Tarwater Biography
Part of an insurgent movement of esoteric, repetitive and sample-heavy German music, Tarwater are equally inspired by Steve Reich and east coast America hip-hop. From their studio surrounded by semi-legal clubs playing minimal Teutonic techno, the Berlin-based duo of Bernd Jestram (9 March 1962, Perleberg, Germany; bass/keyboards) and To Rococo Rot's Ronald Lippok (b. 13 June 1963, Berlin, Germany; drums/vocals) orchestrate found sounds and samples as if they were geological strata to create subtle and captivating music. Although they claim "we like to think of ourselves as pop not avant garde", Lippok and Jestram have a playful, experimental impulse that compels them to disrupt the accepted notion of "the song". Instead of writing lyrics, Ronald blankly intones found text in his strangely deadpan and neutral voice. They apply electronica's sampling processes to the spoken and written word, manipulating text-like samples. Words are pulled out of their customary context and narratives are, essentially, remixed. "The Watersample', from 1998"s Silur, derives its lyrics from an interview with an artist who was collecting items from the Baltic Sea for an exhibition. Tarwater's cut and paste songwriting methodology led, a little incongruously, to Marc Bolan receiving a writing credit on Silur.
Tarwater have honed their dapper electronica to perfection on further recordings such as Animals, Suns & Atoms (2000), Dwellers On The Threshold (2002) and The Needle Was Traveling (2005), the latter their first recording for the Morr Music label. Lyrical motifs covering unlikely themes such as pregnancy, underwhelming live shows and surprisingly comfortable furniture are deployed with immaculate timing, revealing Lippok as a lyricist of note. Jestram and Lippok claim such perfectly poised music is the consequence of a freakish ability to create music together without having to talk about it: "We don't even talk about music in the pub, we talk about philosophy."
Source: The Encyclopedia of Popular Music by Colin Larkin. Licensed from Muze.
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