Nitrada

Christophe Stoll (aka Nitrada) a former resident of Southern Germany and fine purveyor of punk rock drumming (Motorambo and others) is equally besotted with Björk and Fugazi, Dntel and Blonde Redhead. After various live band projects, a move to Hamburg as well as job-related skirmishes with computer-based media, in 2000 Christophe rediscovered his earlier flirtations with electronic music on an Atari ST and began, this time on a Mac, with the tenacious exploration of the creative scope between nature and technology: as an exponent of artistic no-compromise this collector of aural impressions has no qualms about recycling a toilet flush (immortalised on minidisc) or endlessly powering a drum loop through his home-based studio speakers. When exasperated neighbours counter with Kate Bush cranked up to the max, this tension, this everyday clash of the titans, too, will sneak into his compositions. Nitrada tracks liberate the heart in technology, warm up cool clarity and allow as much room to the visual as to pure sound. Stubborn, almost manic in his love for music and detail Nitrada composes and acts in a natural symbiosis of media and senses, between direct emotion and clear abstraction, an approach apparent in his radically different versions adapted to live appearances and recording media - tracks and sets are adjusted to each respective aural space. Unbearable without his morning tea Christophe in turn can't bear tomatoes, loves tapas, pastis and the culinary delight's his mother takes pride in. The latter, who (to date) has reacted to his musical output with incomprehension or mild disdain, has now delivered the most apposite appraisal of his music, surprised by how much she enjoyed the new tracks: "When a distorted beat starts to grate it doesn't automatically impair my perception of the song as a whole - the tracks are not tied to fixed emotions or certain styles. Each and every song tells a story one is happy to explore and delve into." Sonja Commentz