fakezine

arovane

[din, n5md, city centre offices, vertical form...]

Who is Arovane? And who is Nedjev? Tell me something about your beginings in music, about experiments with microphones, treated tapes and casio keyboards in the 80's.

Arovane=uwe zahn and uwe zahn=nedjev. I started the project nedjev to release music with a lowfi touch.

What do you mean with that? You mean like low fi aesthetics, like what Pavement were doing in the rock music?

Generally, lofi sounds. Noisy sounds, crackling, humming. And the use of older digital synths like the casio vz-m. it sounds very noisy and trashy.

I’m always interested in acoustic experiments. In the 80’s i don’t have enough money to buy a sampler or synthesizer. I took tape recorders to record sounds. I manipulate the hardware of the tape recorder to slow down the speed, play tapes backwards…I use two or three microphones in different rooms and mix the signal.

I have been doing some experiments with tapes myself. I think that is actually very interesting way of collecting and compiling various sounds.

For me, it was a way to manipulate sounds in the pre-era of sampling.

What is/was S.A.M.?

The basic idea behind six and more sessions has been, one the one hand, to provide an open platform of cooperation for musicians involved in electronic music in one way or another and, on the other hand to create a type of music that can only be realized by a rather special concept.. this led an open ended series of sessions at wich six and more musicians would interact in free collective improvisation and thus create intricately structured, resourceful and dynamic sonic space….pure communication by sound…live electronics.)

In 1991 you have moved to Berlin. How much that influenced your views about music?

Berlin have a massive influence to my sound. the infrastructure of clubs, labels, mastering studios, record shops is very important for me and my music. another important aspect is the contact and the cooperation with other musicians. Christian kleine for example, played guitar for the tides production.

What do you think about today's new music? There are many artists that make noise or glitch sounds often not pleasant to listen to. Your music is, on contrary, very listenable and soothing.

I always try to keep the balance between the experiment with noisy structures and sounds and the basic melodic idea of a track.

I guess today there aren't any new big (=popular) bands like Orbital, Underworld etc... What do you think, does the music needs bands like that to go forwards and upwards and to change, or probably the less known bands and musicians are those who actually make new sounds and revolutionarise music?

Both. I played not in a band before but in the collective of s.a.m. and it was a very important experience for me. Communication is the key word. When you're sitting in the studio, working alone, there's not much communication. Communication with the machines.

How did you get in touch with city centre offices? (they have released your album tides) And what do you think, or - do you like other c c o albums: ulrich schnauss, static, …?

I get in touch with thaddi over the kiss fm radio station and the radio massive show. Few years later he founded cco and I made the first single release and the tides album.

Far away trains…..is a fantastic pop album. Also like the christian kleine and remote viewer productions very much.

In 1995 you have made breakbeat tracks for a berlin radiostation kiss fm. Is that some kind of experimental radio station?

Kiss fm is a comercial radio station. 1994/95 they have a live show called radio massive for breakbeat, jungle and electronic music. they played tracks from unknown artists. I released a track on the german drum and bass compilation, barcode on motor music/case invaders.

What music you listen to most lately?

Listen to the monolake album, cinemascope. New boards of canada album , the dynamo cd and computeracoustic music.

You have releases on many labels: din, vertical form, city centre offices, awkward silence recordings, engelszorn… Why do you release your music on all those different labels? All that is very nice, but it’s also very hard for people to follow your next step, your next release.

It was a way for me, as an unknown artist to spread my name around the world. but now and for the future I will release on din and maybe on cco. I made a lot of remixes for different labels and this took a lot of my time and creative energy. For 2002 I will concentrate on my work for my new album on din.

Tell me about your collaboration with Christian Kleine and Phonem.

Christian kleine and me have the same wavelength in producing music. our studios has nearly the same equipment, it is easy for us to swap sounds and produce tracks. The collaboration between elliot (phonem) and me was very intersting because phonem is mainly working with software. I’m working mainly with hardware to produce tracks. It was a special experience to connect both systems and combine our way to make music.

There is too much music in the world. Do you agree with this statement?

Indeed there’s a lot of sounds and music, a lot of labels and artists. It is hard to find music that you like. It is a good aspect that there’s a lot of different styles in music and a lot of artist’s and labels. It depends on you to choose the music carefully and listen to it.

What are your most favourite influences? What kind of music or what bands or musicians, or albums – influenced you?

It is not just one style of music, or artist that influenced me. Computermusic and musique concrete influenced me. Minimal music and gamelan music has it’s influences.

What do you think about the attacs on America that happened on 11. 10. 2001?

I was shocked about it. I was in new york after the first bomb attacks on the wtc. I can’t believe it that the highest buildings in new york not exist now. I don’t have a special sense or interest for politic but I think war is the wrong way and brings no solutions for our world.

As i see, you've got in contact with Andrei Gorohov from www.muzprosvet.ru. How that happened?

He contact me via e-mail and asked me if we can make an interview.

Thanks. I will try to keep up with your future releases.

Thanks a lot for this interview. Uwe