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MonWith the premiere of Labor, CTM and seminal electronic imprint Raster celebrate a collaboration almost as old as the festival itself. Byetone + Mieko Suzuki, Dasha Rush, Frank Bretschneider, Grischa Lichtenberger, and Robert Lippok will take part in the inaugural edition of the piece, utilizing sparse hardware setups to craft perpetual, regenerating compositions.
Active since 1996, Raster is the influential German label that has released music from Ryoji Ikeda, Kyoka, Atom ™, William Basinski, Kangding Ray, and Belief Defect, among others. Conceived by Olaf Bender, David Letellier, and Frank Bretschneider, Labor is created in close collaboration with Raster artists.
With Labor, Raster explore artistic processes, and how they diverge and develop from the same starting point or set of conditions. Five tables with minimal Eurorack setups and a handful of studio monitors form the basis of the piece. The analogue hardware generates and manipulates control voltages, forming a framework in which the artists can complete, connect, and interact with the modules. As the setup does not contain any sound producing components, participating artists will select sound sources themselves, which could range from minuscule to gargantuan sonic objects. They may choose to mechanically generate sound, or to integrate microphones and amplify sound.
Raster. Labor is supported by SchneidersLaden, ME Geithain, and the Planungsbüro Silberberg. The installation is presented in cooperation with neue Gesellschaft für bildende Kunst (nGbK). Funded by the Senate Department of Culture and Europe.
Berlin-based Grischa Lichtenberger is a music producer and visual artist. The Raster affiliate is known for abstracted, distorted video compositions, as well as particular sonics that span ambient, glitch, and techno.
Frank Bretschneider is a Berlin-based composer known for rhythmic-sine-funk experiments. A veteran of Germany’s electronic music scene, his involvement dates back to pre-unification days with the experimental pop group AG.Geige. He later co-founded influential imprint Raster.
Byetone is the music production alias of visual artist, graphic designer, and Raster co-founder Olaf Bender. Live, Byetone employs abstract animations to accompany his minimalist, rock-inspired compositions.
Russian-born Dasha Rush is a composer, producer, sound artist, and DJ. She has released music on influential imprints Sonic Groove and Raster Noton, and runs her own label, Fullpanda.
Robert Lippok is a electronic music composer based Berlin, after two decades performing with legendary trio To Rococo Rot. His work centres around creating installations, theatre and stage design for interdisciplinary performances, as well as a steady output of ambient techno experimentations.
Mieko Suzuki is a tireless Japanese DJ and sound artist. Starting out in the late 90s in Tokyo’s house/techno scene, she has been rooted in Berlin since 2007. Her sets span caustic, industrial textures and bass-heavy club-oriented rhythms.