Qluster

CD version with free download code. "Antworten (meaning: answer) is the third installment in a trilogy of Qluster music, following on from the Fragen (BB 076CD/LP) (meaning: question) and Rufen (BB 075CD/LP) (meaning: call) studio albums. The fact that the music on Antworten was created before Rufen and Fragen were recorded is less of a paradox than it might at first appear. For the expansive piano fantasies of their 2007 recordings had already provided a clear answer to the two musicians' question as to whether, and to what degree, they wished to collaborate in the future. Seldom has a musical duo been so united in heart and soul as Roedelius and Bock that January of evening in 2007. Their improvised nocturnes on two Steinways in the Berliner Philharmonie were delectable. Completely unplugged and utterly relaxed, Roedelius and Bock tossed musical ideas back and forth without pause, occasionally adding in the delicate tone of a distant singing bowl. Something rare, something wonderful happened in the course of this midnight session. Two perfectly inspired virtuosos coalescing into one person --Qluster-- speaking in one language to tell us of something which we no longer need to dream, as we can hear on Antworten. The notes flow incessantly, yet they also convey peace and quiet, a balancing act of which only the most mature personalities are capable. Roedelius and Bock pulled off the trick, this sleight of hand, with the greatest of ease. The antworten/answers are, in equal measure, lucid and lost in reverie.

Lucid, because Qluster reveal the source of their art: inspiration and solid craftsmanship. Lost in reverie, because the music is far removed from daily monotony, from common cliche. Balsam for the ears, without any esoteric frippery or contrived secrecy. Nevertheless, the antworten/answers remain auratic. It can be explained with a single word: art. Antworten is an early Qluster statement, and thankfully Roedelius and Bock chose to continue and intensify their work together. The previously issued Fragen and Rufen albums offer convincing proof thereof. And Qluster senses a responsibility to long-term artistic development whose transitory power continues to look ahead, into the future." --Asmus Tietchens