Mona Mur & En Esch: 120 Tage - The Fine Art of Beauty and Violence
"A gdy się zejdą, raz i drugi, kobieta po przejściach, mężczyzna z przeszłością..." (So when they get together, once and again, a woman after ordeals, a man with a past... – quotation from an old Polish song). She – a German lady of Polish origins, an excentric vocalist and composer, famous for her collaboration with Einstürzende Neubauten, The Stranglers, Yello, Grzegorz Ciechowski and Warszaw Philharmony Orchestra. He – an orchestra-man, multinstrumentalist and vocalist, producer and composer, a pillar of such groups as KMFDM, Pigface or Slick Idiot. Mona Mur (Sabine Bredy) and En Esch (Nicklaus Schandelmaier). This musical collaboration started in 2007, and its effect – the album 120 Tage - The Fine Art of Beauty and Violence – saw the light of day in February 2009.
The rekord contains 14 tracks, among which we can find some old stuff - meaning old Mona’s songs in changed, "eschy" arrangements, something borrowed – a few classical songs by Weill and Brecht in industrial versions, and something new - 4 premiere pieces by the duo Mur&Esch. The first new track appears at the very beginning. I mean a monumental and elevated composition Candy Cane, based on massive sound of guitar and stuffe with electronic relish. It would be hard to imagine a better "opener". The song is a perfect flagship of this album, it has all the characteristic elements on this release - burden, dark and close atmosphere, a little bit of pathos and madness (especially in Mona’s singing – listen to the way in which she interprets the verses in style like: I want to crawl in the mud with you, and drag you underground or if I had my knife again I'd cut another throat). The other "novelties" are The Thin Red Line (a slow number powerful as a stem-roller), Visions & Lies (for contrast – a dynamic chant with "eucharistic" backing keyboards) and The Wound (the most frantic one in this set, like Esch’s previous projects).
As I’ve mentioned, this album also includes remakes of immortal songs by Kurt Weill and Bertold Brecht. These are: Die Ballade vom Ertrunkenen Mädchen, Surabaya Johnny and Der Song von Mandelay. They All sound as if they were the original compositions made by the duo. It is not a secret that tracks by Weill&Brecht come off well in widely understood rock convention, however, to give them a unique and original character can be done by merely few (vide The Doors, Kazik or Marianne Faithfull).
Since we talk about the oldies... 120 Tage - The Fine Art of Beauty and Violence contain some songs from Mona’s previous albums – a single Jeszcze Polska (Eintagsfliegen) released in 1982 and longplays: Mona Mur from 1988. (Snake, Surabaya Johnny) and Warsaw from 1991. (120 Tage, Mon Amour). These tracks have been totally refurbished. This way went especially well with 120 Tage and Mon Amour. The first one gained powerful sound full of impetus (a la Lacrimosa), the second ended up with almost cabaret-like mark.
Even though the material has a character of a medley, it sounds very homogeneous and coherent thanks to brilliant, modern production. The artists were supported with this by a guy called Ingo Krauss, having collaborated with such performers as Nina Hagen, Rainbirds, Ari Benjamin Meyers, Bones or Die Ärzte.
120 Tage - The Fine Art of Beauty and Violence is the only full-scale album by the duo so far. Mona Mur and En Esch have not suspended the project (they’re actively giving concerts), thus we hope to live to see its successor some day. May it be equally good.
