July

Artist: Tim Story, acting as producer for Cluster's Qua.

You're clearly a big fan of the work of Hans-Joachim Roedelius, Dieter Moebius and Cluster. What was it like for you, personally, to take on the role and responsibility of producing the first CD in a decade from this iconic duo?

Even though I've known Joachim for 30 years and Moebi for over a decade, it was still something of a surreal experience to spend a couple weeks working on Qua with them. Thinking back to me as a kid in a record store eagerly snapping up Zuckerzeit and Sowiesoso, it would have been hard to imagine [producing them].

Since most of Cluster's “studio” albums of the last couple decades have really been recorded very simply in either of their home studios, I felt it would be great if they had access to a studio and a sympathetic producer that would allow them access to interesting equipment and the freedom not to be bogged down by all the engineering duties. I loved the work they did with [producer Konrad] Conny Plank. I'm no Conny, but that kind of interaction inspired and informed my own involvement. It was a pleasure to give them all the possibilities, then get out of the way and get it all recorded as transparently and effortlessly as possible. Hopefully, a lot of that “essential” Cluster comes through in the recordings we did.

<<home