When approaching Das Wortspiel, one must be ready to embrace their sonic material’s transformative and evocative nature, an ethereal journey through avant-garde compositions and poetry-flavoured spoken words. The listening experience is elegant, yet fractured. ‘Chapter 1’, the duo’s debut effort, will significantly enrich the musical prowess of the keen listener, pushing forth a state of mind that balances over nostalgia, grief and pain.
Themed around the current conflict in Ukraine, ‘Chapter 1’ represents an effort by Das Wortspiel to share the harsh and terrible reality their country is stuck in, perhaps looking for a reaction in their audience, or even just an emotional connection. Sonically, the record takes the shape of a concept album, exploring field recordings, experimental electronica and acoustic tones, all serving Maryana Golovko’s solemn and nuanced vocals.
Producer and composer Max Smogol completes what’s a fantastic line-up. Based in Berlin, Das Wortspiel is one of the most heartwrenching tributes to Ukraine we have heard so far, truly embodying the dramatic situation in their home country.
Intrigued by the project, we caught up with the talented pair to learn more about their artistry and inspirations… Interview below!
Hey Max and Maryana, how is it going? some of our readers might not be familiar with your project, how would you describe yourself, in a few words?
Well, in a few words it’s not easy, but I’ll try – We are two old friends who met in forced exile in Berlin and started making music together.
Your current work is the result of a long journey; how did you meet and what motivated you in collaborating?
Maryana and I have collaborated many times on various projects. Starting from advertising or film projects at our studio in Kyiv and ending with our different solo music projects. But this time we recorded an album of music that is about sore. This is related to our feelings about the terrible war that is going on in our country. After the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, we met with Maryana in Berlin, and in addition to a large number of volunteer projects, we also created several compositions along the way, which were later collected into an album united by one theme. I mean, of course, our feelings about these terrible events.
You are fresh off the back of an album release, ‘Chapter 1’. We love the ethereal textures and the celebrative and solemn quality of the record. What was the main source of inspiration for it?
I would like to note that this album was written in Spartan conditions. We only had an old laptop with a sound card, a microphone, an acoustic guitar and some cheap percussions. But we had something to say. And our experiences simply turned into music. And when I mixed these tracks in the studio, I tried to preserve this atmosphere of imperfection. This, in my opinion, adds frankness and honesty to the compositions.
While living in Berlin, you are still deeply tied to your motherland, Ukraine. How are you experiencing the current Russian invasion, and how is influencing your artistic journey?
As you can see from the previous answers, the full-scale Russian invasion had a profound effect on our lives and our creativity. It’s been all I can think and talk about for over a year now. That’s why the music is also about it. At the same time, we try not to be too straightforward in our work, and we try to describe our experiences artistically.
Let’s shift the attention to the musical material for a moment: we adore the stream of experimental electronica and field recordings in ‘Chapter 1’ – what was your composing and recording process like?
I was fascinated by the idea of conveying through music as much as possible the atmosphere in which we found ourselves after arriving in Berlin. And of course, for this I decided to simply record all the sounds that surrounded me. Maryana let me use her mobile phone microphone. Everything is recorded on it. Sometimes the sounds themselves suggested musical ideas. And sometimes the music was already in my head and I just walked around Berlin and looked for the sounds of the city that fit its mood. Then I loaded these sounds into an Ableton project, processed them in different ways, and mixed them with other sounds. Then it was simply a stream of consciousness. All synths were VST. Among the live instruments, I used only acoustic guitar and percussion. Oh, and my and Maryana’s voices.
What do you think the listener should look for when approaching the album? any recommended listening tips?
Just turn on and listen – this is not entertainment music and not background music. This is music that should be heard with head and heart. Therefore, I would recommend listening with headphones. And I want to believe that for those listeners who do not understand the Ukrainian language, it will still be clear what the songs are about. And if not, then we would recommend reading the translation of the texts.
Are you planning to perform the record live, sooner or later?
We have already managed to play several concerts with this material. But the compositions, from my point of view, were not quite ready for a live performance at that time. Nonetheless, the concerts were still successful, we heard a lot of positive feedback. Going forward, I’d like to prepare the program in more detail and scrupulously. We also plan to use visual effects during live performances.
What are the next steps for your project? Anything exciting on the horizon?
I would really like to take this concert program to different countries. To tell our stories to different people. It seems to me that, among other things, it would be very useful for our country now. Well, to be completely honest, I already have some ideas for a possible next album.
