The Upcoming
  • Cinema & Tv
    • Movie reviews
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Show reviews
  • Music
    • Live music
  • Food & Drinks
    • News & Features
    • Restaurant & bar reviews
    • Interviews & Recipes
  • Theatre
  • Art
  • Travel & Lifestyle
  • Literature
  • Fashion & Beauty
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Competitions
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

CultureMusicLive music

Ulrich Schnauss delights the Rough Trade crowd

Ulrich Schnauss delights the Rough Trade crowd | Live review
23 January 2013
Samuel Mensah
Avatar
Samuel Mensah
23 January 2013

German musician and producer Ulrich Schnauss played at Rough Trade East to celebrate the release of his latest LP.  A Long Way to Fall is the German’s long-awaited fourth album since the release of his last solo project in 2007. His latest outing promises a change in direction from his previous attempts, Far Away Passing Trains, A Strangely Isolated Place and Goodbye.

Arriving 15 minutes late, the ever-so-humble Schnauss looked flustered and exhausted, quickly apologising to the crowd: “Sorry I’m late I didn’t realise they [RTE] had no visuals,” he explained. “I had to run home and grab a DVD.” The crowd reacted favourably to such an honest and comical admission, at which he sipped a beverage and proclaimed a toast in his native tongue.

The recorded album itself is a well-produced adventure into the ambience of electronic music, whereas live, the soundscape is a harsher, more dangerous proposition. However, Schnauss began in typical fashion, showcasing his brand of chilled out melodic electronica that has gained him many admirers over the years. As the set unravelled the synths became more brutal, encompassing distorted melodies and disturbingly chaotic drum beats.

The former Longview keyboardist incorporated elements of house, techno and hip hop, thrown together to create a hotbed of noise that was not easy on the ear but worked well when blended together, and displayed real artistry and know-how. Schnauss made consistent use of the arpeggiator, which sounded erratic at times, with the drumbeat seemingly ascending and descending on an escalator.

Schnauss’ first three albums were an attempt to transform the sounds of the early 90s alternative rock scene into more of an electronic expression. This performance revealed a more claustrophobic attempt, with intruding bass lines, heavy distortion, some vocals buried within static and noisy street level sampling, but with an 80s electronica aesthetic.

There were tracks with quicker drumbeats and multiple changes in direction making it all harder to absorb, and yet this display delivered some impressive edgy results. Those fans of Schnauss’ more ambient side will find the album title track, A Long Way to Fall, truly exquisite. He is undoubtedly still a genius at work.

★★★★★

Samuel Mensah

Photo: Florian Wizorek (xflo.net)

For further information and future gigs visit Ulrich Schnauss’s website here.

Watch the video for A Long Way to Fall here:

Related Itemslive musicreview

More in Live music

Alice Cooper at the O2 Arena

★★★★★
Jennifer Sanin
Read More

Michael Kiwanuka at Alexandra Palace

★★★★★
Joe Milo
Read More

The Amazons launch How Will I Know If Heaven Will Find Me? at Live Nation

Bev Lung
Read More

Warpaint at the Roundhouse

★★★★★
Jasper Watkins
Read More

Paolo Nutini at the 100 Club

★★★★★
Jonathan Marshall
Read More

Viagra Boys at the Forum

★★★★★
Dan Meier
Read More

Tool at the O2 Arena

★★★★★
Peter Chow
Read More

Twin Atlantic at the Roundhouse

★★★★★
Mark Worgan
Read More

Metronomy at Alexandra Palace

★★★★★
Diletta Lobuono
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap
  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Alice Cooper at the O2 Arena
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Decision to Leave (Heojil Kyolshim)
    ★★★★★
    Cannes
  • The Five Devils (Les Cinq Diables)
    ★★★★★
    Cannes
  • Stephen Fry enters the Radio Times Hall of Fame in conversation with Alan Yentob at the BFI Imax
    Cinema & Tv
  • Roma Bar Show returns for a second edition in Rome next week
    Food & Drinks
  • “It was a really precious process”: An interview with Maksym Nakonechnyi on Butterfly Vision
    Cannes
  • Stranger Things: Season Four
    ★★★★★
    netflix
  • Henry VIII at Shakespeare’s Globe
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Stars at Noon
    ★★★★★
    Cannes
  • Nostalgia
    ★★★★★
    Cannes
  • Nostalgia
    ★★★★★
    Cannes
  • Fiend in Notting Hill: “Risks that pay off”
    Food & Drinks
  • Alice Cooper at the O2 Arena
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Michael Kiwanuka at Alexandra Palace
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • The Innocent (L’Innocent)
    ★★★★★
    Cannes
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why
With the support from:
International driving license

Copyright © 2011-2020 FL Media

MTV Brand New for 2013 takes Conor Maynard, Gabrielle Aplin and Little Nikki to the Forum | Live review
I Give it a Year | Movie review