01	You Play For Us Today						06:15
	02	Sahara City						07:51
	03	Ala Tul						04:57
	04	Pulse						04:51
	05	Khan El Khalili						05:34
	06	Malesch						08:24
	07	Rucksturz						02:11

Agitation Free - Malesch

Released: 1972/2002
Label: Vertigo / Garden Of Delights
Cat. No.: 6360607 / CD 069
Total Time: 37:32


Reviewed by: Stephanie Sollow, September 2003
If your progressive music tastes run to the improvisational, jazzy, experimental side, then Agitation Free is your kind of band. Recorded in 1972 and released on the Vertigo label, Malesch is the first album from the quintet of Michael "Fame" Gunther (bass), Lutz "Luul" Ulbrich (guitar), Jorg "Joschi" Schwenke (guitar), Burghard Rausch (drums), and Michael Hoenig (keyboards). Leading up to this recording, the band traveled to the Middle East to tour; the music here reflects their trip there, and especially of Egypt.

Stylistically, Agitation Free have been compared with early Pink Floyd and with Popul Vuh, creating a spacey style of music - spacey in dimension however, not in the sense of "outer space." In the opening track, "You Play For Us Today," beds of keyboards that slowly change over time create this expansive effect while guitars and bass create the movement within, the drums keeping everything within the fluxuating background of the music. But, those very same keyboards can also venture into exploratory realms... "Pulse" is Hoenig's experiment with "a random tone generator and equipment manufactored by the company 'Hofschneider, Berlin'" says Gunther in the liner notes -- which are, as usual, informative. The booklet also contains pictures and complete discography.

"Sahara City," which begins with a middle-eastern motif as introduction, is an experiment in sublteties and atmospheres that by the 6-minute mark has become a grooving, psychedelic guitar rock piece - almost conventional when compared with the sparse way the track begins. "Ata Tul" puts Hammond organ front and center, underneath which we hear a fat bass sound and a variety of tinkly percussive sounds (marimbaphone) (as well as drums). "Khan El Khalill," is a languid and liquid piece, twin guitars giving the piece a bit of a country twang with their loose, open sound. The "lead" of these two guitar has a very warm, acoustic tone, the latter has a cooler, steel tone making a nice contrast. Here as elsewhere on the album, the guitar playing is terrific. In fact, it all is; and well produced as well.

Malesch remains a fascinating listen each time it is played, as it the kind of album where new facets are revealed each time. Though experimental at times, Agitation Free do not create "difficult music" - that is, music that only a select few can "understand" -- rather, it is accessible without compromising itself to the lowest common demoninator.

Rating: 5/5

More about Malesch:

Track Listing: You Play For Us Today (6:08) / Sahara City (7:42) / Ala Tul (4:50) / Pulse (4:43) / Khan El Khalill (5:30) / Malesch (8:10) / Rucksturz (2:09)

Musicians:
Michael "Fame" Gunther - bass, live-tapes
Lutz "Luul" Ulbrich - guitar, 12-string guitar, zither, Hammond organ
Jorg "Joschi" Schwenke - guitar
Burghard Rausch - drums, marimbaphone, vocals
Michael Hoenig - synthesizer, electronic devices, steel guitar

Guest:

Uli Popp - bongos (1)
Peter Michael Hamel - Hammond organ

Contact:

Website: www.agitation-free.de
Note: will open new browser window

Discography

Malesh (1972/2002)
2nd (1973/2002)
Last (rec. 1973/74; 1976)
Fragments (rec. 1974;1995)
At The Cliffs Of The River Rhine (rec. 1974;1998)
The Other Sides Of Agitation Free (rec. 1974; 1999)
River Of Return (1999)



