TELLBACH: Time Trip Tapes vol. 1 (MC 2018)

TELLBACH: Time Trip Tapes vol. 1 (MC 2018)
Fully analogue tape production on hand-humbered music cassette in hand-crafted artwork.
 

Fully analogue tape production on hand-humbered music cassette in hand-crafted artwork.

The sound produced by this cassette is a unique work of art. I recorded it using a JVC tape recorder purchased in 1988, and the music came straight from my Fostex X-28 4-track tape recorder that also dates from the 1980s.
I used an original TDK SA90 cassette for the 4-track recording, three analogue pocket synthesizers to play the music and a vintage tape echo from the 70s to treat the vocals.

The gear is old, it is quirky, and it often does unexpected things. Sometimes, the tape echo will have a strange glitch for no apparent reason. Sometimes, after recording for a couple of hours, all tape heads clearly need cleaning and demagnetising. So sometimes, the music will sound fresher than at other times. Sometimes, the speed will fluctuate. Sometimes, the motor of the 4-tracker runs hot and the music will start to wobble, as you can hear on “Die freundlichen Vampire”.

However, all those imperfections are wanted and welcome. I wanted the music to sound exactly the way it does. The fully analogue tape sound, including all its imperfections and its quirkiness, constitutes an essential part of the work of art itself. It is a time trip after all. I wrote the songs on this release explicitly for this purpose, and I enjoyed every minute of this trip. I hope you will enjoy it your way. The copy you will own is absolutely unique. Every tiny imperfection is a feature of its character and a clear statement against the soullessness of modern digital music production. I wish you all an enjoyable time trip.

Tracklist: Hier und jetzt / Gleichgewicht / Der komische Freund / Der Zug hat heut Verspätung / Geheimnisvoller Garten / Die freundlichen Vampire / Verboten und gefährlich / Nach dem Happy End