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TEHO TEARDO & BLIXA BARGELD (EU)
The adaptation of Hans Holbein’s classic portrait of ambassadors featured on the cover of the album Nerissimo clearly indicates the niche in which the art of Teho Teardo and Blixa Bargeld should be sought. The artists’ creation is where history and the present meet, between tradition and avant-garde. The past is behind them, and avant-garde lies at their feet, symbolized by the tapestry with Jackson Pollock’s drip painting. Within their reach are tools, knowledge, and skills. The awareness of vanitas concentrated in the middle of the original composition from 1533 also seems to be very important to the whole artistic work.
It’s a safe bet that the name Blixa Bargeld is known to everybody reading this brochure. After the years of Sturm und Drang, both Einstürzende Neubauten and its leader evolved towards forms of expression remote from the original concept. Blixa Bargeld has always emphasized that Neubauten music is much more than banging on sheet metal, the sound of drilling, and all those hardware features. This is why EN repertoire included pieces such as Lee Hazlewood’s Sand already a long time ago. For more than a dozen years now, Blixa Bargeld has been pursuing his own career as a reciter, poet, and performer, apart from his continuous creative activity with Einstürzende Neubauten. Mauro Teho Teardo has had equally reach creative experiences related to the aesthetic of post-punk and the industrial culture. As M.T.T., he cooperated with Nurse With Wound and Ramleh, created the group Meathead in early 90’s, and worked with the Italian outfit Pankow as well as the memorable Zeni Geva, Pain Teens, and Cop Shoot Cop. Today, Mauro Teho Teardo is a recognized Italian composer, known for writing scores for films made by directors such as Paolo Sorrentino. The meeting the Berlin and Rome based artists brought excellent results that transcend their individual experiences. The fruit of the cooperation, which started in 2013 – the albums Still Smiling (2013), Spring (2014), Nerissimo (2016), and Fall (2017) captured the audiences’ hearts and were received with enthusiasm. It’s difficult to pigeonhole the music of Teho Teardo and Blixa Bargeld - it’s tonal, song-like, but at the same experimental and abounding with paradox. The intimist and quiet songs are largely a reflection of Blixa Bargeld’s personal evolution. What can be observed in the lyrics is a departure from defeatism and the urban nightmare. The focus on the artist’s self and an affirmation of little moments of joy - increasingly often appearing as the pivotal elements - are a complete antithesis of the tragedy and nihilism usually associated with Neubauten’s message. It’s worth stressing Teho Teardo’s mastery as a composer - his work on the project, slightly impregnated with a film score-like approach, has made it whole in musical terms. The catchy and cheerful melodies are crowned with sometimes very surprising endings. Blixa’s warm and low voice can suddenly become piercing, while the songs themselves can unexpectedly turn into dissonant grinding. The refined compositions are at the same time traditional, repetitive, and (sometimes) atonal.
During their performance at the Gothic Hall, the artists will be accompanied by Laura Bisceglla & Gabriele Coen and small ensemble comprisingBartosz Bober, Wojciech Bolsewicz, Paweł Brzychcy, Sylwia Matuszyńska.