Agitation Free
Formed 1967
Group Members Michael Hoenig Burghard Rausch Jorg Schwenke Lutz Ulbrich Michael Gunther

by Heather Phares

The German avant-garde rock band Agitation Free formed in 1967 and featured founding members bassist/keyboardist Michael Gunther and guitarist/keyboardist Lutz Ulbrich. Originally known as the Agitation - a name picked at random from the dictionary - the group added "free" to their name a year later, inspired by a free concert they performed. Though they began by playing covers, Agitation Free added extended improvisations into the songs, and jamming became the basis for their own works. The group also collaborated with Berlin's art students on slide-shows, projections and other multi-media performances, and played gigs at conservatories and galleries in addition to club shows.
By 1970 Agitation Free were a fixture of Berlin's art-rock scene, performing with like-minded bands such as Tangerine Dream, Amon Duul and Guru Guru, all of whom appeared at that year's First German Progressive Popfestival in Berlin's Sportpalast. The group often acted as an incubator for underground rock talent, losing guitarist Axel Genrich to Guru Guru that year and drummer Christopher Franke to Tangerine Dream in 1971. Ulbrich and Gunther added guitarist Jorg Scwhenke, drummer Burghard Rausch and keyboardist Michael Hoenig to the lineup, and the quintet procured a record deal with the Music Factory label later that year. Agitation Free's debut album Malesch came out in 1972 and was heavily influenced by their tour of Egypt, Greece and Cyprus, which was sponsored by the Goethe Institute, blending the group's improvisational rock with ambient sounds from the countries they toured. Despite the group's growing popularity - spurred by their performance at the 1972 Olympics in Munich - poor distribution hindered the album's sales.

In 1973, Agitation Free continued touring in France and Germany and released their sophomore effort 2nd, but disappointing album sales, musical differences and boredom brought on by constant touring chipped away at the band. They disbanded in 1974, but Gunther and Ulbrich continued on with a new name, Lagoona. However, this project also recieved little favorable attention and ended in late 1975. Several Agitation Free albums were released after the group's breakup, including 1976's Last, 1995's Fragments and the following year's At The Cliffs of The River Rhine.

In 1998, Gunther, Rausch, Hoenig and Ulbrich reunited at Ulbrich's birthday party and decided to revive Agitation Free. The following year River Of Return appeared, featuring the original quartet as well as new members Johannes Pappert from the underground group Kraan, and Bernard Potschka, formerly the guitarist for Spliff.


1972 Malesch Spalax
1973 Second Vertigo
1973 Last Barclay
1995 At the Cliffs of River Rhine [live] Garden of
1999 River of Return Prudence
The Other Sides of Agitation Free Garden of
Fragments





Malesch
Date of Release 1972

AMG REVIEW: The debut album by Agitation Free followed a somewhat different path than your average Krautrock band, veering unexpectedly toward the Middle East, specifically Egypt, in search of atmosphere and material. Underneath the dueling guitars and spacy synth work, desert rhythms and taped sounds of dusky cities percolate, adding depth and spice to the otherwise smooth, Teutonic grooves. It's a tribute to the apparent sincerity of the band that the use of these motifs does not sound at all contrived, instead integrating quite well. The delicate, intricate percussion that concludes "Ala Tul," for instance, sounds as lively as anything by Steve Reich from around the same period. Tapes of street songs emerge surprisingly and effectively toward the end of the otherwise stately march "Khan El Khalili," providing a bridge to the Terry Riley-ish organ trills that begin the title track. "Malesch," like many of the tracks, spins off into a leisurely stroll, sounding unexpectedly close to some Grateful Dead jams. Even when it picks up pace, there's an unhurried quality that fits in nicely with the Saharan undertones of the album. Malesch is a solid, even inspired recording that stands somewhat apart from the usual clichйs of the genre. Fans of German progressive rock from this period will certainly want to hear and enjoy it. - Brian Olewnick

1. You Play for Us Today - 6:08
2. Sahara City - 7:42
3. Ala Tul - 4:50
4. Pulse - 4:43
5. Khan el Khalili - 8:10
6. Malesch - 8:10
7. Rucksturz - 2:09

Peter Michael Hamel - Keyboards, Organ (Hammond)
Michael Hoenig - Synthesizer, Guitar (Steel), Keyboards, Electronics
Michel Gunter - Bass
Uli Pop - Bongos
Burghard Rausch - Drums, Keyboards, Vocals, Marimbaphone
Jorg Schwenke - Guitar
Lutz Ulbrich - Guitar, Keyboards
Michael Gunther - Bass, Tapes

1973 CD Spalax 14250
1972 LP Vertigo 6360607