Kombynat Robotron – Weirdo Shrine

9 June 2023

Split review + Q&A: DUNDDW/Kombynat Robotron (2023, Spinda Records, Sunhair Records)

When like minded people meet, beautiful things can grow. Take the instrumental brothers in arms Kombynat Robotron and DUNDDW; they found each other on the European road touring and immediately felt a connection. Now they release a stunning looking split vinyl record through a cool collaboration of labels allover the world and every fan of adventurous instrumental improvisational jams will rejoice.

Striking in the first place about this split is the beautiful artwork, a piece of visual art by DUNDDW’s Huibert der Weduwen (also in Bismut and Phosphor visuals) depicting both bands’ practice spaces in Kiel, Germany, and Nijmegen, The Netherlands on an amazing looking old world map. Together with the blue/orange edition of the vinyl it makes up a package that will sell out quickly (and probably is by the time this article is published).

But hey, let’s not forget the music either. Of course we all know and love Kombynat Robotron and their organic sounding space jams. We get two for this record, and both radiate a comfortable warmth that make them very fitting for the weather at the moment. They are jams that make you long for the festival summer, lying on your back in a grass patch and spacing out of your wits.

DUNDDW on the other hand is the lesser known of the two here. Of course we know Bismut, the thunderous instrumental stoner unit two thirds of this ensemble derives of, but with DUNDDW the scope is different, and the feel out of this world. It is a trio that starts out exploring themselves and the space they are in, and slowly but certainly they work their jams out into the very cosmos and its outer reaches. To boldly go where no one went before, and to do so intuitively, without any premeditated plans. It is a bold proposition, but DUNDDW makes. it work. We have not heard the last of them yet.

For this split release Weirdo Shrine decided to talk to both bands, and ask them the same sets of questions, about the album, and about each other. DUNDDW starts off, typing their answers on the road just returning from a gig in Germany, while Kombynat Robotron handed theirs in a little later because they were also in full tour mode. It is. a good time to be a jam band, that is for certain.

DUNDDW:

How are you these days? What’s happening at the moment?

At the moment of answering these questions, we are driving home from a cool 3 day festival in the east of Germany: GockelScream (4th edition). We played a 45 minute jam in picturesque surroundings for a sympathetic crowd, alongside great bands like Bees Made Honey in the Vein Tree and Temple Fang.

Tell me about your new split album! What is the best thing about it?

We think it is a fruitful collaboration between 2 improvising bands, across different countries. With the labels Spinda Records (from Spain) and Sunhair Music (from Germany) involved in releasing the album, it feels like a great German/Spanish/Dutch partnership. Musically, it represents 2 different approaches to improvised music with a spacy and kraut-like sound.

What can you tell me about the other band?

Not much… just kidding: Kombynat Robotron is a great band, with jams that keep on going and evolving. They really know how to keep a flow going. We also admire their DIY-attitude, with an impressive variety of (solo and split) releases over the past couple of years. That has really solidified their reputation. The idea of the split album originated when Bismut shared the stage with KR at Altena Sounds (and helped them out with car troubles) – 2/3 of DUNDDW also play in Bismut.

What can you tell me about the stunning artwork?

We are very fortunate to have a visual artist as one of our band members: Huibert is part of Phosphor Visuals: a collective that creates analog visuals at concerts. He made the artwork for the split. The attentive observer will see that the artwork also shows maps of the cities where Kombynat Robotron and DUNDDW rehearse/jam out (Kiel in Germany + Nijmegen in the Netherlands).

What do you have in store for us in the near future? Will there be more collaborations?

For sure: we would love to do more collaborations with bands/artists that we like and are inspired by. So in the future we might release a live recording from a gig with a guest artist, or another split like this one.

What tips/tricks can you teach us about learning to play improv/jams?

Don’t think about it too much, and try to make contact with your band members. Not necessarily through eye contact, but by getting on the same wave length. Or ride another wave and see what happens: see where you find each other again, or let the waves intertwine or flow their own way. That’s the beauty of improv: there is no right or wrong, just vibrations that merge (and hopefully appeal to us and the listener).

