Datum intervjuja: 16.07.2007
Skupina Faust, ki je bila v sedemdesetih letih prejšnjega stoletja znana po svojem eksperimentiranju, “odštekanih” živih nastopih, skrajno nepristopnih albumih in po tem, da so skupaj še z nekaterimi drugimi nemškimi skupinami ustvarili novo glasbeno gibanje (krautrock), se je po dolgem času vrnila na odre ter v studio. Po nastopu na Rock in Opposition festivalu v Franciji in pred avantegardnim festivalom v Nemčiji sem se pogovoril z basistom in enim od ustanoviteljev skupine – Jean-Hervéjom Peronom.
Kot prvo naj vprašam kako je prišlo do imena krautrock (za naslov komada)?
Ko je glasba, ki je izvirala v Nemčiji, postala popularna, so Britanci odkrili način kako se bi iz tega norčevali – “krautrock”. Znali smo se pošaliti na svoj račun in tako smo glavno skladbo na Faust IV poimenovali “Krautrock”. Postala je klasika in zdaj jo Britanci vedno radi slišijo.
Ste za Faust menili, da so bili “krautrock” skupina, v istem smislu kot Can ali Amon Duul, ali so vas tja dali le zaradi imena skladbe oziroma dejstva da ste bili iz Nemčije?
Najprej naj poudarim, da zdaj izraz ne pomeni nič drugega kot rock, ki ga igrajo nemške skupine. Prav negravžno je. “Krautrock”, o katerem govorim jaz in govoriš ti, nima nič skupnega s “krautrockom”, o katerem dandanes govorijo mediji. Podobno se je zgodilo s progresivno glasbo: dandanašnji “prog rock” nima nobene zveze s tisto progresivno glasbo iz 70ih. Mediji ustvarjajo besede (kar je dobro), potem jih pa zlorabljajo (kar je slabo). Sedaj, ko sem to vzpostavil, lahko odgovorim na vprašanje. Menim, da smo skupaj s Can, Guru Guru, Amon Duul pravi predstavniki tega “krautrock” gibanja. To, da se drug od drugega precej razlikujemo, je bistvo tega gibanja. Vsaka prava “kraut” skupina je imela svoj prepoznaven zvok. Vsi smo iskali lastno osebnost in tako smo ustvarili mnogo raznolikih stilov z enim skupnim ciljem: avtentičnost.
Vas je kdaj motilo, da je bilo toliko skupin “krautrock”, ko pa je bila vsaka drugačna.
Zakaj za vraga bi me. Kot sem že rekel, pri “krautrocku” gre prav za to (oziroma je šlo). Iskanje lastnega načina izražanja.
Ali mislite, da je bila takratna scena v Nemčiji s tako veliko velikimi skupinami (Can, Tangerine Dream, Amon Duul, Faust,…) nekaj posebnega?
Vsekakor. Vse skupine smo upale odkrivati nove stvari, eksperimentirali smo na področjih, kjer nismo mogli pričakovati denarja, stali smo goli in izpostavljeni pred občinstvom, ki je poznalo le “one two three four, rock, oh my baby is gone…” Šokirali smo mnogo ljudi, ki so zdaj (vsaj nekateri) zadovoljni, da so se srečali z drugim pogeldom na svet in drugim načinom izražanja družbenih nemirov.
Kako ste v 70ih pisali skladbe? Z improvizacijami ali je šlo za skladanje?
Ni bilo nekega recepta. Šlo je za dnevno počutje in inspiracijo. Vse je bilo dovoljeno in dobro – matematika, tveganje, dadaizem, poezija, mamila, skupinsko pisanje, vse…seveda tudi kompozicije.
Ali ste presenečeni, da ste sedaj kultna skupina, morda celo bolj od katere druge “krautrock” skupine?
Zelo. Zdi se kot da nas imajo nekateri ljudje zelo radi. Nekateri so stari toliko kot jaz, drugi so precej mlajši in to si štejem v čast. Ni jih veliko, a tisti ki so, jih naša glasba prevzame. Nikoli nismo služili denarja in ga nikoli ne bomo, na ta način bomo zagotovo ostali avtentični, nikdar ne bomo popularni ali znani. Nikoli nismo sklepali kompromisov z založbami, ko so nam rekli naj bomo bolj “dosegljivi”. Popolnoma smo zadovoljni s položajem in na nek način sem ponosen na naš uspeh (pomanjkanje uspeha).
Kako napreduje nov album?
Lepo, hvala. Končan je, prvič pa bo predstavljen na avangardnem festivalu http://www.avantgardefestival.de med 27. In 29. julijem. Gre za sodelovanje med Nurse with Wound in zasedbo Faust. 42 minut ter bonus komd. Prepričan sem, da ti bo všeč. Spet, brez kompromisov, čista studijka improvizacija, vso stvar sta pa zmiksala tista dva norca Stapleton in Potter. Imenuje se “Disconnected”, izšel pa bo pri Faustovi založbi http://www.art-errorist.de Pozno poleti bo izšel tudi na vinilu pri založbi “Dirter”.