Tracklist:
01. Candy Cane (Mona Mur & En Esch)
02. Die Ballade vom Ertrunkenen Mädchen (Bertold Brecht & Kurt Weill)
03. 120 Tage - (released earlier on Warsaw, 1991)
04. The Thin Red Line (Mona Mur & En Esch)
05. Visions & Lies (Mona Mur & En Esch)
06. Eintagsfliegen (earlier on a single Jeszcze Polska, 1982)
07. Snake (earlier on Mona Mur, 1988)
08. Mon Amour (wcześniej na Warsaw, 1991)
09. Surabaya Johnny (earlier on Mona Mur, 1988; Bertold Brecht & Kurt Weill)
10. Der Song von Mandelay (Bertold Brecht & Kurt Weill)
11. The Wound (Mona Mur & En Esch)
12. Eintagsfliegen (En Esch RMX)
13. Candy Cane (Uinthatherium Remix)
14. Candy Cane (Steve Morell Disco Death Tech Remix)
Other articles:
The rekord contains 14 tracks, among which we can find some old stuff - meaning old Mona’s songs in changed, "eschy" arrangements, something borrowed – a few classical songs by Weill and Brecht in industrial versions, and something new - 4 premiere pieces by the duo Mur&Esch. The first new track appears at the very beginning. I mean a monumental and elevated composition Candy Cane, based on massive sound of guitar and stuffe with electronic relish. It would be hard to imagine a better "opener". The song is a perfect flagship of this album, it has all the characteristic elements on this release - burden, dark and close atmosphere, a little bit of pathos and madness (especially in Mona’s singing – listen to the way in which she interprets the verses in style like: I want to crawl in the mud with you, and drag you underground or if I had my knife again I'd cut another throat). The other "novelties" are The Thin Red Line (a slow number powerful as a stem-roller), Visions & Lies (for contrast – a dynamic chant with "eucharistic" backing keyboards) and The Wound (the most frantic one in this set, like Esch’s previous projects).
As I’ve mentioned, this album also includes remakes of immortal songs by Kurt Weill and Bertold Brecht. These are: Die Ballade vom Ertrunkenen Mädchen, Surabaya Johnny and Der Song von Mandelay. They All sound as if they were the original compositions made by the duo. It is not a secret that tracks by Weill&Brecht come off well in widely understood rock convention, however, to give them a unique and original character can be done by merely few (vide The Doors, Kazik or Marianne Faithfull).
Since we talk about the oldies... 120 Tage - The Fine Art of Beauty and Violence contain some songs from Mona’s previous albums – a single Jeszcze Polska (Eintagsfliegen) released in 1982 and longplays: Mona Mur from 1988. (Snake, Surabaya Johnny) and Warsaw from 1991. (120 Tage, Mon Amour). These tracks have been totally refurbished. This way went especially well with 120 Tage and Mon Amour. The first one gained powerful sound full of impetus (a la Lacrimosa), the second ended up with almost cabaret-like mark.
Even though the material has a character of a medley, it sounds very homogeneous and coherent thanks to brilliant, modern production. The artists were supported with this by a guy called Ingo Krauss, having collaborated with such performers as Nina Hagen, Rainbirds, Ari Benjamin Meyers, Bones or Die Ärzte.
120 Tage - The Fine Art of Beauty and Violence is the only full-scale album by the duo so far. Mona Mur and En Esch have not suspended the project (they’re actively giving concerts), thus we hope to live to see its successor some day. May it be equally good.
Tracklist:
01. Candy Cane (Mona Mur & En Esch)
02. Die Ballade vom Ertrunkenen Mädchen (Bertold Brecht & Kurt Weill)
03. 120 Tage - (released earlier on Warsaw, 1991)
04. The Thin Red Line (Mona Mur & En Esch)
05. Visions & Lies (Mona Mur & En Esch)
06. Eintagsfliegen (earlier on a single Jeszcze Polska, 1982)
07. Snake (earlier on Mona Mur, 1988)
08. Mon Amour (wcześniej na Warsaw, 1991)
09. Surabaya Johnny (earlier on Mona Mur, 1988; Bertold Brecht & Kurt Weill)
10. Der Song von Mandelay (Bertold Brecht & Kurt Weill)
11. The Wound (Mona Mur & En Esch)
12. Eintagsfliegen (En Esch RMX)
13. Candy Cane (Uinthatherium Remix)
14. Candy Cane (Steve Morell Disco Death Tech Remix)
Other articles:
- Mona Mur/En Esch – Do With Me What You Want - 2011-09-05 (Music reviews)
