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Artist - Christian Prommer's Drum Lesson
Title - Drum Lesson Vol 1
Label - (Sonar Kollektiv)
Released - 29.10.07
Posted 22.09.07
Jaw dropping music to melt your soul! This is where the future and the past meet head on in a wonderful explosion of traditional jazz instrumentation giving up most respect for the original dance classics being reconstructed. This is truly awesome music that sends shivers down my spine without fail. Definitely in the top 5 releases of the year, music with soul does not get any better than this. Buy, buy, buy!
Drum Lesson Vol. I began with the idea of recording an acoustic version of the
Derrick May classic 'Strings of Life' for jazz quartet. Christian Prommer had recorded the basic idea some time ago in his new studio in the Munich countryside. Considered as a "one-off" track for a bit of fun, it sat on the shelf for a long time until
Alex Barck of the Jazzanova crew, came by and heard the track. Alex and the rest of the crew got so excited about it - playing it in their DJ sets all over the world - that they soon decided to release a 12" with the track. Released in May 2007 it was a fast spreading phenomenon. DJs and music lovers from all sides of the musical spectrum found something to love in it, including Derrick May who also gave Christian Prommer the thumbs up.
Christian Prommer decided to stick with his idea of covering dance classics in a jazz style white preparing his debut album
for Sonar Kollektiv. Feeling most at home in the world between jazz and Detroit techno, he decided to do an album project in two parts. Volume 1 would reinterpret the dance classics in a jazz fashion, using a band to perform them. Meanwhile, Volume 2 - to be released in 2008 - will be an album that takes the lesson to the next level and delivers original compositions in a wider range, featuring collaborations with vocalists, the Drumlesson players, string ensembles, and with Christian Prommer playing many of the instruments himself.
Prommer used specific microphones and preamps, taking care to use vintage drums from the fifties and sixties and combine them with the musicians' instruments to get the exact sounds he needed for the session. After the music had been recorded, Christian went to Vienna to mix the album with long time collaborator and friend
Peter Kruder in his studio. All analogue and vintage technology was used to create the sound of the album.
From the deep interpretation of DJ Gregory's 'Elie' to the Rachmaninoff
like excursions on Nu-yorican Soul's 'Nervous Track'; from the polyrhythmic melody of
Ame's 'Rej' to the beautiful intro of Mr. Fingers' 'Can You Feel
It'; from the amazing playing in the Latin firework of 'Trans Europa
Express' and 'Beau Mot Plage' to the deep, moody moments in 'Higher State of
Consciousness'; from Patrick Pulsinger's 'Claire' to the rolling
jazz piano genius of 'Plastic Dreams' (sounding like a lost Soil and Pimp
track); each dance track - once a quantized lattice of synthesised sounds - has been beautifully and originally worked over with a tremendous amount of care and respect, bringing the two oft-considered disparate worlds of jazz and dance together in a harmonious union.
Rating - 10/10
Reviewer - PT
