Kollektion 05: Compiled by Thomas Fehlmann

In 1979, Thomas Fehlmann attended a lecture at the Hamburg University of Fine Arts by guest speaker Conrad Schnitzler about applying Fluxus artist Joseph Beuys' "extended definition of art" to music. The lecture proved to be greatly influential to Fehlmann, who formed influential post-punk group Palais Schaumburg shortly after, and went on to join ambient techno pioneers the Orb in the early '90s. Four years after Schnitzler's 2011 death, Fehlmann compiled Kollektion 05, a handy summary of Schnitzler's groundbreaking 1980s recordings. Drawn from albums such as Contempora, Consequenz, and Conrad & Sohn, the compilation showcases the more accessible, immediate side of Schnitzler's work, rather than the challenging side-long experimental pieces of his "color" series (Rot, Blau, etc.). Many of the tracks here have skittering drum machines, vocals, and even guitar lines, but it's the splashing, bubbling synthesizer tones that stand out and captivate. While tracks such as "Tanze im Regen" and the classic "Fata Morgana" may have helped birth industrial and minimal wave, and "Das Tier" even has a sort of off-kilter disco beat, "21.8.86" (from 1987's Congratulacion) has more of a delicate yet precise classical-inspired construction that sounds much closer to Wendy Carlos than Throbbing Gristle. Presented out of chronological sequence, Fehlmann presents the songs intact with no remixing and minimal crossfade transitions or edits, expertly picking representative cuts from several phases of Schnitzler's career, resulting in the most concise entry point into the Krautrock legend's vast, daunting discography. ~ Paul Simpson