What should the Weirdo Shrine readers do after reading this interview?

Buy the split album quickly, because it is almost sold out! And check out more Weirdo Shrine posts to find boundary streching music. And support your local scene.

Kombynat Robotron:

How are you these days? What’s happening at the moment?

We feel good these days and are happy to have the split with our friends of DUNNDW out now. The response so far is great and that´s something we needed yet. We changed our line-up and play as a three-piece now. With the first two shows a few weeks ago and this split record we know we’re on the right track and it feels good to be back after half a year of a break. All three of us playing in other bands that are more active these days, but its always good to come together and have some jams.

Tell me about your new split album! What is the best thing about it?
The split songs were recorded almost 1 1/2 a year ago in another session we had at the Dickfehler Studio in East Frisia. They are different as we jammed the songs and then re-recorded them. So, it´s not 100% improvised. More like 90%. :D. And that is the different and maybe the best thing about our side of the split. It’s a special form of KR music.
And of course, it was a no-brainer to work with DUNNDW, Spinda Records and Sunhair Music together. What a pleasure all around!

What can you tell me about the other band?
We know Peter and Huibert for a long time now. They played a few times with Bismut in our Hometown Kiel. and we met them on the road here and there. So it´s an absolute highlight to see them jamming with another guitarist and make some different music. We heard the tracks a couple of months ago and could not wait to get this project finalized.

What can you tell me about the stunning artwork?
Its Huibert´s magic. He came up with the idea to use parts of maps showing our locations of both bands’ rehearsal rooms. With that Psychedelic layer it matches perfect for the split album. Plus, our hometown looks pretty good from above.

What do you have in store for us in the near future? Will there be more collaborations?

We have new album coming later this year on a label we worked together before. It’s from the same session as the split tracks are. And we hope to have another collab coming this or next year but it’s still in talks and we cant tell you any details yet. But when it will happen, it’s going to be huge! We played a video session in Lübeck a month ago, the videos will be online in a few weeks and of course we recorded some new material we are looking forward to release next year.. At the moment we’re working on the concept for that stuff. We have not many shows booked for this year, but we hope to play a little tour in the UK next year. If anybody wants to help feel free to hit us up, we appreciate the help.

What tips/tricks can you teach us about learning to play improv/jams?

Jamming is very different in set and setting. When we started as a band, we had no concept or idea what direction it will take us.
But playing together over 5 years now, makes it easier to anticipate the vibe of each other.
Its important to leave the ego outside and work as a unit. Its about communication, listening to each other and recognise space and sometimes step back and make room for your bandmates.
When we recorded the sessions at the Dickfehler Studio, it was good to be in another place and have something like vacations to be on the same mindset.

What should the Weirdo Shrine readers do after reading this interview?

Check out all the labels we worked together and discover great bands.
Support the underground, go to concerts, buy merch and enjoy the growing scene.

Thanks for having us and thanks for reading.

Kombynat Robotron over and out.

Schauen Sie nicht ins Licht

6 February 20235 February 2023

Review + Q&A: Earthbong – Proceed As One EP (2023, self-released)

There is an interesting family of bong monikered bands out there. And whether they are called Bongzilla, Beelzebong, Bongripper, or just Bong, they tend to have one thing in common; they have shed a certain lack of subtlety and are all on a quest for the lowest, heaviest, and gnarliest riff out there. Earthbong is no exception.

On this two song EP the German trio sound like a giant steamroller on its way to destruction. They take their time to let the main riff work its way into your fried brain, and then let the menacing vocals rip you out a new one. If the guitar tone wasn’t so fat and yummy it would have been a rather frightening affair, the stuff of bad trips even. Yet as it stands now, the guitars build up a wall of big tasty brownie bricks you can lean your head on and nod off to while Earthbong takes your sense of freewill away, leading you to the riff filled land.

