Veröffentlicht
Jun 29, 2024
- Sexy, sophisticated and effortlessly cool, this double-LP anointed the Viennese duo as masters of mood music with blissful takes on drum & bass, trip-hop and acid jazz.
- Rewind is RA's retrospective review series, where we take a trip through the highlights of electronic music's past to better understand our present.
In the late '90s, Viennese duo Kruder & Dorfmeister found themselves gigging around Europe, riding the explosive success of their 1993 debut EP, G-Stoned. After a gig in Munich, they had a run-in with a peeved student reporter who couldn't comprehend how their live shows were so packed with just one solo release out. He wasn't aware of the pair's excellent remixes for the likes of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Depeche Mode and David Holmes.
On their way home to Vienna, Peter Kruder couldn't stop thinking about the interaction. He told Richard Dorfmeister, "We have to do a compilation—put all of our remixes together so people can see what we've done." If it weren't for that one disgruntled journalist, the duo's masterwork of dubby downtempo, The K&D Sessions, may have never come to light. "We have no idea who that student is, but we should have dinner with him because he was the initial spark to do the compilation," Kruder said with a smile.
Released in 1998, Sessions was a double-album of two original tracks and nineteen remixes spanning high-grade drum & bass, cerebral dub and Brazilian samples. Its beauty lies in subtly complex details. Luxuriously minimal instrumentals move at a leisurely pace, bolstered by warped FX that playfully counter hi-def drums. Ripples of bubbling acid and spectral ambient chords emerge and then dissipate without fanfare or build-up. It's understated but head-spinning, inviting you to sit down and take a beat. More than 25 years later, the album's influence on atmospheric electronics has yet to fade—you can hear its impact on the likes of Thievery Corporation, Tornado Wallace and countless Café del Mar compilations.
Richard Dorfmeister, left and Peter Kruder, right.
Sessions set a high bar for what we've come to know as "mood music." The umbrella term refers to relaxing grooves that feel easy: mellow but not boring; vibrant but not jarring; worldly but not stereotypical. It encompasses a range of genres, from quiet-storm R&B to the lo-fi psychedelia of Khruangbin and Glass Beams. It's undemanding and versatile, with the right amount of relatability and intrigue for universal appeal. But Sessions doesn't just set the mood, it is the mood. It dims the lights in any room, applying a smoky, starry-eyed filter to conversations. Mundane moments become cinematic vignettes, fleeting thoughts turn into profound musings.
Whereas G-Stoned highlighted Kruder & Dorfmeister's expertise in slow-burning trip-hop, Sessions explored a wider range of genres and aesthetics. Junglists gravitate towards its introspective bass weight, while hip-hop heads bop along to its classic boom bap elements. Sessions not only brought together listeners of various tastes, widening Kruder & Dorfmeister's cult following, it also expertly captured the underlying spirit of its time. Brooding intensity and a sense of melancholic indulgence coloured many seminal releases of 1998, including Massive Attack's Mezzanine, Photek's Form & Function, Air's Moon Safari and Boards of Canada's Music Has the Right to Children. Nodding to the zeitgeist, Sessions embraced a decidedly heavier, darker sound than its predecessor.
Channelling DJ Krush's zen turntablism, Amon Tobin's Bricolage and Source Direct's lean frequencies, Sessions marked the height of the duo's love affair with drum & bass. After G-Stoned, they dabbled in faster BPMs and shifted their attention to subby breakbeats. Before this, they played strictly downtempo DJ sets and never ventured past 105 BPM. "Drum & bass changed everything for us," Dorfmeister said. "We were playing faster and getting booked for bigger clubs and festivals." Even then, their approach was measured and elegant.
The first half of Sessions explores the rhythmic and heady side of drum & bass, while the second focuses on what the pair listen to at home—acid house, rap and trip-hop. "1st of tha Month" transports Bone Thugs-n-Harmony's rough-and-ready chopper flow to a basement jazz club. "Kruder's Long Loose Bossa" is an acid-tinged bossa nova take on Roni Size's "Heroes." Rockers Hi-Fi's "Going Under" and "Gone” (originally by composer David Holmes, the soundtrack genius for Steven Soderbergh's films) are textbook trip-hop: smouldering, dramatic and indulgently sedate. The stellar remix of Lamb's "Trans Fatty Acid" is a masterpiece in storytelling and sound design, making it the LP's most emotional offering. On "Useless," Kruder & Dorfmeister somehow rebranded Depeche Mode's self-loathing lyrics as inspiring, showing just how slight the boundaries really are between love and hate. The remixes steal the show, far eclipsing the two original tracks, "Boogie Woogie" and "Lexicon."
