The Formative Years – Karl-Heinz Stille

As a prepubescent on my quest for interesting new underground music, I was lucky enough to find someone who had been there from the very start, done that and was open enough to graciously let me pick his brain to push me in the right direction by not only gaining me access to the finer things of punk rock but contextualising my explorations with his benign guidance.

I vividly remember roughing up my voice by intently smoking the Thin White Duke’s favourites, i.e. Gitanes cigarettes, before our phone conversations to irritate my vocal chords in a feeble attempt to sound older and more seasoned than I was. 

Karl-Heinz Stille was patient enough to answer my cold call and share knowledge in an open and honest fashion, without there ever being a concrete incentive for him.

The fact that he had a keen sense of humour, shared a Yellow Pages sized print out of his collection and suffered my requests to invest countless hours into curating and compiling mixtapes for me did not hurt either as it provided me with insights I would otherwise not have had access to.

It might have been the fact that we both shared a common background in terms of having grown up in rural regions where one had to actively look for exciting pastime activities beyond what was offered by the local small-minded club culture, paired with the experience of music becoming the gateway to alternative and intriguing concepts, which spawned a lifelong thirst to find a sonic equivalent to one’s longings.

I remember first picking up the phone because I had lapped up Kalle’s tape compilations, which he had released under the moniker “Vollsuff”, accompanied by his idiosyncratic drawings. 

He also had a split 7” out with his band FOH and had just started to release his fantastic fanzine "Think!?!", a unique endeavour which deliberately broke with all conventions and stereotypes punk rock fanzines were confined by in a bid to challenge the status quo with humour and push the envelope in every direction.

In my youthful mind there was no doubt that this man was a renaissance man and interactions with him proved that I was not wrong. It turned out that he was not merely the epitome of the Do It Yourself credo, but was also smart, open minded and generous to a fault.

Kalle went on to found his own label, i.e. Crime Records, to unearth unreleased treasures, designed a myriad of artworks for records, took photographs and documented each show he went to, released two books and eventually went on to write for literally every slightly relevant punk rock publication in Germany (Plot, ZAP, Ox, etc.) as the unpretentious elder statesman of German punk rock royalty. Via his countless extracurricular activities, he continues to infuse punk rock culture with some of the more interesting unofficial releases, with the common denominator being a level of attention to detail that remains unrivalled.

While our interactions ebbed and flowed over the years, I never ceased to check in on Kalle’s emissions, which was never a not rewarding experience as he always effortlessly proved to be relevant, at times brutally honest, level headed and fuelled by an indelible passion and care for interesting music without being confined to musical styles or resorting to preaching in an elitist manner about his eclectic tastes.

Thus Let Us Drink Beer

Rocky Ridge and La Sirène

With craft beer brewing booming and having become a veritable business model, it is not further wondrous that operations that started out independently eventually had to rely on outside investments to then have their DNA diluted and mainstreamed by the respective shareholders.

Named after the natural outcrop of ironstone that pervades their estate, Rocky Ridge Brewery is an example par excellence for the opposite, i.e. an independent, family-owned business that has organically grown from humble beginnings within the confines of a farmhouse to the thriving business that keeps pumping out innovative and envelope-pushing creations based on their credo that everything “they brew, they grow”, yet enhanced by cutting edge brewing technology and the brewery’s focus firmly set on sustainable and local practices.

While there are quite a few Australian craft beer breweries that manage to incorporate some of the aforementioned aspects into their operations, the way that Rock Ridge channels its alchemy by accomplishing to incorporate all of them is unrivalled. This might be one of the reasons why there is no shortage of willing collaborators, the joint ventures with which keep things interesting as it allows for Rocky Ridge to experiment with ingredients that they do not grow themselves.

The fact that Rocky Ridge has consistently pumped out quality brews since its inceptions four years ago, many of which sell out within days and are seldomly even making it to the shelves on the East coast of Australia only add to the appeal.

If I had to pinpoint a signature Rocky Ridge release, it would be the Ace IPA as it proudly features the uniquely florally complex citrus, grapefruit and citrus flavour profile of the Flinders hop variety from Western Australia’s South Western region.

Harbouring more than a mere weak spot for IPAs, sampling Rocky Ridge’s line-up of hopped out varieties proves to be sheer delight, take for example El Diablo which based on a melange of Mosaic, El Dorado and Citra hops is an example par excellence for a well-calibrated East Coast IPA flavour profile centred around ripe fruit notes.

The West Coast equivalent would be Magic Man, which I fancy quite a bit due to its pronounced Nelson Sauvin, Rakau and Strata bitter- and maltiness, which is juxtaposed by facets of fruity flavours and a bold, reverberating finish, making it an ideal companion for a boilermaker with a heavily peated Islay whisky.

