Sascha Ring, the talent behind one-man project Apparat, has announced this week the release of his next album Krieg und Frieden (Music for Theatre). While the title may seem a bit strange, the inspiration is actually taken directly from Tolstoy’s “War & Peace” (the title is a German translation). In collaboration with mastermind Sebastian Hartmann, Apparat helped bring the classic novel to the German stage for the Ruhrfestspiele arts festival, a somewhat surprising feat given the book’s length.
Set for release on February 9th, the album was conceived in the empty hall of an abandoned warehouse, the songs built from a constantly evolving sound that grew during the production of the play. Though the plan was never to release them in any sort of finished form, Ring found he hadn’t exhausted the creative drive behind the songs. Speaking on recording them, “In the studio the material got another twist, it became a real piece of music. I took the recordings with me, wherever I was – at home, at a hotel room, in an airplane, and straightened it up. I decided to not go completely crazy about the editing, I didn’t want the music to become demanding. Every record tends to become mere work at some point. Euphoria then turns into the feeling that you are standing in the middle of a huge construction site. I actively wanted to avoid this feeling this.”
Though Apparat is currently touring with his DJ set, the first track released from the album, “A Violent Sky”, is anything but a blend of pure electronics. Ripe with gentle, sparse percussion and a detailed underlying piano riff, the emotional base of the song is rooted in slow, purposeful piano chords and vocals that fall somewhere between hope and misery. The result is something cinematic, addicting and, ironically, a track that easy conjures a scene without the aid of a theater and cast. There’s simply an element of power and truth in the track’s delivery. Download it for free above and look for the album next month!