Kaj lahko poveste o novem materijalu? Kako se lahko primerja s tistim iz 70ih?
Popolnoma enak je, ker je popolnoma drugačen.
Ste zadovoljni s tem kakšno smer ste izbrali?
Da. V skupini je vse skladno. Ničesar ne obžalujem in z veseljem opazujem kaj se dogaja: turneje so uspešne, če vidim v občinstvu nasmejane in plesoče ljudi. Sedaj sva le še dva izvirna člana: Zappi Diermeier na bobnih in jaz na kitari, pihalih in orodju. Povabiva goste, ponavadi prijatelje, ki sva jih srečala na glasbeni poti. Odlično deluje.
Očitno spet uživate v živih nastopih. Je to vedno bil vaš najljubši del skupine Faust?
Sam Faust je precej komplicirana celota. Bilo je več “Faustov”. Ta, ki obstaja zdaj,uživa v deljenju glasbe v živo. V preteklosti je to povzročalo težave, a zdaj ne več.
Bi mi lahko kaj povedali o eksperimentiranju s čudnimi zvoki? To ste počeli že v 70ih in še zdaj ste veliki eksperimentalci.
Kaj naj rečem? Za nas “čudni” zvoki ne obstajajo. Vse je zvok, vsi zvoki so zanimivi. Umetnost ni nič, umetnik ni nič. Edina prava glasba je nič glasbe. Ne vem. Nisem tukaj. To nisem jaz.
Kako ste prišli do ideje, da med živimi nastopi uporabljate razne aparate? Ste to počeli že v 70ih? Slišal sem namreč, da je Faust v 70ih uporabljaj vrtalnike in druge naprave.
Vedno smo uporabljali vse mogoče stvari. Bojim se, da bomo s tem tudi nadaljevali.
Dandanes se zdi kot da je Faust na novo odkril svojo identiteto. Spet igrate na manjših prizoriščih. Se vam zdi občutek podoben kot na začetku kariere?
Ne spomnim se, da bi kdaj igrali na VELIKIH prizoriščih. No zares, nismo na novo odkrili svoje identitete. Mislim, da nas le ljudje spoznavajo. Seveda je položaj drugačen. Ko smo začeli igrati v 70ih, ljudje sploh niso bili pripravljeni, zato je bil odziv…hm…zadržan! Zdaj se zdi kot da smo jim že od začetka všeč. Tako je precej lažje početi “našo stvar”. Bolj smo sproščeni, ni se treba spopadati z občinstvom. Med nami in občinstvom je zdaj lepa skladnost…očutek, ki te zelo motivira.
Kako ste spoznali Amauryja Cambuzata (kitara, orgle; član skupine Ulan Bator) in kdaj ste se odločili, da z njim želite sodelovati? Ste že od začetka vedeli, da je pravi človek za skupino?
Amaury se je v Faustu pojavil in izginil kot komet. Želim, da najde duševni mir. Je izjemen glasbenik. Zasluži si večjo priznanost.
Ali raje igrati na majhnih prizoriščih, kjer je več kontakta z občinstvom kot na večjih prizoriščih?
Brez dvoma: na manjših. Želimo čutiti energijo ljudi, vonjati njihovo navdušenje, gledati njihove smejoče obraze, se jih dotikati, biti z njimi. Za to glasbeniki, glasba in občinstvo obstajajo.
Za konec naj se vam še zahvalim, da ste si vzeli čas za odgovore.
Hvala za vaše zanimanje v našo glasbo.
——————————————————–English version——————————————————————
Faust is known as one of the biggest bands to come out of the German krautrock movement. They are perhaps the “craziest” and most experimental of all krautrock bands and this trend seems to be going on even nowadays. Faust is a legend that keeps re-inventing itself and they seem to have found their way back to the musical scene. Rockline talked to their bass playaer Jean-Hervé Peron.
First of all, how did the name krautrock come about? By this I mean the title of one of your songs.
When the music originated in germany became popular , the british found a name to make fun of it “krautrock”… We decided to take the joke with good humor and called our main songs on the new album “faust IV” KRAUTROCK. It became a classic and now the british people love to hear that song…
Did you ever consider Faust to be a krautrock band in the same sense as Can or, Amon Duul, or were you simply classified with them because you came up with the name for the genre?