Like a well-fitted suit, arrangements on Sessions are sleek and loaded with swagger. The fashion reference isn't coincidental—Kruder was the musical director for Helmut Lang's shows from late 1994 until 2005. Kruder & Dorfmeister tracks are certainly the sonic definition of quiet luxury with their crisp silhouettes and rich hues. "Helmut's approach to fashion was to cut everything that is useless," Kruder explained. "We're very similar in the way we work with music. Our job is to get rid of everything that could distract you for a second. If we do a good job, you're immediately locked in from the first note."
A limited set of equipment partly necessitated this economical approach. Their home setup at the time comprised a sampler, record player, massive record collection, Atari computer and speakers. They preferred working from home because it gave them more creative control. G-Stoned opener "Definition," which features Dorfmeister on flute in a professional studio, was actually a tune meant for a different project, Kruder noted. "There was an engineer and he just couldn't comprehend what I wanted. I thought, 'I need to do this by myself at home, not in a big studio, because this guy doesn't understand me.' And this was during the whole bedroom revolution that was happening in the early '90s."
The duo's vast tape collection of recordings and samples.
A fancy studio also didn't suit their puckish personalities. As creative partners and friends, they prided themselves on being seriously unserious. "We always wanted to go outside the norm and usually, there was always some kind of joke involved," said Dorfmeister. The making of G-Stoned is one example. In 1992, Dorfmeister was in London when Kruder faxed him the album artwork for Simon & Garfunkel's Bookends—a portrait of the folk musicians in black turtlenecks. A message was attached saying, "Hey man, you look like Art Garfunkel and I look like Paul Simon." That famous black-and-white photo became the catalyst for Kruder & Dorfmeister, and the inspiration for G-Stoned's cover. "We redid that photo with a very good photographer who used special '60s slides," Dorfmeister continued, "and it took us a whole day to do that. It wasn't meant to be something super serious, but we took it very seriously."
In 1992, Kruder said to Dorfmeinster, "Hey man, you look like Art Garfunkel and I look like Paul Simon."
Decades later, their quirky humour remains intact, as does their desire for experimentation. For their 30th anniversary tour this year, they'll be performing Sessions live with a band for the first time—"a really great challenge"—and without any LED screens or visuals. "We'll do some lights, but it's very focused on listening to the music," they noted. Will they be kitted out in Helmut Lang suits, too? "Nowadays, tickets are expensive so if people take the time to come to your show, you should give them your best, and I think you also should look as good as possible," Dorfmeister laughed.
The milestone anniversary arrives at a time of interesting shifts in the creation and consumption of chillout music. Machine-learning technology such as text-to-song generators are rapidly churning out pleasingly mellow tunes, occupying valuable real estate on streaming playlists. It's feared this kind of automated music could dilute the soulful nuances of mood music. But the Viennese duo have nothing to worry about—Sessions has a tender spirit far too intricate to imitate. And this record stands out more than ever today for the sheer humanity present in Kruder & Dorfmeister's productions. AI could never.
