Sergius Golowin

Sort of a Swiss Timothy Leary, Sergius Golowin (born 1930, died July 17, 2006) is probably best known for his trippy philosophies and poetry. Little-known outside of his homeland, he did experiment in what was called "kosmische", a kind of hallucinogenic, undoubtedly drug-influenced psychedelic rock heavy on improv. Golowin was one of the first to record for Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser. This was before Walter Wegmüller and The Cosmic Joker releases. Kaiser teamed Golowin up with a cast of excellent musicians including Manuel Gottsching and Klaus Schulze of Ash Ra Tempel, Jurgen Dollase and Harald Grosskopf of Wallenstein, and producer Deiter Dierks, and others. They would all become part of the 'Cosmic Couriers', a loose group that had played music for Rolf-Ulrich Kaiser-produced records. Recorded in 1972-73, the recorded album sounds like something out of a different style of music altogether. Trippy, droning rock guitars (with some folk elements) elevate the celestial keyboards and electronics. Sergius Golowin giving it a spiritual German 'rap' over top of it all. Probably dated by today's musical standards, it still holds up to the best Krautrock artists even though it may not sound entirely like Cosmic Jokers, Ash Ra Tempel, Tangerine Dream, etc. The lone release "Lord Krishna von Goloka" is heavy on the free-form ambient and psychedelic preaching à la Mr. Leary, but probably a little too out there for most rock fans. Fans of Kosmische Rock will love it. "The album is divided into three long tracks, but it would be wrong-headed to discuss these as individual "songs." Rather, the three pieces exist as atmospheric soundscapes, each sharing similar terrain. Folk, classical, and Eastern elements bump headlong into more psychedelic components, provided largely by Schulze who contributes everything from electric and acoustic guitar to organ, Mellotron, percussion, drums, and electronics. Throughout the proceedings, Golowin serves as a sort of German Timothy Leary, gentling imparting his wisdom on all things mystical. He speaks, whispers, and sighs, but never sings. In short, it's all laid on a bit thickly. Fortunately, the genuinely intense musical performances cancel out the more indulgent moments, ensuring that the album never devolves into period camp. Probably not the best place to start a collection of German psych-rock, this album nonetheless makes a nice addendum to collections featuring the likes of Ash Ra Tempel, Amon Düül II, Popol Vuh, and other like-minded bands of the era." (from allmusic.com by Jeffrey Konkel) This album was probably made as an answer to the earlier collaboration between the American Timothy Leary and the members of Ash Ra Tempel in 1971. "Lord Krishna von Golonka" is an amazing foundation from which many (if not all) of the artists of the Krautrock genre sprung from. Mr. Golowin was through the past three decades a writer and politician. One of his last books, "Lexikon der Symbole" (in English-"Encyclopedia of Symbols"), was written with two other academic authors. Also he was known as a speaker and sort of guru to the younger fans as well as the older generation. (Without being a cult brainwasher/weirdo-freak). He lived near Bern, Switzerland and recently was even involved in politics in Bern city parliament as a member of the socialist-party. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.