BeatRoute Magazine B.C. print e-edition - May 2016

ELECTRONICS DEPARTMENT
MODERAT
a synthesis of three minds
by Jamie Goyman
photo: Prioreau Green
Moderat embody the power of III, a complete audio and visual declaration.
Berlin, 2003, felt the first touches of Moderat
and what the three producers had set out
to accomplish. Stemming from the already
working acts of Modeselektor (Gernot Bronsert,
and Sebastian Szary) and Apparat (Sascha Ring)
these three released their first collaborative
EP Auf Kosten der Gesundheit (BPitch Control)
which had fans applauding its originality and
surprisingly catchy nature. The 10+ year journey
for Moderat took hold and has consistently been
pushing out the goods ever since. “We have very
different personalities,” says Bronsert, “but what
we have in common is the love for music and
perfectionism.”
When three seasoned minds come together, in
studio, and put their creativity and production to
work the end result never comes up short. The
new album III (Monkeytown Records) delivers
some of the finest musical decisions that keeps
the album on a course of clarity, moving past the
divide that could momentarily be detected in their
previous work. “My personal favorite is ‘Ghostmother,’
for me this song represents the sound
of this record. The artwork of III is also inspired
by the song: the phenomenon ‘Ghostmother’
is from the early beginnings of photography.
100–120 years ago you had very long exposure
time for a picture in good quality. Children had
to sit still for quite some time for a portrait photo
which was difficult, especially for very young
kids. So what do you need to make this work?
The mother, right? So they tried to hide/integrate
the mother into the background of the photo with
some really weird and sometimes scary results,”
Bronsert explains.
III is an album composed of fused talent that
clearly demonstrate just how well these three
know one another musically. Collecting ideas
individually and in the end coming together to
make it one piece, the creative standards they
have established together define the sound of
Moderat. “We had no real plan, but had a pretty
clear idea about the sound and we knew that
Sascha had to sing more. At the end we usually
just start and see how it goes. Like I said though,
we were on the same page regarding the sound
of III right from the beginning. We argue more
about details.”
The live performance itself is where Moderat
fully let out their creative expression and each
song takes on an energy that can’t be completely
recognized through recordings, the true allure of
Ring’s vocals on “Rusty Nail” (Moderat – Bpitch
Control) comes through and your body feels
the vibrations in the air from the music filling
the room. Not only is the live performance from
Moderat almost musically seamless, there is an
entire aspect to the live show that is the perfect
level of overwhelming, to say the least. The very
stimulating visuals that accompany their live
music are nothing to scoff at or brush off as the
usual, the planning and set up behind the live
show is illustrious, if you will. “We work together
with the Pfadfinderei for many years now. They
are responsible for the stage design, the live
show, and all visual aspects of Moderat,” states
Bronsert.
The live shows that come from Moderat are
continuously well-balanced and fluent, both
visually and audibly, these three guys from
Germany aren’t fucking around when it comes to
their music; they’re the real deal. “The need/urge
to express ourselves creatively started in our
childhood I believe – for each of us. It’s in us.” Let
your body get loose with the instinctual chaos
that they have been perfecting since ‘03.
Moderat performs at the Vogue Theatre on May 23
14 MUSIC
May 2016