The Notwist – News From Planet Zombie

On The Notwist’s new album, lightness and tension find their way towards one another. On the one hand, there are moments in songs such as »The Turning« that arrive on fluffy indie guitars. On the other, there are in precisely those songs – again, »The Turning« is a case in point – moments in which the actual melody drops out, the guitar gathers itself for another run, the rhythm catches against itself, and the whole thing discharges with force. Then the brass comes in over the top.

News From Planet Zombie was recorded by the Weilheim group in Munich within the space of a week, together with their expanded live line-up. As Micha Acher revealed in an interview with taz, the model for this mode of energetic release was In the Aeroplane Over the Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel. They have accordingly taken on Neil Young’s »Red Sun« in such a way that the original is almost entirely forgotten in the process. Clarinet and trombone lift the song upwards.

For all that energy, The Notwist remain masters of the small, delicate element, as on »Who We Used to Be«. Everything on this record unfolds with care in the arrangements. Nothing overwhelms, everything stays in motion. Once again, The Notwist guide it all in the way only they can.