Markus Mehr Interview

To decorate the place a little bit, and add some content, I'm going to post some past interviews we've had on the show. Some of my favourites were recorded last year, including this one with German ambient artist Markus Mehr, over the phone from his home in Augsburg last September, to mark the release of his excellent album Lava.

The conversation ranged across electric toothbrushes, Black Sabbath, Depeche Mode, what it's like living in small town Germany while making experimental pop music, the bar-raising pressure of live performance, and more. One particularly interesting thing to come out of the interview was the fact that most of the sounds on the album were generated from a guitar (Markus' first, and main, instrument). This isn't at all obvious, due to the various filters and effects the guitar sounds are fed through. You can listen to the interview on the link at the bottom.

Also check a track from the album here, the compelling Cousteau - the beautiful visuals are provided by Markus' regular collaborator, visual artist Stefanie Sixt.

And here were my thoughts on the album when it came out around the middle of 2010.

Markus Mehr - Lava (Hidden Shoal)
Ambient drone loveliness from the German, with plenty of heartwrenching drama among the pulses and drifts. Hubble is the most gorgeous synth orchestration I've heard in ages, a 1000-yard low drone gathering sparkles of melody as it rolls. Cousteau, fittingly, rumbles and creaks with deep-sea atmospheres. For fans of kosmische (isn't that everyone?). Soak in it like a hot bath. On the never-less-than-excellent Perth-based label.

Markus Mehr Interview Podcast by underground of happiness