15 Questions to Kontakte from tokafi
Modesty and reticence may be admirable traits in a person. But in music, they are mostly a sure-fire recipe for mediocrity. Well aware of this equation, London-based fourpiece Kontakte have made grand gestures and big ambitions the foundation of their oeuvre. Following in the footsteps of an already anything but shy debut, Soundtracks to Lost Road Movies, their second full-length We Move Through Negative Spaces marks another progression for the band: Yet more epic in its architecture, even more varied in its stylistic outreach, more daring in its arrangements, more ecstatic in its moments of blissful euphoria and more forlorn in its instances of sweet melancholia, it maximises the quartet’s sound and scope in every possible way: Pieces like proudly triumphant opener „Astralagus“ as well as a two-part, fifteen-minute closing suite composed of „Every Passing Hour“ and „The Ocean Between You and Me“, are inspired as much by the dynamics and emotional catharsis of rock as by forces of nature: Howling walls of stormy distortion, the burning brightness of shimmering harmonics and cooling waves of consoling harmonies combine into a work that is sure to leave no one cold – and many feverishly aroused. At the same time, the album marks a gradual shift in Kontakte’s stylistic outreach. While Soundtracks to Lost Road Movies was still indebted to the aesthetics of Krautrock, the title to standout-piece „Motorik“ openly referencing the genre’s emphasis on hypnotic grooves and slow-simmering rhythmical propulsion, for example, We Move Through Negative Spaces offers the highly personal blend of a Post Rock band driven by stuttering elecronic beats and the finely nuanced sensibilities of a neoclassical ensemble – with befriended violinist Brigid McCafferty adding timbral richness on select instances. The general impression of the album is therefore one of a work of change, and it is further reinforced by the inclusion of two pieces written by former member Paul Burton, thereby linking past, present and future of the band in an intriguing fashion. That is a challenging proposition for sure – but Kontakte would undoubtedly not have it any other way.
Muso’s Guide reviews Kontakte’s “We Move Through Negative Spaces”
We Move Through Negative Spaces is the second album from the London-based Kontakte, and one that improves hugely on their promising 2008 debut, Soundtracks To Lost Road Movies. Without drastically changing their approach, they have studied, evolved and expanded their sound to stunning effect. Each of the eight tracks blend seamlessly into the next without […]
Autres Directions reviews Pawn’s “Islet EP”
Electronique, harpe de verre, bribes de piano et de guitare entrevues au microscope. Le travail du japonais Hideki Umezawa tient dans un mouchoir de poche. Pour s’en convaincre, il suffira de flâner quelque peu dans les champs électro-acoustiques d’Islet ep, courte introduction aux soleils levants de l’ambient et de l’électronica typiques. S’il n’y a rien […]
Bowlegs review’s “We Move Through Negative Spaces”
Bowlegs enjoys nothing better than an album that runs together as a body of work. That is one huge reason why we’re enjoying the new release by London band Kontakte. ‘We move Through Negative Spaces’ is the result of some meticulous production in the studio, and all that effort has paid dividends for the band […]
aaa music review “we move through negative spaces”
Interesting gets a lot of bad press these days. Interesting is “dull”, interesting is “pretentious”, interesting is what happens when a previously promising rock n roll band listens to Kid A a few too many times and decides “I can do that too!” And in most cases it is entirely justified, in most cases interesting […]
New mix from Damian Valles for Future Sequence
Damian Valles experimental musician and Standard Form curator supplies a beautiful mix of classical, drone and experimental music for Future Sequence. Mix – Damian Valles by Futuresequence on Mixcloud
musicOHM reviews Kontakte’s “We Move Through Negative Spaces”
After first appearing on the musical landscape in the early 1990s the genre of post-rock has embarked on something of an interesting journey, initially driving itself down something of a narrow, stifling alley. However, recent years have seen the genre expand and develop, often incorporating elements of electronic and ambient music, and increasingly being supplemented […]
God is in The TV » Track by track: Kontakte “We Move Through Negative Spaces”
Track by track: Kontakte: We Move Through Negative Spaces by Bill Cummings – April 13, 2011 We Move Through Negative Spaces is the second studio album from London based noise experimentors Kontakte. We Move Through Negative Spaces seeks to highlight Kontakte’s penchant for producing music of extreme highs and lows, this second album raises the […]
Caleidoscoop reviews Kontakte’s “We Move Through Negative Spaces”
Na een aantal bescheiden 7”-es in 2007 debuteert de Britse band Kontakte in 2008 met hun ijzersterke cd Soundtracks To Lost Road Movies. Hierop maken ze in hun gruizige en veelal ruimtelijke muziek een mooie mix van shoegaze, krautrock, ambient, psychedelische rock, post rock, space rock en avant-garde. De nummers zijn instrumentaal en bevatten heel af en toe […]
Kontakte reviewed by Der Impuls
Eine zweite Veröffentlichung hinzulegen ist nicht immer von Erfolg gekrönt. Es gibt zahlreiche Beispiele, wo das zweite Album dem Debüt hinterher hinkt. Ist ja auch keine leichte Aufgabe. Aber einigen gelingt es diese Herausforderung zu meistern und schaffen es ein noch besseres Album an den Mann zu bringen. Besten Beispiel ist gerade die Band Kontakte. Die […]
