The Background
During the summer of ’25, Rainer did an R&D project of sorts. The goal: design, implementation and prototypical use of a hardware-based system for playing ambient techno (whatever that meant). That project – DeepMEE – concluded after the recording of a track, Chapter Six, which was quite nice indeed.
So what to do with it? Continue working with the setup? Release that as an EP?
At that time, Maxialbum was still in full swing, so the results were benched for the moment.
Putting a Chart in an Atlas
Work on the actual album started around April 2026 – that was after the announcement to work on something else.
So what was the album supposed to be? More DeepMEE? Things complementing it?
As you can guess, things went sideways quickly – and with that, the choice for the album title was clear. You can’t just put everything on one virtual page – you need a set of charts, a atlas, for it.
The opening nicht. zu. viel. is a new realization on the idea for a Woozyk Meeklies track back from January. Try to keep things simple. Two synth pads, the occasional synth bleep, and a bass drum.
Amazake takes things completely sideways. After careful deliberation, the genre for this track was identified as „Ambient No Techno“. It has all the ingredients of an ambient techno track, but doesn’t feel like one. The somewhat odd tonality only supports this effect.
The centrepiece – by track count, and by sheer duration – is Chapter Six, in itself composed of three distinct sections. The most heavy-hitting one, moving through everything that can reasonably be considered ambient techno.
With Hatsumode, we’re going into some dub-inspired abstract hiptop – only it doesn’t have vocals, and it doesn’t have proper drums, either, safe for a „whatever the meter is right now on the floor“ bassdrum. Tonality is odd, again. But apart from that, a coszy interplay between piano samples and an electric bass guitar.
Closing off, we’re somewhat back to normal with mehr. ist. weniger. Except we got another weird tonality, and chords that are played with mixer faders, and processed church bells. It’s still a fitting end tying together the album.
Further Information
Background info on the blog.
How to get it
The album is available as a digital album download from bandcamp via the player, or directly here.
Download includes a nifty booklet, and lossless versions (FLAC) are in full 24/48 audiophile glory.
Credits & Acknowledgements
„Some AI“ helped with the visual arts.
Apart form that: „alles Straschill“.