TracklistCD 1
01. Roni Size - Heroes (Kruder's Long Loose Bossa)
02. Alex Reece - Jazz Master (K&D Session™)
03. Count Basic - Speechless (Drum 'N' Bass)
04. Rockers Hi-Fi - Going Under (Main Version) (K&D Session™)
05. Bomb The Bass - Bug Powder Dust (K&D Session™)
06. Aphrodelics - Rollin' On Chrome (Wild Motherfucker Dub)
07. Depeche Mode - Useless (K&D Session™)
08. Count Basic - Gotta Jazz (Richard Dorfmeister Remix)
09. Rainer Trüby Trio - Donaueschingen (Peter Kruder's Donaudampfschifffahrtsgesellschaftskapitänskajütenremix)
10. Lamb - Trans Fatty Acid (K&D Session™)
CD 2
01. David Holmes - Gone (K&D Session™)
02. Sofa Surfers - Sofa Rockers (Richard Dorfmeister Remix)
03. Mama Oliver - Eastwest (Stoned Together)
04. Bomb The Bass - Bug Powder Dust (Dub)
05. Kruder & Dorfmeister - Boogie Woogie
06. Sin - Where Shall I Turn (K&D Session™ Vol.2)
07. Bone Thugs 'N Harmony - 1st Of Tha Month (K&D Session™)
08. Kruder & Dorfmeister - Lexicon
09. Knowtoryus - Bomberclaad Joint (K+D Session™)
10. Rockers Hi-Fi - Going Under (Evil Love And Insanity Dub)
11. Strange Cargo - Million Town (K&D Session™)
The first half of Sessions explores the rhythmic and heady side of drum & bass, while the second focuses on what the pair listen to at home—acid house, rap and trip-hop. "1st of tha Month" transports Bone Thugs-n-Harmony's rough-and-ready chopper flow to a basement jazz club. "Kruder's Long Loose Bossa" is an acid-tinged bossa nova take on Roni Size's "Heroes." Rockers Hi-Fi's "Going Under" and "Gone” (originally by composer David Holmes, the soundtrack genius for Steven Soderbergh's films) are textbook trip-hop: smouldering, dramatic and indulgently sedate. The stellar remix of Lamb's "Trans Fatty Acid" is a masterpiece in storytelling and sound design, making it the LP's most emotional offering. On "Useless," Kruder & Dorfmeister somehow rebranded Depeche Mode's self-loathing lyrics as inspiring, showing just how slight the boundaries really are between love and hate. The remixes steal the show, far eclipsing the two original tracks, "Boogie Woogie" and "Lexicon." Like a well-fitted suit, arrangements on Sessions are sleek and loaded with swagger. The fashion reference isn't coincidental—Kruder was the musical director for Helmut Lang's shows from late 1994 until 2005. Kruder & Dorfmeister tracks are certainly the sonic definition of quiet luxury with their crisp silhouettes and rich hues. "Helmut's approach to fashion was to cut everything that is useless," Kruder explained. "We're very similar in the way we work with music. Our job is to get rid of everything that could distract you for a second. If we do a good job, you're immediately locked in from the first note." A limited set of equipment partly necessitated this economical approach. Their home setup at the time comprised a sampler, record player, massive record collection, Atari computer and speakers. They preferred working from home because it gave them more creative control. G-Stoned opener "Definition," which features Dorfmeister on flute in a professional studio, was actually a tune meant for a different project, Kruder noted. "There was an engineer and he just couldn't comprehend what I wanted. I thought, 'I need to do this by myself at home, not in a big studio, because this guy doesn't understand me.' And this was during the whole bedroom revolution that was happening in the early '90s."
The duo's vast tape collection of recordings and samples. A fancy studio also didn't suit their puckish personalities. As creative partners and friends, they prided themselves on being seriously unserious. "We always wanted to go outside the norm and usually, there was always some kind of joke involved," said Dorfmeister. The making of G-Stoned is one example. In 1992, Dorfmeister was in London when Kruder faxed him the album artwork for Simon & Garfunkel's Bookends—a portrait of the folk musicians in black turtlenecks. A message was attached saying, "Hey man, you look like Art Garfunkel and I look like Paul Simon." That famous black-and-white photo became the catalyst for Kruder & Dorfmeister, and the inspiration for G-Stoned's cover. "We redid that photo with a very good photographer who used special '60s slides," Dorfmeister continued, "and it took us a whole day to do that. It wasn't meant to be something super serious, but we took it very seriously."
In 1992, Kruder said to Dorfmeinster, "Hey man, you look like Art Garfunkel and I look like Paul Simon." Decades later, their quirky humour remains intact, as does their desire for experimentation. For their 30th anniversary tour this year, they'll be performing Sessions live with a band for the first time—"a really great challenge"—and without any LED screens or visuals. "We'll do some lights, but it's very focused on listening to the music," they noted. Will they be kitted out in Helmut Lang suits, too? "Nowadays, tickets are expensive so if people take the time to come to your show, you should give them your best, and I think you also should look as good as possible," Dorfmeister laughed. The milestone anniversary arrives at a time of interesting shifts in the creation and consumption of chillout music. Machine-learning technology such as text-to-song generators are rapidly churning out pleasingly mellow tunes, occupying valuable real estate on streaming playlists. It's feared this kind of automated music could dilute the soulful nuances of mood music. But the Viennese duo have nothing to worry about—Sessions has a tender spirit far too intricate to imitate. And this record stands out more than ever today for the sheer humanity present in Kruder & Dorfmeister's productions. AI could never.