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The Days of Johnnie Zilch

by Michael Brückner

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Bernard Poulard
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/
1.
Johnnie Meets The X-Ray 05:52
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2.
Train Ride to Lower Station 05:35
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3.
Mr. Hartmann (and some of his friends) 04:37
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4.
First Glimpse of the Truth 03:58
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5.
Industrial Landscape Five Minutes after Sunset 02:39
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6.
Sex and Paranoia 04:42
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7.
Kissing Beneath the X-Ray Shield 04:41
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8.
Is there some Switch...? 04:38
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9.
Technocrazy Prevails 03:42
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10.
Johnnie Makes New Friends 04:40
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11.
Whispers in a Net of Hopes 04:47
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12.
Second Glimpse of the Truth 03:51
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13.
Johnnie Bids Her Farewell 04:56
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14.
Puke Near Lower Station 04:29
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15.
At Mr. Hartmann's Place 02:54
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16.
There IS a Switch (at long last) 10:44
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about

If You had a fairly close look at the cover, You may have noticed the words "original soundtrack" and maybe wondered why You never heard about that movie. Of course, the term "soundtrack" suggests a movie, doesn't it? Although that very word was omitted, and not by incident - for there does no movie exist, at least not by now...

So, it perhaps should rather read "soundtrack to an imaginary movie" - for that is what we have here.

Just a side project of sorts, the whole thing had an interesting evolution:

Once upon a time, some years ago, I met this lady - a musician she was (still is, I hope...). She played the guitar, and did it in such a way that it resultet in dark ambient industrial drone soundscapes, for she was an experimental musician, and a rather productive and well recieved one, it seems (could tell You her name, but it doesn't really matter here...).
We met, I said (just virtually though, as things go often in this present age) and agreed to do some music together - for which end, I produced five or six tracks and send them to her, as backings for her guitar playing.

But nothing happended.

After a while I asked if the tracks had arrived, if she liked them or if I should rather change something or send new ones - they had arrived, she said, and were just fine, and she would play to them.

But nothing happened...

After another (long) while I decided (keeping in mind that I was dealing with a lady) that it might be wise to change the tracks whatsoever and send her new ones, so I made much calmer ambiet remixes of all of them, in the hope that would leave more room for her to unfold her own ideas. She again told me she liked the result and would play something.

But nothing happened...

After another long while I politely asked her if she ever inteneded to play to those tracks, otherwise I would use them in some other context. She sent me good wishes, and didn't answer that question at all. And that was the last I heard of her so far.

Once upon another time, and also already a couple of years ago, I met someone else, a gentleman from the United States. Yes, virtually again, and this time LastFM is the keyword (...I guess You know that platform, if not: it's worth investigating). This friendly person operates there under the fascinating nom-du-guerre "Silverlage", is also producing experimental music and even runs a tiny independent non-profit label, strictly on this platform, actually called: Zilch Rechords!

If You want to now more about Silverlage's music and the label - this way please:

www.lastfm.de/music/SilverlagE

www.lastfm.de/label/Zilch+Records

In the course of our communication the idea arose to once produce an EP especially for his label - and from start, I thought of something rather bizarre, an outlet for the more weird, non-conformistic and slightly insane (or humorous) tracks which I also love to produce alongside my oh-so-serious, notorious space operas.
I quickly started with already something like a concept in my mind, did one track, started a second, and then...

Nothing happened.

I was too busy with all sorts of other things that seemed more pressing, and time did pass.
Too many time, I felt, so I mailed Senhor Silverlage, promising I would soon make progress on the project (he was most patient anyway...).

But nothing happended...

Oh well, but after a while, something actually DID happen, although it was (at first) not connected to that project at all, something serious: the Fukushima accident.

Being completely against the use of nuclear power since the very first time I ever heard of that concept, this was a severe shock to me (...as to many of You, I guess).
One of it's (rather insignificant) effects was that I felt the urge to express my fears, doubts, anger and protest in music somehow, and at some point sat down and started working on tracks.
Again I had a concept, and I had a long list of some clever title tracks (...or so I thought) one of which even found it's way to THIS album ("Puke Near Lower Station" - turn it around a bit and You get "Nuclear Power Station". But You saw that straight away anyway, didn't You...?).
So I started to work, but soon had the feeling that the resulting tracks couldn't do justice to the immens horror I felt, and the global impact this catastrophe seemed to have, so after two or three tracks, I put the project on hold again.

And nothing happened.

Until just some months ago, I decided to finally finish some long overdue projects and fulfill old promises.
And the Zilch EP was one of them. I remembered all these three never finished projects, realized that they had several things in common, and started to juggle with them in my mind in the hope they could somehow be united to somthing that made sense artistically.
But the stylistic range seemed too diverse, too many different moods, a bit like in...yes!

In a movie soundtrack!

Once I had that thought, everything seemed to just fall in place, somekind of storyline for an independent, dystopic movie about a young man getting in the way of the atomic industry (...or something) seemed to suggest itself to me.

So, finally - it happened:
I produced three more tracks (which was BIG fun!), remixed and rearranged several others, arranged them in the right order, gave them proper titles, and here we are, with a little "mind movie" - it's up to You if there is a happy ending!

;-)

credits

released May 21, 2012

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about

Michael Brückner image

Michael Brückner Mainz, Germany

Born in Heidelberg, Germany, later settled down near Mainz.

Earns a living as a graphical designer.

Ambient and other electronica since 1992.

Accumulated an extended back catalogue (more than 90 albums by end of 2011, number still growing).

Since 2007 offers his music in the internet, via the usual platforms.

Sometimes gets reviews + airplay.

Very rarely plays live.

More is to come... ... more

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