I thought I was in for something like a GODSPEED /YOU! BLACK EMPEROR song, but then the computer drum beats and other glitch noises begin. This is not the same music as that produced for the band's heavy-into-Krautrock 2017 debut album. It turns very experimental--a kind of cross between the primal "tribal" music of Yoshimi P-We and some the most "out there" music of Markus Pajakkala--all accompanied by the steady strings of the Kronos Quartet! The odd thing is, I really like this! Especially the Steve Reichian third, chamber first and fourth motifs and the drawn-out drone and experimental glitch "dulcimer" (treated piano) middle. Int he fifteenth minute, the cacophony of earlier sounds and layers climbs back into the soundscape, taking over with the insistence of a race car cruising through open country vistas. After the stark sparseness of that middle section, the return of craziness almost feels comforting, "normal" which I find very interesting; being a nature lover and city-hater, this is not what I would have expected my reaction to be. The scale back to the third Steve Reichian motif in the twentieth minute is equally fascinating for my bodymind's reaction to it: as if there are essential melodies being woven together here. I am blown away! What a ride! And now, after my third "trip" through "Side A" I think I'm in love! I am Pan, primal goat-man, looking for a place to sow my seed. Any place! Please! It's all so beautiful! (48/50)

2. "Am Ende Der Welt" (Side B) (18:20) And the party continues! (Apparently this was recorded as a single song that had to be split into two due to Bandcamp's restrictions.) This half opens with sustained horns and piano hits behind "alien radio static." Very cool. For some reason I'm reminded of the evocative warmth of MARK ISHAM soundtrack music being used for some moving like Contact. At 2:18 heavily-treated computer drums enter--adding more to the "alien" feeling than to the human emotional side. The droning horns and strings try to drown out the drums as a syncopated bass note (coming from the treated piano) becomes equally insistent. In the eighth minute the horns drop back revealing layers of electric guitar and synth that were playing there all along, hidden beneath the scream- squeal-and-bark cacophony going on up front. It's unnerving, it's beautiful; unsettling and calming all at once, depending on your "distance"--and it goes on for 12 minutes before showing any signs of letting up! At times I'm thinking I'm in the Scottish highlands, at others hearing a mother's lullaby, and others the vicious sounds of a pack of wolves in pursuit of and ripping apart their prey. Amazing! As it does let up in the 14th minute--various instrument tracks being removed or whatever--it becomes monomaniacal in an Ornette Coleman kind of way. Hard to believe that crazed sax was there the whole time! I think it genius--though I'm not sure I'd ever play this for easy listening background music. (38/40)

Total Time 42:38

Now this is progressive rock! Ketil & Co. have definitely used all the tools to take there sound experiments into seldom-traveled territories. Bravo! Kudos! This won't be everyone's cup of tea, but you have to respect the vision and cajones it took to see this through from conception to release! I'm not sure which I prefer, the "standard" rendering that I first heard (three times) or the more humanely dissected soundstage of the "binaural" version. Both are worth the time for the different experiences. Compare and tell me which you prefer and why!

Five stars. While I think this album release a masterpiece of truly progressive rock music, I extend this precautionary warning: THIS MUSIC IS NOT FOR THE WIMPY, LIGHT--OF-HEART, OR GUTLESS; it will take curiosity, patience, courage, and and open-mind in order to appreciate. If this is not you, then I recommend staying far away. If you are at all curious about Ketil's intentions when creating this album, check out the excellent interview with him by Sander Roscoe Wolff at positive-feedback.com, Issue 104, August 14, 2019.

I discovered this album after Sacrae Symphoniae No. 1. I was overwhelmed by this album, but I felt I could only do a proper review after listening to the album that preceded it. I'm glad I did.

This album contains of two tracks. But essentially, it is only one. I will discuss it as one.

Gentle melodic classical intro with strings, piano and around minute 1 an electronic beat that disappears quickly again. This beginning of the album is deceptively accessible.

2.45 the beat takes over and the strings and piano move to the background. In minute 4, we are in an electronic landscape. Reminiscent of the great experimental electronic acts of the nineties. I could easily imagine Autechre doing something like this. At 7.08 a synth and strings join the beats. We are still looking at a tasteful variation of the electronic sounds of past greats. 9.30, the strings are left alone before they cease as well.

9.50, we enter a stage of ambience with a distorted piano and synth soundscapes. Gradually the synths become stronger and stronger, taking over. At 14.18, the piano is hardly audible and the beats return. More frantically now, accompanied by a frenzy sax. Here, we are letting go of the training wheels. We can only take in the experience.

Around minute 20, the piano brings back some structure but is a far cry from what we had just minutes ago. Weserbergland really took off. Every instrument does its own thing. Still, it fits together perfectly. At minute 23, we are having the foothold again. We are more or less back where we were with the experimental electronics, combined with the strings.

At 24.19, the ambience is back. A sax playing long notes, a piano, and distorted noise in the background. The beats return 26.30. We know what this means. Slowly, we will return to the experience again. We still have the sax keeping us afloat. And around 28.35, we can also hold on to the piano. The drums continue to drive through frantically, more and more. The sax still has these longwinded notes. Then the piano is gone again. This third time though, we are prepared for the soundscape. Though Weserbergland pushes the envelope more and more. The frantic sax returns, in the background. While the slow sax is moving to the background.

At 38.15, the frantic beats stop suddenly. We are left with the frantic sax solo.

This album is an experience. Starting slowly, it takes you into a strange world. It may take a few listens. But the more you invest, the more you will get back from it. This is fantastic. I am happy to have learned Weserbergland.

Weserbergland takes more listens than an average progressive band to get into. But it is worth the investment. Am Ende der Welt is a 5-star album. Easily.