IMA_experiments 10: PHEW (Tokyo) and Stefan Schneider (Düsseldorf)

On August 8, 2017, the ZKM | Institute for Music and Acoustic presented Electronica with Japan's art-punk legend PHEW (Tokyo) and the Rococo Rot Post-Rocker Stefan Schneider (Düsseldorf). 

Since more than thirty years PHEW, an avant-garde vocalist who stated out in art-punk unit Aunt Sally, is one of the most prominent voices of Japans vibrant electronic music scene. Her early solo recordings were produced by YMO soundman Riuchi Sakamoto. By 1981 PHEW went to Germany to work with Conny Plank at his legendary studio. These recording sessions were accompanied by Holger Czukay, Jaki Liebezeit Can and other musicians of the illustrious Cologne/Düsseldorf music scene of the early 80's. In march 2017 PHEW did release her new album »LIGHT SLEEP« on Mesh key Records. »LIGHT SLEEP« packs the kind of febrile energy and thrust that you might expect from a young, new artist enthralled with the possibilities of vintage hardware. Which makes it all the more remarkable that it arrives well over 30 years into PHEW’s far flung catalogue, at a time when you might expect them to be exploring lounge jazz or new age electronics. But scan back through her oeuvre and you will hear that PHEW has already done all of that, mostly in her early years, and now it’s clearly her time to cut loose.

Stefan Schneider has just returned from a solo tour in Japan. In Kobe and Osaka he continued recordings for a solo album which is expected for an early 2018 release on his new label »TAL«.Schneider is a founding member of Düsseldorfs electronic outfit Kreidler and has been a third of the internationally highly acclaimed trio to rococo rot. In the past couple of years he has collaborated and produced with Joachim Roedelius (Cluster), Arto Lindsay, Bill Wells and fine art superstar Kat.

Video documentary:

ZKM | Videostudio

Camera: Benedict Meyer, Frenz Jordt
Editing: Frenz Jordt
Tonaufnahme: Benjamin Miller