An interesting Pilsner variant I have so far not had, is Rocky Ridge’s experiment with maturing their Pilsner in an ex-Cognac foeder vessel for two months. The result is even more nuanced than the sum of the individual ingredients would have you think, culminating in delicate vanilla and oaky highlights, which shine against a backdrop of the yeasty Pilsner characteristics.

However, my favourite Rocky Ridge so far must be Danny’s Home: With 12% ABV a veritable heavyweight in the realm of IIPAs that proves to be dangerously moreish with its idiosyncratic mix of stone fruity and refreshingly tarty nuances that dance on a stage of delightfully resinous hops, only to be rounded out by a lingering bitterness which culminates in a citrus and mango heavy counterpoint. 

Lip-smackingly delicious in nature, what I have tasted form Rocky Ridge has assured that I won’t be able to make it past any of their future IPAs, especially when they enter IIPA territory.

La Sirène 

We have covered La Sirène as part of this series before, however, the fact that the Victorian specialists in Farmhouse, Saisons and Wild Ales have not only not slowed down but accelerated their microbiologically brewing alchemy in pumping out a diverse array of exquisite new interpretations of their trademark style, warrants another dedicated instalment.

With the name being an obvious nod to the French speaking part of Southern Belgium and local practices in the realm of creating a distinct style of ales, La Sirène has refined its own unique formula with the common denominator between their creations being that each is immensely recognisable, not unlike regional wine varieties.

La Sirène’s portfolio and one-off limited releases are ever expanding without ever running danger of creating ales that are not merely highly enjoyable but thought-provoking in that one feels inspired by the characteristics imbued by La Sirène’s immediate environment, including but not limited to the barrels used, the strains of air-borne yeasts and bacteria.

Artisanal in every aspect and with sustainability being a priority, La Sirène’s signature move is that all of their hand-bottled ales have been fermented openly, to then age in barrels where not only more fermentation is spurned but where they are aged, before being further refined in Premium French oak barrels sourced from local Victorian wineries. 

The fact that their wild ales are presented in Champagne bottles, which encourages the development of creamy mousse via a refermentation technique reminiscent of the Methode Champenoise, results in what has become yet another trademark of La Sirène, i.e. the creamy mousse that materializes as a crown on their poured emissions.

La Sirène’s attention to detail when it comes to packaging and elegant artwork rounds out the drinking experience of their nectar in the aesthetic department and it should not come as a surprise that not merely beer and ale lovers are falling prey to the alluring call of the siren, but also fine-dining restaurants in a bid to complement their culinary creations.

Recent favourites of La Sirène’s range include Biere de Cerise. An annual release in nature, this beauty is based on the Solera method, i.e. barrels that had the Barrel Aged Cherry Wild Ale doing its magic with whole Guigne D’Annonay and Marasca Cherries cherries are only ever partly emptied to then be topped up with fresh beer and fresh cherries. Fluctuating seasonal Victorian temperatures then help to extract the most out of each cherry.

Merely typing this evokes a Pavlovian response. 

Yum.

Another favourite is  La Sirène’s Chardonnay grape based collaboration with Bannockburn Vineyards in Geelong, i.e. Convergence 2021, which resulted in a wonderful hybrid between the winery’s trademark local microflora and La Sirène’s airborne culture. The result is an example par excellence in merging a wild ale with oaky Chardonnay characteristics.

With a name like Supernaturally things are bound to be interesting: Based on the abundance of fruit resulting from Victoria’s extensive lockdowns, La Sirène joined forces with local growers to handpick peaches and plums for the creation of two unique oak-aged wild ales, which could not be juicier and refreshingly acidic in nature.

Talking of acidity – if that is your jam you cannot go past La Sirène’s Cuvee De Bois: Based on a wild ale, fermented Victorian Chardonnay grapes are added, resulting in a well-calibrated mineral heavy wild ale ode to the beauty that is Chardonnay from the Geelong region.

Unfortunately I missed out with La Sirène’s collaboration with Starward Distillery but hope that they will revisit the project in the future.

Night of the Soul

The Cutaway

Sydney, Australia

January, 21 2022

In terms of venues, it does not come more unique than the approximately 5,200 square metres that are raw beauty known as The Cutaway: Given that the below-ground situated, concrete based space is carved into an artificial hill that serves as a native botanical garden, offers a myriad of possibilities and unrivalled flexibility as an eye-catching backdrop for a range of large-scale events.  The fact that it is located right next to the beautifully restored Barangaroo Reserve, i.e. a stone throw from water does not hurt either in terms of adding to the appeal.

Apart from the visual and aesthetic aspects, which were enhanced by the beauty that is the dusk of an Australian sunset in January, the Sydney Festival incarnation of the Night of the Soul could not have chosen a better a better canvas to unleash their choral bliss on as acoustically, it turns out that The Cutaway is not dissimilar to what an expansive cathedral would be able to provide.

