Level Pi

Artist: Level Pi
P: 2011
Evening begins to fall. Outside it's dark. In the glow of a small lamp or maybe the street lights, people are sitting at the window telling stories. This hour is called ›Dunkelstunde‹, literally ›dark-hour‹. Level π's new album tells seven of these ›Dunkelstundengeschichten‹. Stories of ships in deep space, tales about absent friends, mystic dreams or serious stories. Finding their musical home somewhere between Berlin School EM and rock, they are revealed through classic Moog sounds, modern electronics, organ, bass, drums and electric guitars.

Artist: Level Pi
P: 2009
"Electronic Sheep" is the second album from Uwe CREMER, aka LEVEL PI, based in Köln, Germany. His first album "Entrance" has been released on the Garden Of Delights label in 2006, and the new one is welcomed by the Dreaming label three years later. With its long guitar solos, "Entrance" can appear on first listening to be set mostly in the Floydian cosmos. But then, at the same time, there are many echoes of Seventies electronic music, centred firmly around those who hail from the Berlin school genre. On "Electronic Sheep", the artist follows this road to the end: nearly 80 minutes of electronic music, directly inspired by the old heroes and pioneers of this golden age of electronic music. Overall, the CD works very much like one of those evenings you could spend, sitting in your favourite armchair, listening to one good synthesizer record after another: You start with Klaus SCHULZE, go on with Jean-Michel JARRE, TANGERINE DREAM, CLUSTER... "Electronic Sheep" is a veritable tribute to Uwe CREMER's various idols of this time. Recommended to anyone into the cosmic sounds of yesterday's electronic scene.

Artist: Level Pi
P: 2006
Listening to Entrance it is immediately obvious that Cremer is a Krautrock expert par excellence as he has managed to capture the essence of a certain part of the genre superbly. Focusing more towards the ambient (term used loosely!) side of things, the music is primarily keyboard based, capturing the synth sounds of the era perfectly, interspersed with free-flowing improvised guitar. Percussion and even some taped effects to add atmosphere.
Prime example is opener No Cello, rather a misleading title as the opening section is dominated by a military snare beat (the title originates from an aborted session with a cello player). Once the introduction is over a distorted guitar solos over a backing of heavily phased guitar, bass and drums to give an almost ethereal effect. Imagine a heavier Steve Hillage without the whimsiness and you'll be getting there. King Arthur's Mantra takes its name from the drum track, which I found to be rather incongruous at first. However, it fitted in well when the psychedelicised guitar effects reminiscent of very early Pink Floyd freak-outs are introduced. This track is brimming with all sorts of guitar sounds and anyone who digs spacey jams will find a home in this track.
Hubble's Dream is essentially an 18 minute history of the universe, kicked off by an effect-ladened monologue recited over a low drone. This persists for the entire first part providing a hypnotic backdrop. The second part draws once again from early Floyd in texture and introduces the guitar, at first playing chords but then building up speed and momentum to produce a somewhat sparse Mike Oldfield-type landscape. After approximately 12 minutes of build-up the guitar finally breaks free in a fitting climax. Bad Weather is the only real vocal track on the album and unfortunately the singing is not that convincing. The music is just as good as on other tracks with some great organ sounds and a scorching guitar providing the heaviest piece on the album, the wah-wah invoking the spirit of Hendrix. The title track opens with the sound of a storm. A metronymic beat pulsates in the background while a languid synth line adds an air of melancholy which leads directly into Part 3.14 (if you are confused by the numbering, think about the name of the band!). A sequencer line takes over and is added to again and again layering different pieces one on top of the other, while all the time maintaining a common theme to the piece. The final part brings things down with string synths and a more mellow guitar rounding things off in a more peaceful atmosphere.
Entrance is a fine instrumental album that will touch a chord with fans of instrumental progressive music. With its roots in classic Krautrock, although somewhat less chaotic than many of the original seventies releases, Level π are maintaining a fine tradition of German music.

Artist: Uwe Cremer (Level Pi)
+ Thomas Rydell
P: 2012
The album is excellently produced and shows that there are two full-blooded musicians at work, who have done it not for commercial but purely for artistic reasons. Three long tracks with absolutly variating moods, sounds and sequences.