Bohren & Der Club of Gore – Black Earth (2xLP, White Vinyl)

Bohren & der Club of Gore’s Black Earth is the album where the group’s after-hours language comes fully into focus: originally released in 2002, it is the fourth full-length from the Mülheim/Ruhr band, who had already moved far from their hardcore and metal beginnings into a severely slowed, noir-like blend of jazz, ambient drift and doom-heavy atmosphere. Across nine extended instrumentals, they build tension from very little: tenor saxophone, Fender Rhodes, piano, Mellotron, double bass and brushed drums, all moving at an almost unnerving crawl.

That restraint is what gives Black Earth its pull. Pieces such as “Midnight Black Earth” and “The Art of Coffins” stretch out patiently, with clear, deliberate structures rather than formless mood music. Christoph Clöser and Morten Gass wrote the material, and the band handled production and mixing themselves, which helps explain how unified the record feels: every detail serves the same hushed, nocturnal mood without slipping into background ambience.

The lineup here is Christoph Clöser, Morten Gass, Robin Rodenberg and Thorsten Benning, recorded at Dark Victory Studios in Mülheim/Ruhr. This white-vinyl 2xLP edition returns to the 2016 [PIAS] vinyl reissue, a welcome format for an album whose long, spacious pieces benefit from being given room to breathe. For listeners drawn to the shadowy meeting point of jazz melancholy and doom-weight stillness, this remains one of Bohren’s most absorbing records.

Features

• 2xLP, White Vinyl
• Gatefold cover

Reviews

• This is a band that moves you, and their command of dynamics is unrivaled. - Pitchfork