Four LPs of unreleased material, compiled to celebrate Hans-Joachim Roedelius’s 90th birthday. Most of the music on ‘90’ comes from the two-track Revox tapes (1968 - 80). Working with his Echolette tape delay and Farfisa organ - the equipment on which Achim recorded his beloved ‘Selbstportrait’ records and much of the seminal work with Dieter Moebius and Michael Rother - the Revox tapes document the processes and sounds that continue to inspire generations of music lovers and sonic adventurers. ‘90’ is in no way intended as the exhaustive retrospective of the oeuvre of an important artist. The actual chronology of these pieces, and in some cases who might have collaborated with Achim on them, remain a mystery. But the historical context of this music is undeniably compelling - it doesn’t feel like hyperbole to suggest that these cascading, hypnotic cycles equal the best of contemporaries like Terry Riley, working half a world away on their own minimal masterpieces. For now, a celebration is sufficient - the portrait of an extraordinary life at 90, narrated in beautiful, intimate, innovative music.
