As much a collagist as he is a song writer - Sandkorn features guest musicians Malte Weuste (trumpet) + Dominik Böhringer (violin) on ‘fanfarel’ and lends his own vocals to the lush ‘everywhere is shut’.
Emil Klotzsch - Sandkorn sounds very strange to me at 00:45. There’s mangled trumpet sounds mixed with analog synths, and guttural sounds that form amusing rhythms. I think there’s a sense of humour to these tracks, especially Trigger Mike. The first track, Whidrek is more serious, and wouldn’t sound out of place in a soundtrack. The stronger tracks on Sandkorn blend both these approaches, such as Imbuk and Fanfarel. The trumpet on Fanfarel sounds reminds me of a Cuban themed bar I used to go to at university, which is good, in a way.
I’ve also been listening to Terror At The Opera lately. This isn’t really consistent with what I write about here, it reminds me of a mix between PJ Harvey, Drugstore and Tom Waits (bizarrely). The vocals vary from manic to sarcastic, which works well with the accordion. The production confused me, sometimes it sounds like you’re lost in an empty building with two crazy women and a small band, I wasn’t entirely sure if this was intentional.
You can download their EP, “Terror At The Opera”, should you wish to experience something quite strange and unique.