- With track names like ‘Klaus’ and ‘Vlad’ you might be forgiven for thinking that Riley Reinhold’s new 12” is a homage to Werner Herzog’s classic 1970s remake of 'Nosferatu' starring powerhouse actor Klaus Kinski as Vlad Dracula. But judging from the sound of it, the reference is not the film, nor its haunting soundtrack by Popol Vuh, but fellow Krautrocker Klaus Schulze. Both tracks have the definite retro feel of Schulze’s epic synth driven kosmische (cosmic) music, much like the recent Minilogue 'Space' EP.
The opening track ‘Klaus’ in particular jumps straight into an overlapped synth motif straight out of a Schulze preset bank. Throughout the track it never abates, propelling you into a hypnotically dense swirl of psychedelica. One is also tempted to recall Philip Glass’ so-called ‘Systems Music’ for a clue as to how this relentless and dense sound functions to pull you along endlessly. It is authentic Krautrock motorik, fed through with washes of epic synth, again a la Schulze, over a steady 128 BPM minimal beat. The weight of these sounds is very well balanced indeed, such that the falling away of one changes the entire structure, but without ever compromising the fluidity.
Interestingly, ‘Vlad’ is the opposite. It might clock in at exactly the same length, 7:41, and uses the same tempo beat, as if deliberately redesigned from the same template, but the effect is completely different. Sparse and airy, flowery snares fill out the voluminous space, which is interspersed at times with a clipped digital funk riff. ‘Vlad’ is somewhat more improvised and leering than 'Klaus', relying more on a simple horror movie sense of expectation and sound effects for its impact. It's more for the breakdown than the peak, but ‘Klaus’ is a fantastically vibrant homage that would make either Kinski or Schulze proud.