- Maverick Berlin label Staubgold has been championing vaguely post-(Kraut)rock experimentalism for more than a decade. Label boss Markus Detmer hand-picks each release with an eclectic ear, and imposes no defining aesthetic, banking instead on the indefinable qualities of gut-feeling to make his choices. The result of this strategy after eighty releases is a back catalogue overflowing with the odd and obscure, as well as a few more well known names: Vladislav Delay, Ekkehard Ehlers (aka Auch), To Rococo Rot and Oren Amabarchi among others.
Detmer usually compiles Staubgold samplers himself, but occasionally he brings in someone else to do the job, and for Dinner Music for Clubbers he’s drafted in clubland character Perter Grummich to mix one. Grummich’s productions are usually filed under minimal—he’s been turning out bass-heavy, melodically delicate tracks on labels like Kompakt, Sender Records, Shitkatapult, and Spectral Sound for a long time now. So what does he pluck from the vaults of Staubgold then?
Given the title, it’s no surprise that the disc is filled with mostly low-key elektronisch. Grummich, true to the theme, makes a selection of electro-acoustic songs with ambient edges that might be appropriate for dinner. He also throws in some curveballs that make for interesting, if awkward transitions, and the odd segues gives the compilation a mix-tapey glow, forgivable given that the material wasn’t designed for mixing.
Warm fuzziness is sustained by some good, if somnambulant songs—the picturesque ‘Optical Flow’ from sound artist Rafael Toral, Andrew Pekler’s drifting, Klimek-like ‘Pluck’d’, and Alejandro Franov’s gentle lullaby. There is also a blast of cold air and carnival-esque rhythms at the mid-point with Reuber’s ‘Spielkind’, and again later on in the second half. But then who would be able to mix the No-Neck Blues Band into downbeat electronica unscathed?
As samplers go, it’s okay—the aim of introducing club goers to music they might not normally pay attention to isn’t a bad one—but Staubgold, a label of quirky and in-depth explorations, offers greater rewards to those willing to dig a bit deeper.
Tracklist01 To Rococo Rot - Jackie's Dream
02 Ehlers/Suchy/Hautzinger - Soundchambers 1
03 Sack Und Blumm - To Go To
04 Rafael Toral - Optical Flow
05 Andrew Pekler - Pluck'd
06 Kammerflimmer Kollektief - Subnarkotisch
07 Alejandro Franov - Micerino Tema
08 Reuber - Spielkind
09 Alejandro Franov - Luxor
10 Sun - Make It
11 No-Neck Blues Band & Embryo - Wieder Das Erste Mal
12 Peter Grummich - Sunbeams
13 Kammerflimmer Kollektief - Jinx (Version)
14 FS Blumm - Fehlsprung
15 Peter Grummich - Outro