Designed to hit the sweet spot between meditation and being serenaded by the sonic beauty that emanates from Sydney Philharmonia Choirs’ Chamber Singers, the evening was designed to take one on a journey, meandering between the yin and yang of emotions with the power of the human voice taking centre stage and ultimately culminating in a gripping medieval Gregorian chant, all the while the audience was invited to get cosy on the yoga mats that have been provided.

Programmed and conducted by Brett Weymark, the evening was curated in a manner so that lighter and darker moments ebbed and flowed in a melange comprised of such classic compositions such as Ola Gjeilo’s Dark Night of the Soul and Luminous Night of the Soul, Eric Whitacre’s crystalline Nox Arumque and Lux Arumque, Arvo Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel, with Samuel Barber’s immortal Agnus Dei being the centerpoint.

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image provided by Sydney Festival

When I saw the words "songwriting workshop with Robin Pecknold", I knew at once that I was going to end up signing up for it. I've been a Fleet Foxes fan since the early days (and don't try to come for me because I have the receipts) so when I saw the opportunity to learn about the craft from the singer/songwriter behind the group? Shut up and take my money.

On the topic of money: $120 buys you four classes with School of Song, a group based in Los Angeles running online music classes hosted by a whole bunch of musical luminaries. Robin Pecknold is their highest-profile teacher to date, and his class was advertised as covering the following topics over four weeks:

• Process & Manifestos
• Melody & Lyrics
• Utilizing musical ‘technologies’ for defamiliarization
• Attention & Novelty

I've played in bands since I was a long-haired teenager, always gravitating to guitar but amassing other stringed instruments (bass, banjo, ukulele) along the way. A recent foray of experimentation with keyboards saw me purchase a too-large-for-my-desk 88-key midi controller just after Christmas 2021, at which point I realised I had to sign up for this class. Despite all my musical experience, the last decade has mainly seen me recording unfinished covers of Beatles songs, or messing around with friends recording semi-pastiche UK grime which we've been doing since we were teenagers. I hadn't written an actual song since I started university, back in 2005.

All of which eventually led me to logging onto a Zoom session on Sunday 16th January for Robin to begin his first lecture of the class. I watched in amazement as the user count ticked up and up and up until there were more than 800 people in the session – and this was only the first of two timeslots for the class that day. Almost without introduction, there was Robin, sitting in an anonymous room presumably in his home, and introducing himself to the virtual classroom.

Once I got over the fact that I was listening to the insight of the man who wrote "Mykonos" and "Lorelai", I began making notes and trying to take in his insights which would hopefully transform me from bedroom tinkerer to... well, a slightly more accomplished bedroom tinkerer. I have to be realistic about this: obviously folks like Pecknold and my other singer/songwriter heroes didn't attend classes like these – arguably you can't even teach this stuff at all. Our musical heroes seem to just pop into being, fully-formed, with all of their raw talent already in place. At the age of 35 I think my moment to record the next "Helplessness Blues" has already faded – but I was excited to get what I could from this course and hopefully be able to feel satisfied that I've produced something I'm proud of.

School of Song courses are centered around the community of students: there's an extremely active Discord community where users share advice, tech tips, lyrical inspiration and—above all—positive feedback on each other's ideas. Each week, Robin sets a homework prompt, and everyone gets together on Zoom to share their finished recordings and discuss them in small groups. This part was highlighted by previous attendees as one of the highlights of the experience: getting supportive feedback and criticism of their ideas from other people experiencing the same creative challenge.

I dived in. Our first homework prompt had two choices: "The Archaeologist" or "The Problem Solver". The former was a task to come up with four distinct pieces of music—just a verse, a few lines, a melody, whatever—then stitch them together into a single song, however incoherent or ill-fitting. The latter was a series of question-led prompts, which Robin revealed as a prominent Fleet Foxes technique, eg:

• Mykonos:  Can I write a song with two choruses?
• White Winter Hymnal:  Can I make a pop song that’s mostly acapella?
• Crack-Up:  Can I make something that feels like a ship being pulled apart by an iceberg?

He provided a list of similar questions which we could choose from to inspire our own creations.

I choose the Archaeologist prompt, reasoning that if I wrote four pieces, it increased the chances of me coming up with something I liked and could take further later, even if it didn't work as part of a whole. With only six days to complete the writing and recording, I jumped into chord patterns and lyric ideas.

Robin also recommended a book called "I Remember" by Joe Brainard. It's an autiobiography where the entire thing is sentences like this:

I remember my first cigarette. It was a Kent. Up on a hill. In Tulsa, Oklahoma. With Ron Padgett.

I remember my first erections. I thought I had some terrible disease or something.

I remember the only time I ever saw my mother cry. I was eating apricot pie.

I remember how much I cried seeing South Pacific (the movie) three times.

