non034. me raabenstein. all these precious

artist: me raabenstein
title: all these precious
cat.no: non034
format: digital artist album
release date: april 30, 2012
distributed by nonine recordings
 

tracklist

01 gentle little burden
02 cold stick
03 beggar’s palace
04 mum lump
05 jabbering and jam
06 forgetting tricks and play
07 dix
08 buttered rolls
09 tank 

all tracks written and produced by me raabenstein,
additional programming by david minor on tracks 02, 04 and 07.
additional programming by subsequent on track 08.
mastered by shapemod, berlin.
art work by simonraabenstein.com           

nonine recordings head honcho me raabenstein returns with his second solo album. compared to it’s predecessor release “raabenstein_esk”, these nine new tracks evaporate a more mature, laid-back atmosphere, still impersonating this certain lascivious tickling electronic feel that is so typical among all raabenstein productions. counting in all the collaborations and projects the artist has written, co-written and produced, this is album number twenty from his hands, starring the fully grown lyrical opulence and sonorous accuracy of a musician and producer knowing exactly which buttons to press in the right time. enjoy the melody !!

feedback

me raabenstein is an accomplished visual artist with a few short films in the eighties to his credit as well who proclaims an interest in “overlapping structures and the lamination of inappropriate ingredients.” he characterizes his musical style as “broken” but “lascivious.” it’s a canny aesthetic delivered in a deceptively laid back manner on his new album 'all these precious'. it’s hybrid music—a kind of re-thought jazz uneasily athwart incorrigibly unruly rhythms. although the twentieth production raabenstein has been involved in, all these precious is only his second strictly solo album. it ventures a rich, engrossing and meticulously constructed density, steady-handedly and with great artistry, which becomes increasingly and impressively apparent each time you replay it.

bristling like a rash, “gentle little burden” has a whiff of decadence and shameful longings. the “psycho” strings of “cold stick” is a hitchcockian theme for a twenty-first century thriller. the luxurious falling feeling of “beggar’s palace” plummets past sinewy branching beats without snapping a single twig. “mum lump” has the wisp of a woman’s voice threading through its architecture, but there is also a tiny little muezzin hidden in its structure. each of raabenstein’s tracks are relatively brief—three to five minutes—but are so dappled, bedaubed and freckled, that they really seem much longer. “jabbering and jam” has been stuck with the most incongruous title, since it is the closest thing to winding down for a moment in the chill room, and the following track, “forgetting tricks and play,” is breezy as southern californian am radio coming in on the shortwave somewhere in eastern europe. “dix” is dark and enigmatic, something ghoulish out of a b-movie that makes you turn your head away from the screen, and “buttered rolls” only smoothens out with a few orchestral sighs as it trundles to a close. “tank” is scrupulously restrained, tightly wound-up funk tangled in the crosstown traffic of keening strings.

it’s obvious raabenstein has a highly developed visual imagination, one which he translates brilliantly into audio. the dimpled spindle upon which his melodies revolve wrap you around the album’s little finger.
stephen fruitman, igloo magazine, usa 05/12

fleißbiene me raabenstein meldet sich zurück mit seinem neuesten studioalbum “all these precious“ auf nonine recordings. gegen ende letzten jahres beschenkte er treue hörer mit der opulenten kompilation “r” und legte damit die breite genrevielfalt seines labels offen, für das er unter einigen alter egos figuriert. somit ist “all these precious” nicht nur sein zweites studioalbum, sondern das sage und schreibe zwanzigste album, an dem er mitwirkt.
der labeltypischen düsteren dub-ästhetik bleibt “all these precious” äußerst treu, bewegt sich allerdings ein stück weit weg von der extraversion und experimentierlust seines vorgängers “raabenstein_esk“, wodurch beinahe eine dichotomische wirkung der beiden platten zueinander vermutet werden kann. “all these precious” ist durchsetzt von atmosphärischen soundschichten, die von downbeats und geloopten melodien getragen werden. ”gentle little burden” baut durch die klaviermelodie im vordergrund eine aufreibende spannung auf, die in jeder sekunde zur peripetie neigt, sich allerdings bis zum schluss im zaum hält. geschickt nuancierte feinheiten wie ansätze von clicks & cuts in “beggar‘s palace” oder bewegte streicherarrangements in “forgetting tricks and play” – dem absoluten höhepunkt der platte – verhindern eine allzu starre linearität des albums. schlussendlich läuft “all these precious” dennoch gefahr, nicht die völlige aufmerksamkeit des hörers zu gewinnen. dies macht allerdings genau die reife und anziehende reserviertheit des albums aus und kann somit auch als weiterentwicklung des debüts angesehen werden.
poyraz hannutoglu, bln.fm, germany 04/12

very prolific, high quality music...
pedro figueiredo portela, o dominio dos deuses, portugal 04/12

good work, 'dix' is my favourite... airplay already !!!
cian o ciohain, an taobh tuathail, ireland 04/12

cooles album !!!
cay talan, couch records, austria 03/12

really happy you sent this my way my friend, there's so much good on this album, I'm quite impressed. very mature indeed, well structured & overall dope! going straight into rotation on the show, I guarantee it.
kerem gokmen, dubmission radio show, usa 03/12

german experimenter me raabenstein's new album 'all these precious' is an audio delight for those tired of more or less pop music...
tanya mulkidzhanova, read and listen, russia 04/12

nachts im sommer - bei offenem fenster - muss das HAMMER kommen !!!
tim thaler, bln.fm, germany 01/12