Labels: Stereo Dasein
Review by: MH
It’s been a while since I’ve heard new music from Hauke Henkel. This is his first new album since 2016’s “Urlaub im Wahnsinn” and the cover photo is something special before you even dive into the music – a black and white photo of a man and a cat sitting apart on a jetty. It feels even more poignant at the current time. I still find his music hard to classify but it’s piano-based and minimal although there are other instruments on here and he’s played and recorded the lot himself. There are some beats which come in here and there too but in the main you have Hauke’s vocals, which are mostly spoken or a little beyond spoken, and the piano. In terms of mood, things are somber and there’s a bleakness to some of the lyrics (it’s all in German by the way). This may not sound like his former band, Manku Kapak, but thematically and within the emotions and vocals there are shades here and there. The album translates as “Alone / Together (or Connected or something similar)” and from what I can make out the first half comes under the “Allein” banner while the other half is “Verbunden”. “Horizont” features an electric piano (I think!) and is absolutely stunning – musically and lyrically. This records feels very fitting with current times.