Einstürzende Neubauten "Strategies
Against Architecture III" Mute Records 9165-2 2001
Disc 1 (64:57)
Zentrifuge (4:48)
1230te Nacht (4:11)
Für Wen Sind Die Blumen? (4:24)
Redukt (Live) (9:40)
Ende Neu (Live) (6:18)
Blume (French Version) (4:30)
Three Thoughts (Devils Sect) (4:37)
Implosion (1:32)
Scampi Alla Carlina (2:45)
Snake (3:35)
Alles Was Irgendwie Nützt (Live) (8:08)
The Garden (5:13)
Anrufe In Abwesenheit (4:18)
Querulanten (:58)
Disc 2 (60:33)
Architektur Ist Geiselnahme (5:04)
Helium (3:12)
Wüste (Ballet Version) (3:49)
Der Leere Raum (2:00)
Was Ist Ist (Extended Version) (4:17)
I Wish This Would Be Your Colour (Live) (8:12)
Bili Rubin (3:00)
Die Interimsliebenden (7:16)
Installation Nr. 1 (John Is Mixing) (3:46)
Montblanc (:29)
Open Fire (4:28)
Salamandrina (2:59)
Letztes Bild (3:54)
Silence is Sexy (6:00)
Drachen (2:07)
Now in their 21st year of existence, it is time for another
"Strategies.." to collect past rarities, alternate versions,
outtakes, live recordings, improvisations, experiments and unreleased or
elsewhere used remainders. Encompassing the 1991 - 2001 decade, a
turbulent one with the departure of longtime members Mark Chung and FM Einheit
and the death of burgeoning replacement member Roland Wolf, EN released 7 EPs,
singles and albums (Interim, Tabual Rasa, Malediction, Stella Maris, Ende Neu,
Total Eclipse of the Sun, Silence is
Sexy) and worked on commissioned projects
for a dance troupe and film and theatre productions, among others. But
despite or, perhaps, because of the setbacks, EN further minimized and refined
their sound, making for a more melodic, song-like approach - one I fully
understood after experiencing them live
for the first time in 2000. Of the 29 tracks spread non-chronologically
over 2 discs, 20 are noted in the digipack as 'previously unreleased',
'obscure' or 'alternate version', so this is no mere retrospective.
Sometimes alternate/live versions are just a little bit different or simply
sung in a different language, other times they're vastly different in an early
stage of development. But, along with the others, they all share a
common trait: they're very good! And that's remarkable for a vault
emptying collection, often a self-serving bad idea in my opinion.
"Good" can be defined in many ways: "oh, wow!", as
in the jaw dropping ambient drift/jack hammer contrasts of
"Zentrifuge" and subtle found sound/stringed beauty of "Wüste (Ballet Version)";
humorous, such as Blixa's 'devil's sect' line in "Three Thoughts",
the goofiness of "Montblanc" and one take fun of
"Drachen"; and intriguing, such as making (good) music with food preparation,
sand and burning oil, mobile phone buttons, inhaled gases, spontaneous choirs
and an empty room. Not to mention their usual assortment of ingenious,
truly industrial music making mechanisms. I'm enjoying this just as much
as any normal album. The packaging is immaculate with a full color
spread of those in attendance at the 20th Anniversary celebration and an
internal 28 page booklet with well over a hundred color pictures of band
members and instruments, the often fascinating short stories behind every
track and what looks to be a delectable recipe for scampi. And though the back of the digipack warns
"this CD is not playable on computers", a somewhat disturbing new
trend that EN and/or Mute have embraced, my computer has had no problems playing
or recording from either disc ...
Where did I get this cd? - a local Best Buy(!)