Ulrich Schnauss
+ Thomas Ragsdale
Entry Requirements: 18+
Ulrich Schnauss: ‘Now Is A Timeless Present – A Retrospective'
Ulrich Schnauss presents ‘Now is a Timeless Present’, a career-spanning retrospective encompassing key works from the past two decades. The German electronic composer will be selecting fundamental music from his back catalogue.
At once uplifting and otherworldly, the music of Ulrich Schnauss utilizes multi-layered synthesizers to map out an aural escape route from the trappings of a reality limiting our imagination. Born in Kiel in 1977, Schnauss developed a love of electronic music from a young age. He explains, ‘I’ve always used making and listening to music as a way to escape – putting on headphones is a way to leave reality behind for a while, reminding oneself of the 'possibility of the possible' - regardless of how hopeless or dystopian the current state of things may appear to be.' Inspired by the alternative guitar bands of the late 80s and early 90s as well as Acid House and early electronica, Schnauss began developing his own distinct sonic palette. Melding delicate dream-pop sensibilities with ecstatic electronic excess and defying the constraints of music genre boundaries.
After a move to Berlin in the late 90s, Schnauss felt confident enough to begin releasing ‘little electronica pieces’ under his own name - 2001s 'Far Away Trains Passing By'. Four further studio albums have followed since then: ‘A Strangely Isolated Place’ (2003), ‘Goodbye’ (2007), ‘A Long Way to Fall’ (2013) and ‘No Further Ahead Than Today’ (2016). In addition, Schnauss has continuously produced and released music under various pseudonyms and in collaboration with other artists. He’s a prolific remixer and a member of the last Tangerine Dream Line Up picked by the late Edgar Froese.
After an initial struggle to perform the unique, interchanging nuances of his compositions live, the arrival of Ableton's Live software has enabled him to build new arrangements on the spot, lending diversity and distinction to each performance. ‘I can react to the atmosphere of the room or re-interpret the pieces in a way that's reflecting my mood,’ he explains, ‘sometimes playing more ambient; sometimes more rhythm-orientated versions of the songs.’ In addition, portable solutions such as Sonic Core's SCOPE/XITE (a digital modular system essentially) have more recently inspired him to add improvisatory, free-form parts.
Joining Ulrich Schnauss on stage is his long-term collaborator, London-based visual artist Nat Urazmetova. In her live visuals the organic and synthesised, amorphous and elusive, fluid and uncanny coalesce, mutate and continuously evolve in the free-flow of improvisation. Through shifting the accustomed modes of perception, the visual performance threads the different narratives of seeing, sensing and relating to the sonic counterpart.
Ulrich Schnauss will release "Now Is A Timeless Present" a 7 CD Box Set on his label Scripted Realities Friday 8th March 2019. Containing all of Ulrich's albums to date plus an album of unreleased material. The 65 tracks have all been remastered.
"Far Away Trains Passing By" contains a further expanded version of the second disc that was part of the album's American release. "A Long Way To Fall" having been remixed and partially re-recorded.
Available as a limited CD Box set, digitally and with vinyl editions to follow in May 2019.
Line Up
Ulrich Schnauss was born in the northern German seaport of Kiel in 1977. He became interested in a range of music: My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Tangerine Dream, Chapterhouse, and early bleep & breakbeat tracks. There was not much opportunity to see his musical influences in Kiel, so he moved to Berlin in 1996. Live in London
Ulrich's musical output began under the pseudonyms of View to the Future and Ethereal 77. These electronica and drum-driven pieces were noticed by Berlin electronica label CCO (City Centre Offices), to which Schnauss sent CD's on a regular basis. Ulrich developed these submissions to CCO into his first album under his own name, Far Away Trains Passing By, released in Europe in 2001, and in the United States in 2005. Ulrich Schnauss performing at Bestival, 2008
His next album, 2003's A Strangely Isolated Place, showed the influence of My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields and Cocteau Twins' Robin Guthrie. Schnauss has said of this album, "When you've worked with computers and keyboards for a number of years, they become not so fascinating of themselves anymore. I gained confidence after people began to discover Far Away Trains Passing By, and it hasn't really stopped since then. This time I decided not to compromise on what I wanted to do, with what I thought people might want me to do."
Since the release of both albums Ulrich has been asked to work with and remix with artists, including port-royal, The Pet Shop Boys, Matryoshka, Howling Bells, Mojave 3, Airiel, A Shoreline Dream, Asobi Seksu, Televise, Longview, Johannes Schmoelling, The Zephyrs, Lunz (Roedelius), and others.
He also played keyboards for UK indie band Longview, whose singer Rob McVey was featured on Ulrich's next album, Goodbye. In an interview he said: "I have always loved music that has both elements: melancholy and sadness as a description of the current situation you are in, but at the same time a hopeful, utopian element that reminds you of the possibility of a different life."[3]
His third album, Goodbye, was completed in early 2007. It was released in Europe by Independiente Records on 25 June 2007. The United States release followed on 10 July under Domino Records. Regarding this album, he said: "The overall idea was pretty much the same. I just wanted to merge the indie songwriting elements and electronic instrumentation. After the previous album I still had a feeling like there was more room to take these ideas to an extreme level when it comes to layering and laying down as many tracks as possible."
On 12 June 2007, Ulrich released an EP named Quicksand Memory. It contains two remixes by Robin Guthrie of previous releases, a mix by Rob McVey of a previously unreleased track, and an edit of a track appearing on his latest album.
In the spring of 2008, Ulrich remixed two tracks by the Manchester-based shoegaze band Daniel Land and The Modern Painters. On 27 October 2008, the two tracks, "Within the Boundaries" and "Benjamin's Room", were released as a double A-side 7" single by the independent record label Sonic Cathedral, the label's 11th release.
In July 2008, the Stars EP was released to support his June/July US tour. A co-produced/co-written track with A Shoreline Dream titled "neverChanger" was released on an EP of the same name. Ulrich traveled out for a short tour with the band in Texas and Colorado to promote this effort, and performed this track with A Shoreline Dream during his performances.
In 2010, Schnauss was involved in the mixing of Exit Calm's self-titled debut album.
In 2013 Ulrich released his 4th album "A Long Way To Fall" on Domino Recordings in the USA and Ulrich's own label Scripted Realities in the rest of the world.
Schnauss also provided keyboards and backing vocals on Engineers' third album, In Praise of More. Schnauss also played as a headlining act for the "Phrase One" festival held in the small Irish town of Carrick-on-Shannon on 19 April 2013.
Has been a member of Tangerine Dream since 2014.
New album expected November 2016
