Bergheim 34

Andrew Pekler’s Bergheim 34 project has long been the most ecclectic, varied and pop-friendly act on the mighty Klang Imprint. Following the release of their debut “Sechstrack EP” for the label in 1999 they have continued to produce tracks that span pretty much every genre and sub genre of the spectrum from electro to funk to house to pure, unadulterated pop. This is their debut album proper, compiling some classic bergheim moments (previously only available on vinyl) and adding some new gems, veering from the Deep House / Vocal Pop hit of “Random Access Memory”, through to the garage steppin’ “Nasty Girl”, shimmering Micro House on “Frogs On Grills”, the Wagon Christ-esque electronic soundscaping of “Rababa” to the classic vocoded funk hit that is “Take My Soul”. Utterly charming and brilliantly produced, this is one of those all-too-rare ecclectic albums that manages to avoid coming across as pretentious or wannabe “crayzeeee”, instead focusing on how pop sensibilities can be applied most deliciously to any number of styles with a smile and a big glass of fizzy soda. Brilliant.Bergheim 34, the band that isn't one, was formed in 1998 and has since delighted perplexed music enthusiasts with three remarkable EP releases. At last they have crawled out of their virtual sanctuary again to present their new album. It's Not For You As It Is For Us is the result of two years' collective silence with each of the four members going their own ways to concentrate on their own projects. Meanwhile, light years away from the former living room combo of Bergheimer Str. 34, Heidelberg, they have all moved to different cities, and rehearsing together has become a rare exception. Instead, Bergheim 34 have adopted a process of file sharing. Ideas are transmitted, passages added, sounds changed until a track evolves that is then circulated on each of the four hard disks. In the classic sense, the band has thus perhaps become an ingenuous fake but in the modern sense they could also be pioneers. Nothing has changed as regards their key band characteristic: the way they musically communicate. Besides pragmatism, Bergheim 34 also sees developing new work styles as a means of improving their musical qualities. They can be a real pack of artists once live performances have been put aside, because they think they're not self-confident and good enough. Of course that's complete nonsense (they're probably just too lazy), because when seen back to front they are really top at improvising as 'cold curry (why can't we play live together in Pudel HH)', a track from their previous Klang release, clearly proves. But that's how it goes, It"s Not For You As It Is For Us is about the discrepancy between what Bergheim 34 experience and how the outside world experiences them: as a band called Bergheim 34." Real Name: Anne Vortisch, Andrew Pekler, Steffen Neuert, Kyros Khoschlessan Members: Andrew Pekler, Anne Vortisch, Kyros Khoschlessan, Steffen Neuert Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.