Brötzmann Blasts Rock Strictures Into Improv Atoms

Last sighted by this reviewer in 1995 at The Disobey Club – Upstairs At The Garage in Highbury, Berlin-based guitarist Caspar Brötzmann’s stinging performance alongside electronic musician FM Einheit left an indelible impression. Now reenergised through Californian metal label Southern Lord, Brötzmann’s back catalogue has been restored and he is back on tour with Caspar Brötzmann Massaker, a powerful trio made up of bass player Eduardo Delgado-Lopez and drummer Saskia Von Klitzing, with Brötzmann firmly at the helm.

Looking and sounding as vital as ever, Brotzmann cuts a dark prince look on stage with his black shirt open and hanging medallion as he gently caresses his guitar to form a series of feedback induced drones by way of introduction. All the while Delgado and Von Klitzing hold back, waiting for their cue before crashing in alongside Brötzmann’s eventual explosive resolution to the complex improvisational knot he has just untied. This fusion of experimental music, metal and noise rock (together with flurries of jazz) is the platform upon which much of tonight’s set is built, a swaying monolith of loosely punctuated guitar explorations that suddenly swerve into bouts of raw psychedelic rock.

While his father Peter Brötzmann (as leader of Peter Brötzmann’s Octet) was responsible for the legendary free-jazz blast that was Machine Gun, here Brötzmann Jr opens fire with a similar sounding musical weapon – taking his source more from the guitar infernos of Jimi Hendrix and his Band Of Gypsys rather than the raw free-jazz blastings of Albert Ayler. The spiritual power of the music and creative bonding between the players, however, remains solid. By now the audience are in the throes of euphoric excitement, punching the air with horned salutes and celebratory raised fists as the trio gradually wind down and wave farewell. The disco is about to commence and the room has to be cleared. As we are pushed into the rain, it is only then that the true impact of what has been played suddenly hits.