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Christoph Sauer Kontrabass
Tommy Wittinger Drums
donato Wharton Guitar
Cassandra Steen Vocals
Single: "Leg Dein Ohr auf die Schiene der Geschicht"/
"Enfants Terribles International (Published January '97)
Album: "Quadratur des Kreises" (Published April '97)
Be it silly rap platitudes or earthy hard core thrash, rarely
has a local act been worthy of anything more than the title "Pretty
good for Germany", FREUNDESKREIS has changed this with the release
of "Quadratur des Kreises" in '97.
From The "Kolchose" - a mixture of Stuttgart hip hop
activists - the two MCs Sékou and Max bridge the gap between committed
lyrics and smooth soul. Either as an overseas MC from Boston or a hip hop
kid from Stuttgart West - both rappers not only have love of rap in common,
but also a political awareness that has never existed in Germany before
with such casualness in a rhyming form. Sékou grew up as the child
of active members of the American civil rights movement "Black Panther",
Max's parents were active in the Marxist student movement.
"Leg Dein Ohr auf die Schiene derGeschichte", the first
single from FREUNDESKREIS combines beats, rhymes and consciousness like
rapping Curtis Mayfield:
"1973, year of my birth,
as important for me as it was for history,
coz it became clear
that the CIA was a whore (....)
The polit rap pigeonhole is, however, much too limited for the
"enfants terribles".The hip hop hymn of the same name, which featured
Déborah from Sens Unik on the international version, gets every club
rocking with its clever tri-lingual battle texts. Further highlights of
the debut album are the orchestral instrumental balled "A-n-n-a"
and the updated version of the Udo Lindenberg classic "Baby wenn ich
down bin".
DJ Friction and Phillippe complete FREUNDESKREIS: With his projects
No Sé (top 5 in France), Pronoia and The cottage Phillippe ranks
among the most innovative producers, and his No Sé studio has become
a home to the hip hop community. DJ Friction, who has ranked among the most
significant hip hop Djs and remixers in Germany for a number of years now,
provides virtually all the local crews with beats, Thus he has been a producer
for the fellow "Kolchose" members Afrob and W asi, the mastermind
behind Massive Töne, both of whom are to be heard as guest MCs on "Quadratur
des Kreises".
Together with Die Fantastischen Vier, FREUNDESKREIS is appearing
with a complete live band as part of a major tour. |