Originally a solo project, Kammerflimmer Kollektief has grown over time into a into a six-piece undertaking, dwelling in abstract electronica. After a handful of records on Temporary Residence, the group will release their follow-up to 2005’s Absencen on the Staubgold Label in Germany this year.

Kollektief’s catalog of releases trails back to 2001 and is collectively anchored in ambient free-form jazz, often accompanied by rhythmic string work and enigmatical keyboards. The five prior releases have followed a consistent theme, each exploring nonpareil sounds that dart into uncategorized territories, earning the band that oft-applied and overused “experimental” stamp. 

While the prior records offered the listener a trip into the world of conceptual electronica, they have, as a whole, lacked that mysterious ability to leave a resounding and lasting impression. This is where Jinx isolates itself from the band’s earlier efforts. Still grounded in peculiar and chimerical rhythms, the disc combines Kollektief’s traditional synthetic beats with unexampled organic and rhapsodic harmonies, often in the form of unintelligible, seemingly tribal female vocals ("Jinx" and "Both Eyes Tight Shut" are prime examples). The blending of these rather cross-culture techniques spin the sound into an entirely different direction, hypnotizing the listener into melodious pictorial hallucinations of rainforest walkways sprouting up down the main boulevard. As the jungle bursts through the sidewalk tearing towards the sky, cars and houses are overturned in slow, intentional patterns, as the listener strolls in omnipotent fashion through newfound nature. Whereas a lot of electronica/ambient music tends to assist in creating an atmosphere within established identity, the depth displayed throughout Jinx actually helps transport the listener somewhere else entirely. It’s an out of body experience squeezed onto a single compact disc. 

Sandwiched between the tribal tracks is an earful of the more traditional Kammerflimmer Kollektief sound, uniquely classically infused. “Live at the Cactus Tree Motel” sounds just like its promise, and is chock full of soused strings and lax keys. Rather than ambient noise squealing between bursts of instrumentation, desert winds seem to blow effortlessly in their place. Again, the creative atmosphere is immense in its ability to swallow up the listener. “Gammler, Zen & Hohe Berge” and “Subnarkotisch” round out the album, both again examples of the band’s past efforts, but enhanced and taken to new levels. These are full-on electronic experiments, teased lightly with refined strings and bubbly quirks that seem entirely original and exclusive given their company of diverse tracks.

As elucidated above, this is clearly a break from the ways of the past. Jinx is a goldmine for fans of underworld electronica in search of something with a little more life, a little more bite. Scattered with some of the most goose bump inducing passages heard this year, the album still retains its ambient identity and seems to know exactly when to scream and when only to whisper.

-Jonathan Brooks