Ass

LP version. Includes CD. Three guitarists, three generations, one album. Günter Schickert, Jochen Arbeit, and Dirk Dresselhaus are all renowned Berlin guitarists. They epitomize three generations of experimental musicians; Schickert personifies the krautrock of the 1970s, Arbeit 1980s post-punk, and Dresselhaus the neo-electronica of the late 1990s and 2000s. Their artistic approaches may differ according to their diverse musical backgrounds, yet what they have in common is a fundamental interest in developing the guitar as a sound object and seeking out unusual structures and harmonies. They now present the results of their explorations and ideas with a joint album. The final product is very much more than the sum of its parts, due not only to the participants' different musical philosophies, but also to the use of instruments not usually associated with this type of music (e.g. balafon, conch, mbira, electronic drums, modular synthesizer). Their joint album concocts a kind of musical magic from a myriad of influences (krautrock, psychedelia, free jazz, punk, industrial, techno, minimal electronic . . .) yet simultaneously transcends them to create a new form of music. Günter Schickert (born 1949) has been an active member of the Berlin music scene since 1964. He released two albums in 1974 and 1979 on two legendary krautrock labels, Brain and Sky Records (Überfällig, BB 096CD/LP). Since then he has played in various projects, including the band Ziguri, and pursued a solo career. Jochen Arbeit (born 1961) moved to Berlin in 1980 and joined the Geniale Dilletanten art group, who mixed punk rock and Dada. In 1983 he began touring the world with his instrumental rock band Die Haut. He has been a member of Einstürzende Neubauten since 1997 and Automat since 2012. Dirk Dresselhaus (born 1970) has been involved in various musical fields since the late 1980s. Between 1989 and 1997 he played and sang in noise rock and pop bands like Locust Fudge and Hip Young Things, before focusing more on electronic music from 1997 onward, starting up his Schneider TM project. In 1999 Dresselhaus formed the Angel duo with Ilpo Väisänen.