Booka Shade interview by XLR8R
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When artists rail on about subtlety and stepping away from the almighty
riff, a red flag tends to go up. In the case of Berlin’s Booka Shade,
though, careful refinement has always been part of their 20-year-plus
process. With their roots in synth-pop bands, producer Walter Merziger
and drummer Arno Kammermeier have always erred on the side of
stripped-back groove, long before minimal techno made it fashionable.
Booka Shade’s latest album, The Sun and the Neon Light, has the familiar weight of their breakout release, Movements,
but with a more spacious, experimental edge. Tracks like “Psychameleon”
trade house’s pulse for a glittery swing, built from a malfunctioning
Korg Poly-800 synth and a vocoded whisper. It’s a sound that can be
delicate, but never thin–a change at least partially due to the duo’s
renewed interest in vintage hardware and acoustic instruments. Here
they talk about the benefits of dragging 600 lbs. of gear clear across
the ocean.
