In the winter of 1980, in the midst of punk’s fallout and the momentary ascendance of the new wave, five guys gathered in a German studio to casually make some recordings. The music didn’t fit the prevailing sonic norms in the slightest, and while a small quantity of vinyl was pressed, there was never any concerted effort to release it…until now. The reissue label Notes On A Journey commences operations with the intriguing folk-prog-pop-jazz blend of Spinning Motion’s Confidence in the Future. It’s out on LP June 26 in a very attractive package.
Spinning Motion’s story could serve as the basis for one hell of a movie, and I formulate the observation because the circumstances lack the hazards of an obnoxiously uplifting ending. However, the emergence of Confidence in the Future does provide the tale with a sense of closure; it seems the band, perhaps more properly described as a project, didn’t devote much energy toward making the big time. Instead, the objective was simply to shape and document the eight songs comprising these January 1980 sessions.
Spinning Motion’s driving personalities are Achim Hirsch and Manfred Tappert, childhood friends and classmates who shared a love of the Pretty Things and formed a student group named Busstop 4. Later, Hirsch’s trip to Denmark inspired him to attempt working his raised consciousness into an album; when asked, multi-instrumentalist Tappert was chuffed to oblige.
Filling out Spinning Motion is a profusion of diversity; there’s Stefan Thimm, a drummer reportedly in the founding lineup of German heavy metal behemoths Accept (though he was long gone by the recording of their debut, much less “Balls to the Wall”), Joe Kucera, a saxophone blowing branch of Czech unit Framus 5’s family tree prior to fleeing Vienna for West Berlin after the Prague Spring, and Eddie Hayes, a Boston, MA-based trumpet/flugelhorn player who honed his chops in the jazz scene.
They cut Confidence in the Future at Harris John’s Music Lab, a studio noted for recording Einstürzende Neubauten and Ideal (outfits representing opposite poles in the Neue Deutsche Welle spectrum unwinding contemporaneously with Spinning Motion’s existence) and later a go-to spot for heavy metal & hard rock acts; the bands visiting Music Lab’s facilities included Helloween, Sepultura, Voivod, and Tankard.
Once the recording was finished John sent the songs to the pressing plant. According to the promo material, the resulting edition of 100 copies (ML002) is an unusual undertaking in Germany, and it’s assumed that only a few landed in other people’s hands. Flashing forward to the early 2000s, one copy took up residence in a flea market crate, which is where Jazzanova member and Notes On A Journey co-founder Stefan Leisering stumbled across a copy.
So, a private press situation in a nutshell, though the above should suitably communicate that Confidence in the Future doesn’t explore a loner scenario and further diverts from the micro-edition norm in being sonically impressive. It also offers appealing construction, bookended by instrumentals helping to balance the LP’s origins in a life-changing visit to Scandinavia (interestingly, other than the plain inspiration and few spoken words, Hirsch’s role in the album’s making is as producer).
“Blue” opens with the fragile tones of electric piano, a bit like a music box playing in an airport lounge. Shortly thereafter the rhythm section enters, followed by cleanly-plucked guitar phrases (Tappert handles it, bass and piano) and then Hayes’ boppish flugelhorn as the keyboard saunters slightly toward the aura of a vibraphone.
As stated, it’s basically a prelude for “Devotion to You,” a more spirited bossa nova-tinged number hinting at prog amongst the strumming, chiming keys, and rhythmic momentum. But as Thimm gets in a tidy little drum fill, the emphasis isn’t on noodling; while the execution is obviously skilled, there is clear dedication to acoustics, and conspicuously absent is the attributes of emerging electronic instrumentation and additionally, distortion.
The approach works well in tandem with Tappert’s calm vocalizing, even as he attains a decidedly airy mellowness amid the regal flugelhorn, copious cymbal washes, and general prog-kissed jazz-folk atmosphere of “Prisoner of Life.” Altogether, it’s probably Confidence in the Future’s most overt nod to its hippie-era roots; if not one of the record’s standouts the result avoids faltering into late-delivered leftovers.
I’m frankly partial to the side closing title-track; leaning heavily on the bossa template, the polite emoting is overdubbed, Thimm’s drumming is nicely economical, and the piano accents and especially the guitar are just right. The instrumental coda is icing on the cake, and to my ear the whole sorta predicts the neo-‘60s Jobim/Gilberto-listening sophisto path taken by some ears after new wave/techno pop faded.
The flip begins with “Naze,” Kucera’s soprano sax assisting in conjuring a more straight-ahead folk-jazz mix as the vocals nudge in a pop direction and the guitar progressions gesticulate to a soft-rock oasis. As Kucera solos, Hirsch provides the first of his spoken bits. And the basic guitar bass drums and voice setup of “Answer My Questions” actually increases the soft rock state of mind, though it possesses backbone and the singing is engaging.
Moreover, the tune’s mid-section deviates from consciously laid-back aims. It leads to “Playground of Burial-Funds,” an excellent title that’s accompanying music is Confidence in the Future’s weakest. Slowing down the pace with the bell-like electric 88s and Tappert’s tender croon, the song registers as a preamble to a payoff that doesn’t arrive.
This wouldn’t be such a factor, except at a concise 28 minutes the margin for error isn’t particularly wide; the length of a mid-‘60s slab, the least of its tracks is also its longest and furthermore leaves only “Elegy” behind it. Loaded with hand percussion, lively picking, and a smidge of psych ambiance, the instrumental (save for Hirsch briefly speaking low in the mix) closes the disc on a pleasant note.
Subsequently, Tappert, Thimm, and Hayes teamed up with Ralph Billman and Christof Griese in a band called Fences. Their ’81 album Maikäfer was issued by the long-running German label Free Music Production; it doesn’t appear to be currently available. FMP also released Thimm’s contribution to the Berlin Jazz Workshop Orchestra’s Sib Langis, which is obtainable digitally.
Next week Spinning Motion’s Confidence in the Future is easily procured on vinyl, tucked into a striking gatefold reinforcing Notes On A Journey’s admirable intentions. If not a masterpiece it certainly deserved resurrecting.
GRADED ON A CURVE:
B
