Nõi Kabát, whose name
regular readers will have seen mentioned on here previously, are a trio who
were initially formed and gestated in North London, although they’re now
geographically a little disparate with one member living in Budapest and the
other two still back home in the UK. Consisting of vocalist extraordinaire Dee Rüsche,
who also has a penchant for bashing anything inorganic which may be lying
around on the stage, Owen Pratt on a host of electronic equipment and Jonas
Ranssøn, whose drumkit adds a thundery, natural undercurrent to their otherwise potentially sterile
soundtrack, they’ve been together for a number of years now, beavering away,
mainly in private, at first venturing out only tentatively and occasionally to
test, as well as to begin to establish, their audience.
They’re perfectionists,
you see, based on my understanding, and they believe that nothing should be
taken out of the oven and served up for public consumption until what they’ve
produced fully reflects their intended design and, as a consequence, there are only
a few Nõi Kabát songs in circulation. Very occasionally, one of this tightly monitored
clutch dripped out to friends as an email attachment and last year a
highly limited two track cassette was released, setting the scene for what was
to follow. The stronger of these songs, the punchy “I Corrode”, which is
possessed of a similar perky funk to an all-time favourite of mine “Co Co Pino”
by D.A.F., then cropped up again earlier this year on the compilation album “And
You Will Find Them In The Basement” which harnessed together eight examples of “synthesized
transmissions from London 2010-13”, and also included two subjects of previous FS/GB
features, Lebanon Hanover and Soft Riot.
In fact, as things
have developed, it’s in the company of the latter that Nõi Kabát have completed
two European tours, one in 2012 and another in 2013, where they’ve picked up
and met up with other like-minded souls en route. The most recent of these took
place in the early summer and took in destination points such as London, Paris,
Antwerp, Utrecht, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest and Cologne, the itinerary
clearly reflecting their strongly European infused sensibility, which is coupled
to supremely majestic proportions with a love of the sharp astringency and rich
bassiness achieved using analogue synthesizers and a penchant for melodrama, as
belied by a live cover version of Shangri-La’s “Remember (Walkin’ in the Sand)”.
Finding out about their shared love of The Associates, whose sound they do not
emulate but whose aesthetic and intent are gloriously echoed, was no surprise
whatsoever.
Like Billy Mackenzie’s,
although not scaling the same peaks (who else could? Not even Tatty Heed from
Bronski Beat could pull it off with such aplomb), Dee’s vocals have something
of the ambition and integrity of Bowie’s about them, what I most enjoyed about
the sketches of songs he produced several years ago under a different moniker,
and, in my imagination, he creates the kind of sound I would hear were one of
the stately statues residing in any of the European cities Nõi Kabát have
graced on their travels to suddenly step down from its plinth and burst into
song. Vowels are stretched almost crooner-like in places and the voice soars confidently
to quite lofty heights, this layering a heart-felt warmth and passion across
what could otherwise be possibly viewed as cold and a little austere. This
said, though, the music has a sequenced, danceable vitality and occasionally
propulsive beat which can make it reminiscent of the powerful, electronic
sounds which pounded out of Belgium in the mid eighties. In their own words,
they “draw inspiration from constructivism, futurism, 70s Science fiction and
noise theory to create a sound reminiscent of the early industrial pioneers.” They
go on to say “they combine noise from their environment with the sounds of
esoteric electronic drums and analogue keyboards in an attempt to create an authentic
yet newly reconfigured sound. Their electronic repertoire harks to a new and
obscured age, vocals acting as counterpoint to that of their machines.” Quite a
mouthful but I get, mostly, from where it is they come.
At
last, over the summer, a real Nõi Kabát record was finally released, a white
vinyl 7” single on the Berlin-based Aufnahme + Wiedergabe label, limited to 300
hand numbered copies and sold out, I believe, on pre-orders prior to its
release date. Have no fear, though, it’s still available in the infinitely
inferior download format, and a second batch of 200 black vinyl copies is due
imminently, I believe.
Face
A features “Make Room! Make Room!” which has nothing to do with the Fad Gadget
single whose title it doubles, nor does it sound anything like it before the
fingers of plagiarism start to be pointed. In fact, it is apparently inspired
by the book which was made into the film “Soylent Green” in which chunky
Charlton Heston’s character investigates a murder in a not-so-futuristic world
beleaguered by over-population, pollution and increased temperatures caused by
The Greenhouse Effect. According to an
interview with the band I cribbed from elsewhere on the World Wide Internet: “It is generally a story of overpopulation
and the decadence in decay that would facilitate.” Throw in references to Romy
Haag, Edgar Allan Poe and “Journey to the Centre of the Earth” and out comes a
love song, apparently. The full interview, I must pronounce, is well worth a read,
too:
http://invisibleguy.wordpress.com/2013/09/14/interview-with-noi-kabat/
The song begins a tad ominously, as may be expected given its theme, with a thrumming bassline and gently pounding
drums before melody, vocals and other electronic flourishes enter into
proceedings to create a wonderful pop song of romantic, elegiac and
heart-rending proportions, all masterly crafted and executed. A memorable and
addictive beauty it is, indeed, which would stand out from the crop in any era,
the perfectionist touch of the connoisseurs who made it greatly appreciated in
these quarters and very much in evidence across its four minutes or so duration.
This isn’t a single which will slip easily into the recesses of the record box,
bought and soon forgotten, then unearthed years down the line, but rather one
to continually cherish at the forefront of your consciousness. There's even a
little segment of EBM intensity towards the end of it, for those who like it a
bit harder, as the world crosses temporarily into a zone of chaos, out of which
the poetic, hopefulness of the vocalist draws these threads together once more
for a dramatic climax performed on a teetering precipice.
Flip it over and Face B offers up “Industry”
which is a little faster paced but just as impassioned, the lyrical concern
this time being that “some men work in industry; some men work so hard; whilst
others they do nothing; they do nothing; they do nothing but live off the sweat
of others.” The imagery, although given a twist, reminds me of the sleeve to
Depeche Mode’s “Construction Time Again” or Test Department’s “Compulsion” 12”.
I’m taken back to 1983 certainly, although not so much by the sound. Quite
fierce, machine gun sequencer begins proceedings this time with a more martial,
production-line beat adding further strength and order but then it’s soon time
for the other elements to arrive on the scene, killer chords and the voice
aforementioned, here probably at its peak, all combining to create an extremely
accomplished piece of semi-electro-pop which doesn’t one bit sound like a track
off the debut single produced by an independent, d-i-y ensemble working without
a great deal of financial backing. How times and possibilities have changed. It’s
not hard with this coming out of the speakers to appreciate the eager anticipation which awaited its release.
Each time I play the
single I vacillate between the two sides in choosing a favourite, always a sign
of a memorable record in my book. Here are clips of both performed live which
will allow you to decide for yourself or perhaps you’d like to join me in my
bitter-sweet dilemma. Unfortunately, I’ve yet to see Nõi Kabát live, our paths
always seem to diverge at that crucial moment of connection, but our time will
come and when it does it will be explosive. Meanwhile, as promised a moment ago...
Something else sits
in the pipeline, too, with a Zagreb connection, but more of that very soon. In the
meantime, let’s wallow in enjoyment of what we’ve got thus far.
STOP PRESS: Here's an promo video for "Make Room! Make Room!" which I didn't think was available.
I love your music and ... waiting for more
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