2006/02/10
Legendary sound chaos
Embryo thrilled the Bierkeller audience
“Welcome to the sound chaos of Embryo...” frontman Christian Burchard greeted the audience late on Friday evening in Tübingen's Bierkeller; Germany's most influential ethno band had just finished their first piece: a full twenty minutes of trance-like rhythms, psychedelic noise interludes and music borrowed from all over the world. Embryo are a living legend. Burchard and his colleagues come from a time when, together with Kraan and Can, they formed the spearhead of German avant-garde pop. The Munich group has 40 years of musical experience under its belt. The band has aged gracefully, as was once again evident on this Saturday evening. Also because Embryo have always refused any superficial fashion. You don't need drug trips and long hair to like the soundscapes of the so-called hippie icons. Also because they have always integrated young musicians who have brought new ideas and fresh energy to the band. Like Valentin Altenberger, who showed his qualities on the congas and bass. Burchard's daughter, Marja, was initially a powerful percussionist, later playing the marimba and organ. The young Spaniard David Drudis played electric guitar and the Arabic lute oud. The three of them ensured that Embryo's sound still sounds fresh and almost classical in the new millennium: a virtuoso balancing act between music conservatory and tribal rhythms, between delicate art and raw musical power. Christian Burchard led the way on the vibraphone: Sometimes he played melodious jazz runs on his instrument, sometimes he produced simple, extatic noise. At other times, the old man grabbed the microphone and indulged in autistic scat singing for several minutes. The audience, many with their eyes closed, revelled in the worlds of noise as if in a dream. And the authentic beer cellar became a psychedelic oasis for a few hours.
Eike Freese, Schwäbisches Tagblatt, 2006/02/13
(Translated from: https://web.archive.org/web/20061012095448/http://www.embryo.de/presse_2006.htm)