Pan-Po

September 09, 2007

A little less than two and a half years since its conception - and close to 30 singles, one compilation, one mix CD and one sub-label later - Berlin’s mobilee releases its first artist album. Naturally, who better to represent the milestone than Pan-Pot, who have so far delivered five essential singles to mobile, helping to anchor the ever-shifting sound of one of Europe’s most exciting labels.

Pan-Pot is the duo of Tassilo Ippenberger and Thomas Benedix; in just two short years, with 10 singles (for mobilee and Einmaleins Musik) and remixes for the likes of Misc., Tim Xavier, Dapayk Solo, Sweet ‘n Candy, Damián Schwartz, and Anja Schneider and Sebo K, they’ve become known far and wide for their distinctive, groovy, and above all ominous sound.

‘Pan-O-Rama’ finds the boys stretching that sound in every possible direction: twisting, tearing, and using the shreds to drag a wide swath of techno history into the future (and, just maybe, to drag a few pieces of techno future back into the past). Call it minimal if you must, but this ain’t no clickity-clack shit. (Even if Pan-Pot do excel at the clickity-clack, rackity-racket, which infuses track after track on Pan-O-Rama with their signature convulsive shudder.)

You can hear the agonized gurgle of isolationist acid, reminiscent of Plastikman’s darkest nights. You can hear the percolating urgency of classic bleep techno. Tried and true hardware collides with restless digital experimentation as dance music’s DNA worms its way into twisted new shapes. Pan-O-Rama is dark, that’s for damned sure. Eerie vocals that seem to come from within the listener’s own head creep across the stereo field. (Don’t let mystery collaborator Hugh Betcha’s name fool you-judging from his paranoid muttering on “Charly,” he won’t be appearing in any romantic comedies any time soon.) Throughout, restrained minor-key melodies conjure 21st century noir, and a relentless low-end rumble seems to suck up all the light around it.

But Pan-Pot never lose their grip on the groove, again and again coming up with supple, subtly morphing beats capable of animating dance floors like animé. And even with a sense of dread lurking in the shadows behind every handclap, there’s light at the end of the tunnel: “Faces,” featuring the deep house producer Vincenzo, sparkles with distant bell tones before opening up into a luscious, gently jacking overlaid with delicate piano chords. A new direction for the group, its tentative melody suggests that Pan-Pot has a sensitive side after all.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a duo named after the knob that controls sound’s left/right balance, Pan-Pot are obsessed with space, distance and depth, using all the tools in their arsenal to map out dimensions that go far beyond the confines of the dance floor. This is body music, head music, dark night of the soul music. And when daybreak comes breathing into view, the music’s ready and waiting for that as well.

CD-Album Track-Listing:

1. threesixty
2. ape shall never kill ape
3. dog’s dinner
4. black fusion
5. charly (Pan-Pot feat. Hugh Betcha)
6. apocalyptic horseman
7. crank
8. hypnotized shark
9. moving space
10. faces (Pan-Pot feat. Vincenzo)

Pan-Pot tour dates:

19 Sept - Mobilee Popkomm special @ Weekend - Berlin (De)
21 Sept - U60311 - Frankfurt (De)
29 Sept - Gazgolder Gallery - Moscow (Rus)
02 Oct - Alpha Festival / Kontrollverlust Floor - Schwerin (De)
06 Oct - Club Treibstoff - Beeskow (De)
07 Oct - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch @ The End - London (UK)
13 Oct - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch @ NieuweNor - Heerlen (Nl)
19 Oct - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ - album launch @ Einklang/City Department - Stuttgart (De)
20 Oct - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Airport - Wüzburg (De)
26 Oct - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Kerosin - Augsburg (De)
27 Oct - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at The Garden Club - München (De)
02 Nov - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Le Zoo - Geneva (Ch)
03 Nov - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Fundbureau Plux - Hamburg (De)
08 Nov - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Rex Club - Paris (Fr)
10 Nov - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Nff Club - Bremen (De)
16 Nov - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Tresor - Berlin (De)
30 Nov - ‘Pan-O-Rama’ album launch at Fetisch Club - Athen