Off we go then, we proceed as one. We shed our sense of personal longings and bang our heads like there will be no tomorrow. Or at least until the twenty minutes of this EP are done…

I talked to Claas, Tommy, and Selly from their home in Kiel, Germany. As frightening as their music sounds, as welcoming were their words. They seem to have embraced a certain simplicity in their music, that is rather effective and infectious. Let’s meet them…

How are you? How has the pandemic period been for Earthbong?

Good, thank you! For us as a band it wasn’t too bad as we are not living off the band and we didn’t have big touring plans to cancel. Except for the time when meetings were strictly forbidden, we met weekly, even if there was no chance of playing gigs anytime soon. We just played through the older songs, kept working on new ideas and recorded the EP which is finally out now. In 2020 most gigs we had planned for summer and fall were cancelled due to covid restrictions, so we bought a generator with some friends, set it up on the beach and had a summer with northern Germany dunajam-vibes which was fun until the authorities showed up, and they did almost every time.

From 2021 on regulations on gatherings weren’t so strict anymore and we were able to play some openair festivals in Germany, so the 2^ndsummer with corona felt almost normal again. Despite things getting slightly better 2022 was still a bit rough because a lot of shows got cancelled due to low presales or covid and that made it really hard for venues, promoters and bands to make reliable plans. In April 2022 we made a trip to Lille in France where we played a show with the mighty Bongzilla and that was awesome! It was an honour to share the stage with these bong metal legends, they’re really nice guys. Thomas from our label Black Farm Records had invited us to stay at his place so the whole experience was just great!

Can you introduce the band, and how did you meet?

We are Earthbong, a dope doom bong metal band from Kiel, northern Germany. We first met in April 2018 and formed the band shortly after that initial meeting. Tommy had just moved to Kiel and was looking for a new band and together with two friends we started a project which became the Krautrock/Psychedelic Band Kombynat Robotron. Soon Tommy and I discovered our mutual love for heavier music and since we couldn’t do this with the Kombynat we decided to form another band. Tommy knew that Selly was looking for a new band too, so we met and jammed on some riffs and started to work on songs shortly after that. In May we went to Hamburg to see Sleep live and after that concert the magic just happened. Thank you, Sleep!

What can you tell me about your musical backgrounds?

T: I used to play in different bands during my school days. mostly cover bands of classic rock and metal stuff. Stuff I was listening to. One day someone brought me to a show of a local band called Whitebuzz from Hannover. I smoked a fatty and got lost in the bass and drones. From that point on it wasn’t far to Om and Sleep and they still are the favorites. But its a lot of drone and ambient music I am listening to besides of heavy and psyched riffs.

S: When I was 14 a friend gave me a bass and said that I was in his metal band now. I had a lot of fun playing an instrument and so I stuck with it. I was already a metalhead so trying to make heavy music was the only way to go for me. From that day I never stopped making music in some capacity

C: I started playing guitar when I was about 13 years old and started my first band with schoolmates shortly after that. We were heavily influenced by grunge and punk, but I also listened to a lot of indie and singer/songwriter stuff, music which I still enjoy very much. When I was about 17 a friend introduced me to Sonic Youth (even though we listened to Nirvana a lot I somehow managed not to stumble upon SY earlier, haha) and their music had a huge influence on my approach towards rock music. They and the Melvins showed me what rock music can sound like. Despite some years with guitar lessons I never became a good guitarist in a sense of knowing much about music theory and being able to play endless noodling solos, the guitar is more like a tool for riffs for me. Selly knows a lot about music theory and he often says that normally one wouldn’t play things like this or that when I come up with a new riff but I don’t care if it’s wrong in theory if it feels right when we play it.

What does a regular day in your lives look like?

C: I do the booking for a club in Kiel and for a project in my hometown Lübeck, so a regular day is spent mostly in home-office writing mails, doing phone calls, promoting events and making plans for future shows and parties. We get lots of submissions every day which means listening to every kind of music is part of the job and it’s great fun most of the time. I share a flat with three friends and a dog and someone’s always home and up for a chat, so it doesn’t get boring during coffee breaks despite I don’t have colleagues around.