First of all I must stress the fact that NOW (2007) the term “krautrock” means nothing more than rock music played by a German band. It is DISGUSTING . So, the “krautrock I am talking about and you are talking about has nothing to do with what the media nowodays call krautrock. The same happened to “progressive music” : nowodays “prog rock ” is something that has nothing to do with what was called progressive music in the 70ies….. media create words (good) and abuse them (bad). Ok, now that this is clearly said, i can answer your question. : yes , I consider can/guru/duul etc… as full representants of the krautrock movement of the 70ies. The fact that we are very different from one another is exactly what krautrock is all about: there is “three bars pattern” , every group truly “kraut” had their very specifical sound. We were all looking for our own identity thus creating a huge variety of styles with one common goal: authenticity.
Did it ever bother you that so many German bands were classified as krautrock, when basically every band sounded different?
Hell no! See above, this is what krautrock IS! (Sorry: I must say “was”): a search for your PERSONAL way of expression.
Do you think that the scene in Germany at the time was something special, with so many big names (Can, Tangerine Dream, Amon Duul, Faust,…)?
Definitely: we ( by this i mean all the “kraut” groups) were not afraid of going in a no man’s land, to experiment in areas where we knew there was no money to expect, to stand naked and vulnerable in front of an audience who knew only “one two three four, rock, oooooh my baby is gone etc….”. We have schocked many many people who are now ( some of them anyway) extremly pleased to have been confronted with another way of seeing things and expressing feelings or social turmoils.
How was the writing done in Faust in the 70s? From improvisations or was it mostly composed?
There was no recipe, no formula..it was all according to the day’s feeling and inspiration.. everything was allowed and good.. mathematic, hazard, dada, poetry, drugs, collective writing, everything…also compositions of course…
Are you surprised that you are now considered as sort of a cult band, perhaps even more so than any other krautrock band?
Yes, very much so. It seems that some people do like us very much. Some are my age, some are much younger. and I am happy and honored about this. There are not many but they are sincerely moved by our music. We never made money and we never will. this way we are sure to stay authentic. We will never be popular or famous… We never compromised with the record industry when they tried to tell us to be more “accessible” . We are totally satisfied with the situation I am in a way “proud” of our achievement.
How is the new album coming along?
Fine thank you. It is finished and will be presented premiere at the www.avantgardefestival.de 27/29 juli. Soon now ! It is a collaboration between nurse with wound and faust.. 42 minutes plus a bonus track. I am
sure you will like it. again, no compromise, pure improvisation in studio and the whole thing mixed by those absolutly crazy stapleton/potter! It is called “disconnected” and is released under faust label www.art-errorist.de . It will be available on vinyl too in late summer this year under §dirter” label
What can you say about the new material? How does it compare with your material from the 70s?
It is the exactly the same because it is absolutly different!!!
Are you excited about the direction you have taken in your music?
Yes. I feel the group is in total agreement with itself. I regret nothing and I look with great joy on what is happening now: our tours are successfull when I see all the smiling faces and the dancing people. We play now with only two original members: that is zappi diermaier on drums and myself on guitars/horns and tools. We invite guests musicians , mostly friends we have met in our music life. It works splendidly.
You seem to be enjoying doing live shows again. Is this something that has always been your favourite thing in the music of Faust?
Faust as such is an extremly complicated entity. There have been many “faust”. The one that exist now always enjoyed sharing the music LIVE. It created problems in the past. Now there is no problem anymore.
Could you tell me something about experimenting with strange sounds? You already did that in the 70s and you’re still great experimenters nowadays.
What can i say? For us, there are not any “strange” sounds! Everything is sound, all sounds are interesting. Art is nothing. The artist is nothing. The only true music is no music. I dont know. i am not here. It is not me.
How did the idea of using machinery in your live shows come about? Is this something you already did in the 70s? I heard stories that Faust already used drills and other equipment in the 70s.
See above. And yes, we have been using all kinds of things, always. I am afraid we will continue.
Nowadays Faust seems to have reinvented itself. You’re playing smaller venues again. Does it feel like it felt at the beginning of your career?
I cannot remenmber playing BIG venues. No really, we are not re-inventing ourselves. I think people are just discovering us maybe. Of course the situation is different. When we began to play in the 70s, people were not at all prepared and most of the time the reaction was… errr… reserved! Now, they seem to like us straight from the beginning… so it is much easier to “do our thing” … we are more relaxed, we don’t have to “fight” the audience.. .. there is a beautiful communion between us and our audience now… very very motivating feeling.
How did you meet Amaury Cambuzat and when did you decide you wanted to work with him? Did you know from the start that he was the right person to be in your band?
Amaury appeared and dissapeared in faust like a comet. I wish him to find peace of mind . He is an extraordinary musician. He deserves recognition.
Do you prefer to play smaller venues, where there’s more contact with the public or larger ones?
No doubt :small ! we want to feel the energy of the people, smell their excitment, see their smiles, touch them, be with them. This is what musicians and music and audiences are for.
Finally, let me thank you for taking the time to answer these questions.
Thanks for your interest in our music
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