Kai Niggemann — Climate and Violence

Climate and Violence is German composer, producer, and sound designer Kai Niggemann's, sophomore solo album. Akin to his debut, Heart Murmur, the work is based on and inspired by a theatre performance, this time "Denkraum der Utopien." Utilising voice, guitar, synths (both analog and digital), concrete recordings, and various processing techniques, the album is experimental and ambitious, and even at its most chaotic, still a very engaging soundtrack. Meditating on the distinction between humans/culture and the world/nature, Climate and Violence is very timely with our world in its most dire state yet due to our reckless practices, and each spin will allow the listener a bit more time of introspection to analyze their part in all of this.

As a member of the musical theater crew Paradeiser Productions, Kai has ample opportunity to work on his focus of movement and sound in space, and Heart Murmur and Climate and Violence come directly out of this interaction. Knowing this, one can venture Climate contemplatively, enjoying the interplay between sounds, silence, drones, and actions. In addition, allowing the work to flow together as a soundtrack gives further mental pictures and purchase for the album to take hold. With myriad sound sources and processing methods at his disposal, Kai creates a varied sonic landscape that brings his work to life, vividly painting in the details through sound choice and arrangement. This helps to bring the disparity/juxtaposition closer to the listener and turn the focus toward the material at hand. Cold, oscillating drones share space with brighter, vibrant tones, showing the chasm between our industrial world/culture and the warm, natural world we were given. As movement is a big part of Kai's mission, noting how and when the pieces move adds much to the experience as well. What do the slower-moving pieces convey vs the quick, spritely actions of other parts? Most of the album feels colder and more synthetic than not, but that only helps to accentuate the pianos, guitars, voices, etc, that don't come from a circuit. Like most excellent experimental works, Climate and Violence is hard to accurately (and adequately) describe, but becomes evidently clear while listening.

Kai Niggemann's second album is a delight for those seeking a contemplative, experimental soundscape that makes great use of its headspace. It has a "theme," so to speak, but doesn't pander to the audience by making it super obvious or aggressively pushed out. Climate and Violence is deliberate, for sure, but never over the top and those who give this work adequate time and spins will be more than pleased with the material presented.