Free/Future/Music – Altin Village & Mine opens Creative Alliances – Frohdroh – Electronic Music from Leipzig

Recently, a very special mixtape appeared at the Leipziger Label Altin Village & Mine, which enables new perspectives on several levels: “Free/Future/Music – Volume 1”. We have heard it often lately – and you should do that too.

Altin Village & Mine always gets an extra look with us with more detailed stand-alone reviews. And for a good reason: the releases of this label, which has been active for over 20 years, are usually very special events. With its own depth, great musical openness and unconventional twists. “Free/Future/Music – Volume 1” tops that again.

Originally planned as a compilation for the 20th anniversary of the label, this release needed a few years more to master tire and challenges than expected. In the end it was four years of work. The result is a mixtape in two ways. Because “Free/Future/Music – Volume 1” is also also available on tape. And musically, the compilation is as diverse as it used to be good, self -curated mixtapes for friends: on the inside too. This release also opens several horizons with every new song. Also for the musicians involved: inside – it is only pieces that have been created in partly proven, partly new collaborations.

And it is precisely this bringing together and bouncing into different musical manuscripts and perspectives makes “Free/Future/Music” so valuable. He creates “creative alliances”, as it is very suitable in the press text. A look at the tracklist reveals that there are loud musicians behind these alliances: inside, who somehow have been connected to Marcel Schulz and his label Altin Village & Mine. At first that creates great familiarity, and yet there are many surprises. The cooperation between Kalme and Map.ache, for example. Of course, both with their subtle sounds and gentle aesthetics fit together very well. The fact that “Mexico” still sounds so coherent dreamy and poppy leaves you a lot more.

The same applies to “Salamander”, the collaboration between station 17 and datschock, in the contemporary Krautrock with impressive, abstract vocals in a long mantra. Otherwise, exciting genre overlaps flicker over the 72 minutes and twelve tracks from “Free/Future/Music”. Dub and jazz, minimal techno and ambient, indie and folkloric sounds from different continents.

What the compilation goes well together with all the diversity is a certain back and an artistic understatement by artists: inside who feel like research and at the same time are so well versed that they can quickly pave new paths in unknown spheres. And certainly Fritz Brückner alias mode Pitch also had its share of this homogeneous academic in the hyper-hetoren approach of “Free/Future/Music” when mastening.

The complexity of the compilation also fits that it opens up a solidarity and theoretical level. On the one hand, half of the proceeds go to Mission Lifeline. On the other hand, with theoretical synopsis on the three keywords of the compilation title, she questioned current cyclical chances of cultural practice. One of them is that the artists involved: inside and the label have made their work available for free. In this context, the “Free” opens two meaning rooms: How free can music be if it is largely used by many people in the sense of “free of charge” and is often produced by musicians: in the inside without sufficient financial consideration? And how much future is in a contemporary music culture that has caught up more than ever in historicist-nostalgic revival loops?

“Free/Future/Music-Volume 1” is so much more than simple compilation and label plant show. The “Volume 1” gives a lot of hope that it will become a series that reveals new perpakes, fascinations, discussions and surprises again and again in the future. The premiere did this very well.