Robin said how useful this book has been for him to generate inspiration: pick it up and open at random, and see where the memory takes you. I bought a copy and was amazed to find it worked: I skimmed a few pages and suddenly found myself transported back to primary school at a poetry recital, sneaking into my first 18+ movie when underage, reliving the worst Christmas I've ever had and hanging out in graveyards after church when still a child. I wrote my own "I remember" sentences and used these as the basis to generate lyric ideas for the class.

Disaster struck midway through the week:  I picked up a cold (thankfully not the cold, but still). My voice was nasal-y and scratchy and I couldn't hit any of the notes I'd recorded on my demos when Friday evening rolled around and my assignment was due the next day. In the end I concluded that "done is better than perfect" and recorded the song as best I could, but as soon as my cold cleared up I went back and re-recorded the vocals (which is the version you'll hear below).

People had already been posting some of their recordings before the "official" song sharing day on Saturday and it was both daunting and inspiring to listen to them – so much talent was on display. People's voices were incredible and their lyrical ideas profound and exciting. I was glad I hadn't listened to too many of them before uploading my own recording or I might have imposter-syndrome'd myself out of there.

To my surprise, Robin was a constant participant in the Discord discussions, answering people's questions and reacting with excitement and genuine interest to people's heartfelt ideas and reflections on the experience. He also left comments and feedback on people's songs uploaded to the "jukebox" tool the School of Song have created – this felt like the golden seal of approval if you had a comment from @robinpecknold. I guess Fleet Foxes aren't touring right now, hence his ability to teach this course, but I've found myself hugely impressed by his level of commitment and interest in the whole thing – kudos!

Saturday evening rolled around and it was time for the song share: I got bundled into a Zoom breakout room with 3 strangers, and luck of the draw (eg. my date of birth) meant I got to go first. I sent everyone the link to my song, and for the next two and a half minutes we all sat there on mute, listening to it. It was a really bizarre feeling to know that people in Wales, Kentucky and Canada were all sitting and listening to the music I'd recorded in my home studio earlier that weekend, as I sat there trying not to watch them listening. After it finished they gave me lots of appreciative feedback and highlights, and I made sure to do the same for everyone else's—especially the super-talented music teacher who went next and shared an amazing country/jazz/pop jam with an entire orchestra's worth of instruments.

We're only halfway through the course right now and I'm really enjoying the experience. It's forced me to start writing things again, and to try to accept (and even love) my voice, something I've never been confident with and had never properly recorded or performed with before. I know when I listen to the things I've recorded for School of Song so far that they still sound juvenile and rusty, or just clear imitations of other artists/sounds that I like. But I can also feel the development that's happened these past few weeks as I've tried to re-awaken muscles I haven't exercised in a decade, and found that there are still a few creative sinews there.

I can also feel like if I persevere with this, with the help of the community that powers School of Song, I can figure out my own sound and find a way to write and record some music that represents me. I don't think I'm going to become the next Fleet Foxes, but I think I can be happy with writing some songs me and my friends might enjoy, and that's good enough for me. 

You can hear my efforts for the Archaeologist prompt here and the lyrics are available on my Soundcloud page. I also have a work-in-progress with a bit more instrumentation (but barely any lyrics!) here – give it a spin!

If you like the sound of this, you should sign up for School of Song right away – it's the best thing I've done for years.

Gothic: An Illustrated History

Roger Luckhurst

Thames & Hudson Ltd 

Once one looks past the outworn clichés and stereotypes of how “gothic” is commonly portrayed, defining the DNA of the genre proves to a tad more intricate than it seems from a distance, especially since its manifestations and incarnations are ubiquitous and manifold.

Author Roger Luckhurst set out to find the core and common denominator of the “gothic” by looking at it from a range of angles and consolidating findings from both the literary as well as the visual. Informed by the notion that “gothic” originally incarnated with distinct features, Luckhurst acknowledges and expertly conveys how it has morphed over time to become a travelling trope as it infiltrated different cultures and was infused by their respective beliefs.

Comprehensive in nature and structured thematically instead chronologically, Gothic: An Illustrated History sheds light on the origins and masters of the genre, to then take a step back to look at who revived it across all media types, how surprisingly varied variants emerged in other cultures and spawned new genres were spawned as well as the commonalities across the board, i.e. the core emotional responses it evokes.

Juxtaposing contemporary and traditional gothic phenomena, Luckhurst artfully reveals how context, time, zeitgeist and space actively contribute to its perception and thereby delivers a well-rounded, holistic and global view of the genre.

As the name suggests, the tome is aptly illustrated with close to four hundred accompanying images, which visually substantiate the thoughtful essays.

Carried by an engaging, educational and easily accessible tone, Gothic: An Illustrated History makes for a compelling read and a worthwhile addition to the reference section of any library.