T: In my regular job I do health care support work with people with complex needs. Sometimes challenging so its good to have a band like Earthbong to stay balanced. I like to make music as much as i can. Playing and jamming with the second band Kombynat Robotron, solo or with friends. Making music is what I live for.

S: Eat, sleep, smoke, repeat.

What is the best thing about the new EP?

That it’s finally out now after about two years of playing these songs live at every show while nobody knew them! And the fantastic cover by Tessa Najjar of course! We loved the artwork she did for Conan live at Freak Valley Festival 2017 and asked her if she could do something for us in a similar style but with lots of bongs and mammoths and sloths and hooded monks and look what she did! It’s amazing! We definitely will have shirts printed with the artwork on it soon! Another really good thing about it is that we just learned the EP will be released on vinyl this year!

Where do you live and what is the environment like for musicians like you?

We live in Kiel, which is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein. There are about 250k people living here, so it’s not too big but despite the size we have a rather active music and cultural scene, probably because we have a big university and a college of art here. Our rehearsal room is in an old bunker with lots of rehearsal rooms in it and we’re friends with most of the other bands there which is great! We always meet someone when we’re there, for example our friends Ølgod. As in every city there’s not enough room for rehearsal rooms and people who want to create art so we consider ourselves lucky to have a room where we can be as loud as we want 24/7 except for the days when the other band has a rehearsal.

Who are some contemporary musical heroes of yours?

C: Ragana, Conan, Emma Ruth Rundle, Thou, YOB, Kanaan, Acid King

S: Sleep, Deathgrips, Electric Wizard, Ghostemane, Slipknot, Meshuggah, SUNN O)))

T: Om, Bongzilla, Weedeater, Toke, Slowjoint, Sunn O)))

Can you tell me about how you go about composing and recording songs?

Our approach on how we write songs changed over time. The songs on our first album are really rough and just riff after riff mostly because we wanted to get an album done fast and we did that! Formed the band in May and released the first album in December, so there was no time to get into the details, it was all about playing riffs. It’s still about playing riffs today but we’re taking our time now and work on ideas together instead of just taking the first idea that Selly or I bring to the table. We always have a little zoom microphone with which we record new riffs and ideas at the rehearsal room so we have a little archive with riffs we wrote over the past months. From that archive we take parts when we’re working on a structure and it’s like “hey we could play this part and then go into that part from there like this…” That’s basically how we write songs.

The approach on recording changed over time, too. One Earth One Bong, Bong Rites and the new EP were all recorded in our rehearsal room by our friend Ole. For CHURCH OF BONG we went to a studio for the first time and it was a great experience. We still dig the sound of the older stuff we did, but the sound at the studio simply took everything to another level. Two weeks ago we were in Lübeck and recorded a live video session in another studio and the sound there was really fantastic, so we’re thinking about recording our next album there. What hasn’t changed is that we don’t need much time at the studio. Two days is enough for an album. It’s also a question of money of course but I don’t get why bands need months and months in the studio except if they’re writing the songs there…We always record the tracks live so we have to be in good shape and know exactly what the songs are like except for some parts where we know we have to improvise a little. But we’re trusting in the process and so far it worked perfectly.

What are your immediate and long term future plans?

At the moment we’re planning some shows for April and we’re trying to get the chance to play some shows with Bongzilla when they’re in Europe again in May and June. Besides from that we’re busy writing new songs these days and hopefully enter the studio again in summer or fall.

We’re planning the release of our third album CHURCH OF BONG for late summer and also a repress of Bong Rites, a limited vinyl release of our first album One Earth One Bong which was only released on tape so far and a limited vinyl release of the EP – so lots of vinyl coming this year thanks to the efforts of Thomas from Black Farm Records! Our long term plans are not so different from what we’ve been doing over the past four years: writing and recording new songs and having fun playing them live! Would be great if we get the chance to play some bigger festivals of course. Let’s see where the road towards the riff filled land takes us!

What should the Weirdo Shrine reader do after reading this interview?

They should listen to our new EP and join the CHURCH OF BONG! And support the underground, go see some local bands and support small businesses.

ARISE IN SMOKE

EARTHBONG