Kammerflimmer Kollektief

They have been going for 20 years and have released 11 albums. They hail from Karlsruhe and make music with a kind of free jazz ethic.

The music melds electronics with improvised sounds, as instruments the harmonium, the violin and the double bass play a special role but electric guitar, drums and synthesizer are also present. Occasionally there is sprechgesang.

I like this succinct description of their music by Martin Schray: " It’s a clash of a world we know with the unknown."

Their brand new album is probably their most difficult one (that might be true for every new release by them), I have only listened to a couple of tracks which seemed to sound more like ambient noise than like music. It is called "There Are Actions Which We Have Neglected and Which Never Cease to Call Us".

What does ILM think of them?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cEtMDnPqXU
"Lichterloh", the first track from "Absencen" (2005)

I bought Incommunicado when it came out in the early 2000s. I found it underwhelming and haven't listened to it in probably 15 years! Maybe I should revisit.

I loved, loved, loved Maander when it came out, and kept up with them up through Jinx, I think, before losing track of them.

Now that you bring it up, I'm a little surprised that they don't seem to have more critical/nerd currency, at least in the States. Their free-range folk/jazz/avant/? mishmash is basically the secret template for tout le Bandcamp monde of late.

Maander was my favorite one by them. I check in with them every few years - tend to like some but not all of their albums.

I associate them with Tied + Tickled Trio - not sure if that's because they're both German post-rock/jazz outfits, or if they actually shared members. Wouldn't be surprised if the latter. I always preferred T+TT.

absencen their best imo. they're a fun listen but I never like them as much as I wanna, kind of. but when they hit a good groove they're great

I wrote a little bit about 'em in a loose round-up for the Voice:

Kammerflimmer Kollektief's reissued Hysteria contains (bonus miles of)
gazegrazing analogtronica and cracked chamber jazz. Despite the title, they're a
raft-happy family, in which bosoms of bubbles gently rock insomniac, seemingly
marginal honkers and tweeters.(the kinda pictures my dad used to buy just for their frames).
(But I should say that the seemingly or actually marginal or secondary elements of
several genres and subgenres were my gateway, and once again what I find most appealing when
frontmen sound too predicable, incl. in a museum masterpiece way---bass and drums especially,
keys and others sometimes, pulling me back in, in ways I forgot to or never did really focus on.)
Still, I don't like them as much as I wanna either, or not as often as I wanna.

Shoulda said *increasingly* marginal honkers and tweeters, as the bubbletronica becomes more the "point," in a sneaky way (kind of like Miles stealing the scene back there, in his own show? But this ain't Miles)

the new record is incredible imo

You are right, the new one is stunning. I listened to it in the car going from Berlin to Frankfurt today. All those noises are phantastic. I hear lots of scratching of a violin string, squeaky doors (or crowing cocks?), streaming air, the whistling of a kettle (or fireworks going off or the sound of the radio waves when you look for a station with the knob on an old radio) etc. An incredible aural trip. There are very noisy almost indigestable parts and then they fall into their wide screen soundtrack sound which emanates this chimney fire warmth. And they get bukolic with a little repetitive tune on guitar and harmonium. There is something very organic about their music.