Charles Wilp "Michelangelo In Space" (CD)

This Compilation CD starts off like a rocket - with the remix from Yasuharu Konishi (Pizzicato 5) . Like a space ship it flies through the cosmic wideness of music and after 77 minutes it ends with the heartbeat of Charles Wilp in perfect weightlessness.
Let it take you to the parallelworld of "Bunny"- expedition and discover known and totally uninhabited beautiful planets and stars in the Michelangelo-galaxy:

Active for 15 years with Pizzicato Five in Japan and since "Made In USA" also in the rest of the consumer-glitterworld, Konishi has become an idol of relaxed flowing futuristic Loungepop. He has up until now, not been very well known as a remix artist. However, working with songs from Telex, Pop Tarts or Saint Etienne he has shown another side: that of a
mad, idea bubbling, house re-mixer.

As DJ and re-mixer he is the darling of the international Lounge scene, his remix work has included Pizzicato Five, Peter Thomas, Baden Powell and the 'Get Easy' series. He has also made records with every relevant DJ in Europe, Japan and the USA as well as produced a commercial for Levi`s and recently released his debut album on Bungalow. Despite what the title suggests the 'Astro Chillberto Mix' is no
Bossa Nova.

i:o:l are Inga Humpe, formerly Neonbabies, later active with Palais Schaumburg, as Bamby, and Dorau`s producer Tommi Eckart - better known as "2Raumwohnung".
Together they have produced films such as 'Manta' or the cult detective series 'Berliner Weiße' and have remixed Franka Potente and Heike Makatsch. What they say about 'Mad. Ave. Perfume Ad.': "i:o:l could smell whiskey, fur and LSD in the mix. The women were beautiful, unstable and spoilt ­ the men rich, wild and lost. The sound of these confusing times held a mirror in front of us in which we saw ourselves and could pose."

A Düsseldorf collective of DJs and musicians, including keyboard player from the Harald Schmidt Show Jürgen Dahmen (the german "Letterman") and the co-owners of the Unique label and club Tino Stoschek and Henry Storch. Paul Murphy and High Fidelity have worked on and produced releases for the Black Science Orchestra label Afro Art. From Düsseldorf for the world: Wilp-Ata Tak-Metrophonics.

The reputed cocktail consuming Sanfrancisco Duo Gardner/Digulla stunned 1996 with the obscure and roguish 'Trip Tease' on Ashphodel. Vintage organs coupled exotically with sultry Orientalism, turntables and kitsch ukulele. Hypnotic vibrating rythms, 'Size 178-79-55-91' the ideal companion for pleasurable activities.

Haruomi Hosono ­ 1969 psychedelic rock with April Fool, followed by Westcoast sung in Japanese with Happy End, Exotica nostalgia as 'tropical Dandy', internationally loved Technopop with YMO, sound experiments on the Monad label, Technofunk with F.O.E., Shamen-Electronica on 'Medecine Compilation', computer generated 30`s Jazz with 'Swing Slow', international dialog with HAT and obscure Ambient-country with Harry and Mac. This astonishing development of the highly respected Sensei of progressive 'Nippon Music' is distilled into softly moving 'Exotic Dance'.

Since putting an end to their activities in 1992 after Der Plan's 'Wir werden wieder gebraucht' tour the founders of the Ata Tak empire have entertained themselves with valuable material for the senses. Enjoyable Percussion-Exotic, exalted jazz vibes, have produced cleverly referenced pop from and for quality aware people. a certain frank allowed themselves to be inspired by Wilp for the stylish, warm & relaxed 'Space Flower Mix'.

From Plais Schaumburg via his own label 'Teutonic Beats' and the connection with Alex Paterson of The Orb to much sought after producer, remixer and solo artist. Here he co-operates at his most varied, often very complicated, but allways moving with Sun Electric, Daniel Miller, Juan Atkins, Station 17, the legendary King Crimson, Robert Fripp or now Wilp/Martin.

Gimmik is the London based Austrian Martin Haidiger. As a qualified sound engineer he came to playful humorous electronic music via Thrash Metal and names Der Plan and Holger Hiller as influences. Turning his attentions to the abstract electronic scene, he matured after hearing LFO`s 'Frequencies'. The Londoner Gimmik is now characterised as an incredible crossover between Boards of Canada and Funkstörung.

Sunroof are also from London. Behind Sunroof are Gareth Jones and Daniel Miller, founder of Mute, producer and the man who discovered the likes of Depeche Mode, Yazoo and Moby. With their pulsating technoid 'Blau Mix' hymn, Sunroof naturally move in a direction diametrically opposed to the relaxed original.

Are what two romantic performers, artists and musicians call themselves. 'Raketenjazz' in 1998 was the dada club hit. They have now beamed their trashy surf-cool strip jazz crime universe of the fifties and early sixties into Wilp⊃1;s lounge where Bunny works away seductively on a rotating, strobe lit stage.

The "NDW" Initaited him as 'Fred vom Jupiter' which moved him to within an ideal distance of Space Age artist Wilp. After wild years in the in the colourful Ata Tak cosmos, Dorau landed on a major label
and from there, to the sound of funny house beats, sang his obscure little stories. On 'Fashion Mix' he refrains from contributing vocals leaving the humming of 'huhuhuhu huhu' to a woman.

Originated from the close circle of the Cologne electronic school around Oval. He has released various 12 inches on A-Music, the album 'Space Rokk Mountain Rutschbewohner' as well as producing mixes for Ego Express and Bionaut. His 'Pinkcarpetwellblech' offers contented, amusing relaxation and stimulating insanity on the flight to mars.

A duo from Cologne, have been acclaimed in Japan since the '92 release of their Choice debut 'Lazing Away' and since Nissan chose to
advertise one of their cars with Donna Regina Musik. Six albums, including the current 'A Quiet Week in the House' have shown themselves as optimistic
dreamlike statements from the intricate and aware artists. They have adapted Wilp`s stomping psychedelic Lounge-jazz track into an almost childlike & charming Bossa Nova.

On four albums and six singles the German-French Francoise Cactus, Brezel Göring and Co. Have documented their Analog-Trash somewhere between Gainsbourg and Kamikaze-Beat. The Berliners have chosen to call their latest track 'My Melody' which for the first time includes the use of a cheap sampler (and which was also produced at Ata Tak studios).

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean, on Hawaii, Don Tiki are the true Exotic party band and have proven to be a worthy 2000 version of the great Martin Denny. Brightly coluored Ethno-beats, velvet voices and jazzy
island sounds mix with modern methods to become glittering precious stones of the Forbidden Sound. Here now, a debut on Ata Tak.

To combine the instrumental exoticism of an Arthur Lyman or a Lex Baxter with up to date forms is something only done convincingly in Germany by the Düsseldorf quintet which surrounds the man behind 'Antonelli Electronics' Stefan Schwander. Analog and digital instruments harmonise dynamically with a consistently sublime swing, within an intelligently chosen space.

In the same way that their name grooves just as well forwards or backwards, so does this trio`s music flow delicately in every direction and at every speed. From time to time they used to play with certain pop-patterns, they nonetheless immediatly break them down into detail obsessed structures. Lippock, Lippock and Schneider were the only ones on 'Michelangelo in Space' who chose to work on the 30 year-old cacophonic soundtrack to an Afri-Cola ad.

Charles Wilp - Above all, the visionary heart of the Man Ray student, Dokumenta artist, Artonaut and conductor Charles Wilp, recorded in zero-gravity, is strong beating.