International Communication™ – the dreamy new single from German production duo and hotly-tipped, live electronica act Brigade – is out, via Berlin-based imprint Laut und Luise. The first single to be taken from the outfits’s eagerly anticipated debut album Hard Times, Soft Music (set for release on October 14), International Communication sees close friends and production partners Julius and Niels draw on their combined wealth of studio experience and bountiful creativity to deliver an exquisitely crafted lo-fi electronica cut, replete with complex analogue textures, stripped back refrains and a cosmic groove that drives the record across its four-minute duration.
Following on from the more dancefloor-oriented tones of their six-part Comeback EP on KELLER back in June, this new single on Laut und Luise reflects a shift in musical direction from the Berlin-based outfit, who combine traditional song-writing structures with more abstract timbres, to balance the familiar with the surreal. Transporting the listener into their own reflective dimension of tripped-out, sonic exploration, the duo’s understated melodies and refined textures are perfectly complimented by warped synthesizers and restrained beats; their distorted sound palette forming the backbone of the hazy, sun-drenched narrative.
We caught up with Julius and Niels to find out more…
WWD: Hello guys, and welcome to When We Dip! Fantastic to have you chatting with us for the first time.
Thanks for having us!
WWD: How has 2022 been for you so far?
Pretty hectic but not too bad. We’ve been working on this album, building two fully new live sets as well as touring again. We are constantly coming up with new material so it’s great to be able to test it out in front of an audience again.
WWD: Starting at the beginning, can you tell us how you got into electronic music?
I (Julius) was really good at counter strike when I was 15. Like semi-professionally good. Then my older brother got FL Studio and changing priorities from gaming to producing music felt kind of natural. Some years later I met Niels and the Keller Club in Berlin (RIP) gave us space for a studio, let us play livesets at their parties and from this point we somehow got where we are now.
WWD: How would you best describe your brand of electronic music for those who may not be familiar?
We tend to switch back and forth where we sometimes just feel like making some DJ-ready club-tunes and then there are other releases that are more for listening at home. I think it’s kind of our thing that we don’t follow one particular direction and International CommunicationTM feels like it really lives between these two worlds.
WWD: Who or what were your biggest musical inspirations growing up?
Difficult, since we are two people but here’s a list and we’re not saying who listened to what.
1. Sido
2. Basic Channel
3. Paul Kalkbrenner
4. Jan Jelinek
5. Bad Brains
WWD: Congratulations on the release of your beautiful new single ‘International Communication’. Can you talk us through the record?
It’s this really fun sample-heavy tune that is just meant to be kind of a sonic hug. The track is not really for the club but we guess you could still play it if you feel like being an extra fancy DJ. Otherwise we recommend taking a nice warm bath while listening.
WWD: And we understand that your debut album ‘Hard Times, Soft Music’ is set to drop in a few weeks time. You must be very excited?!
We don’t know if it’s excitement or Stockholm Syndrome at this point. The Album was basically the main focus of our lives for 2 years so now we just feel like it’s time to let the music go and see what happens. Possibly we will take three months off after the release and go to Sylt for holidays.
WWD: Can you give us an idea of what we can expect, sonically?
We wanted to make something a bit more away from the club thing than our usual output. So the record is filled up with some super relaxed, jazzy hip-hopish sound. Hard to describe but we kinda feel like you can hear a french guy whispering comforting things to your ear at a super low volume when you listen to the record. Maybe if Air had had a phase where they got into Madlib and used some bad equipment they would’ve made this kind of thing.
WWD: What’s your favourite part of being an artist?
Doing something which completely satisfies your need for expression and self-fulfillment is a huge privilege. Turning synthesizer knobs the whole day in a dark basement for no good use really feels like living Adornos answer to capitalism to the fullest.
WWD: And your least favourite?
Kidding aside, the commercial part of the electronic music industry does not feel particularly good. As an artist trying to earn money from your music you often tend to struggle with particular movements/events in the scene (big brand sponsorship, big artists playing in countries with anti queer laws, flying in times of climate change etc…). Just finding your way around commercialization whilst still paying rent is a challenge.
WWD: What do you like to do in your spare time when you’re not touring the world or making music?
In Niels hometown Großensee in Schleswig-Holstein Polo is a big sport event for the country folk. Even after moving to Berlin he never lost touch with it. Nowadays we both are members of Polo Club Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. which is a lovely little club in the south-west of Berlin.
WWD: Any final words for our When We Dip readers?
Yeah, boycott Red Bull, stop taking life advice from social media and listen to our album.
Brigade’s debut album Hard Times, Soft Music will be released on October 14 via Laut & Luise