Saam Schlamminger
Chronomad 1The sleeve notes tell us that Chronomad is Saam Schlamminger, a young German of Turkish origin, a multi instrumentalist, filmmaker and student of Middle Eastern culture. This debut EP finds him playing zarb (an 18-inch-high wooden drum consisting of large cylinder with a small neck), daf (a tambourine-like instrument with rings instead of cymbals) and canjira which he apparently “alienates electrically”. The result is a record of subtle and complex rhythmical pieces which intertwine both electronic and organic Middle Eastern sounds reminiscent of last year’s beautiful Leaf LP by Junray and Asa Chang.
The stand-out track is Sard which begins with a simple, delicate vibraphone sample and a chopped and reversed string sample. This is then complemented by clicky electronic percussion and Schlamminger’s complex zarb drum rhythms. The melodic element dies away perhaps too quickly as we're left with a more developed version of the first jittery, percussive bassline. The other three tracks explore the more natural elements of Schlammingers’s Levantine folk-inspired melodies and rhythms.
On this release Herr Schlamminger has been "assisted" by Micha and Markus Acher of The Notwist. Lucky boy. This makes the record slightly difficult to assess as a debut: exactly how much of those clever electronics is Schlamminger himself and how much Notwist? I don’t know. What I do know is that this is an interesting 12" worthy of your money even if it won’t blow your mind. Schlamminger is certainly a man to look out for in the future.
The stand-out track is Sard which begins with a simple, delicate vibraphone sample and a chopped and reversed string sample. This is then complemented by clicky electronic percussion and Schlamminger’s complex zarb drum rhythms. The melodic element dies away perhaps too quickly as we're left with a more developed version of the first jittery, percussive bassline. The other three tracks explore the more natural elements of Schlammingers’s Levantine folk-inspired melodies and rhythms.
On this release Herr Schlamminger has been "assisted" by Micha and Markus Acher of The Notwist. Lucky boy. This makes the record slightly difficult to assess as a debut: exactly how much of those clever electronics is Schlamminger himself and how much Notwist? I don’t know. What I do know is that this is an interesting 12" worthy of your money even if it won’t blow your mind. Schlamminger is certainly a man to look out for in the future.
