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Published in tech house ·

Federleicht

Herr B

The B-side of Federleicht's On The Streets Xtra 10-inch on Connaisseur Recordings: an eight-minute track by Florian Schirmacher and Marc Bammann, pressed opposite Kollektiv Turmstrasse's Let Freedom Ring remix.

By korczis 2 min read
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Review

Genre and Mood

Federleicht released Herr B as the flip side of a 10-inch that Discogs files under tech house, and one of its pressings also under minimal. The feelings on this page, hypnotic and introspective, are our reading, guided by the duo’s Discogs profile: full of smart understatement, built on transparent rhythms, each song creating an ambient feeling away from the usual restrictive club style.

Song Summary

Herr B, listed as Herr B. on the release, runs eight minutes 13 seconds and is the B-side of On The Streets Xtra 10“, catalogue number cns026x-6, which Connaisseur Recordings released on 9 February 2009; the digital listing dates it to October 2008. Side A holds Kollektiv Turmstrasse’s Let Freedom Ring mix of Federleicht’s On The Streets, so Herr B is the only original Federleicht track on the record. Florian Schirmacher and Marc Bammann are credited as its writers and producers, and the record was mastered at True Busyness. In 2010 it appeared again, as Herr B (Original), on Livingroom Techno, another Connaisseur release.

Musical Breakdown

No source describes this track part by part, so this breakdown stays with what the duo’s profile says about their sound and leaves the rest to your ears.

Intro

Listen for how the track sets out its rhythm, and how transparent, in the duo’s word, that rhythm is.

Main Section

Eight minutes give a track room to change slowly. Their profile speaks of varying mood and tempo; notice what shifts here and what stays.

Outro

How the track ends is not described anywhere. Notice whether it leaves space for a DJ to mix out.

Concepts in Focus

An ambient texture is sound that builds atmosphere rather than melody or beat. Federleicht’s profile names it as their aim: an ambient feeling in every song, even on records pressed for clubs. Herr B is a test of that promise, a tech house track by a duo whose profile ends: they bridge the gap.

The record around it shows the power of a remix. Groove later counted Kollektiv Turmstrasse’s version of On The Streets, heard in Kollektiv Turmstrasse – On The Streets (Let Freedom), among Connaisseur’s most memorable club hits. Herr B is what the original artists put on the other side.

Artistic Context

Federleicht, German for light as a feather, is Florian Schirmacher and Marc Bammann. Schirmacher, a singer and composer, is also known from Glowing Glisses, Here Today, Hatikvah and Wareika, and is credited on Wareika’s remix of Console – A Homeless Ghost. The profile counts Orbital and Aphex Twin among the influences on Bammann, the producer of the pair.

Impact and Reception

No review or chart place of Herr B was found. It has lived on as a B-side and on Livingroom Techno. Turn the record over and hear it for yourself.

Learn from this track

Introductory

What you will learn

  • Explain what a B-side is and why a label pairs an original track with a remix of another one on a single record.
  • Describe how the duo's profile presents their music: transparent rhythms, varying mood and tempo, an ambient feeling away from strict club style.
  • Listen to a track no review has described and test an artist's profile against what you hear.

Listening guide

  1. the rhythm Their profile describes Federleicht's music as built on transparent rhythms: listen for how few elements make up the beat and how clearly you can hear each one.
  2. the atmosphere The same profile says each of their songs creates an ambient feeling, far from strict club style; notice what carries that feeling in a track filed under tech house.
  3. the length Eight minutes 13 seconds, almost exactly the length of the remix on the other side: a track made for DJs to mix, with time to change slowly.

Concepts in this track

remix

164 tracks

A new version of a recording made by reworking its parts: changing the beat, harmony, tempo or structure, often by another producer. A remix can turn a ballad into a club track.

ambient texture

15 tracks

Layers of sustained, slowly changing sound that create atmosphere rather than melody or beat. Many electronic tracks open and close with them.

Listen next, and why

Questions for discussion

  1. Their profile calls Federleicht full of smart understatement. How can a dance track be understated and still work in a club?
  2. Side A of this record is a remix of another Federleicht track. What does a B-side give a listener who turns the record over?
  3. No review describes Herr B. Which three words would you use to describe it to a friend?

References

  1. Discogs. Federleicht - On The Streets Xtra 10" (Connaisseur Recordings, cns026x-6). Database
  2. Discogs. Federleicht (artist profile). Database
  3. MusicBrainz. Herr B. (recording). Database
  4. YouTube (Federleicht - Topic). Herr B. Video
  5. YouTube (Federleicht - Topic). Herr B (Original), from Livingroom Techno. Video
  6. Groove. Cinq - A Connaisseur Retrospective Remixed (2011). Review

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