Sack und Blumm's
Harald "Sack" Ziegler had already released a couple of hard to find solo LPs before
Kopf Zahl Bauch. But because of its strength and relatively wider availability, this first CD eclipses his earlier opuses to become the first essential
Ziegler item. All the Dada pop elements of his duo with
Frank "Blumm" Schültge found their way on this disc: the toy instruments, the childlike melodies, the odd sounds, the quirky rhythms, the feeling that pop music is an activity consisting of having fun with obsolete objects. At times
Ziegler sounds like a German
Pascal Comelade, at others like a
Manu Chao immersed in German electronica instead of Latin rhythms (one can only suggest a collaboration between the two after listening to "Schenken"). But don't be fooled by these comparisons:
Ziegler's style is his own.
Kopf Zahl Bauch is an album of fresh material, but since it took a year and a half to complete, some tracks had already slipped out on 7" releases. Never mind that; they find a real home here. Friends from the German electronica scene helped complete a few tracks, among them
Mouse on Mars,
Joseph Suchy (some shredding electric guitar in "Urlauber"), Reuber,
F.X. Randomiz,
Marcus Schmickler, and
Mr. Blumm himself. There is not a wasted track on this gem of awkward kitsch pop. Highly recommended, especially to fans of
Felix Kubin,
Nova Huta, and the like. ~ François Couture