ONE SENTENCE. SUPERVISOR - Radical Resistance

27. September 2019

One Sentence Supervisor

ONE SENTENCE. SUPERVISOR - Radikaler Widerstand

For the Swiss band One Sentence. Supervisor has started a new chapter with the third album "Acedia". With the addition of the oud virtuoso Bahur Ghazi as a permanent member of the band, the Swiss band's very own Krautrock has experienced a new dimension and an enormous expansion of its sound palette. Singer and guitarist Donat Kaufmann explains the background to eclipsed.

From Bernd Sievers

eclipsed: With its many stoic rhythms "Acedia" has something Krautrockiges. Did you get your inspiration from Krautrock?

Donat Kaufmann: Yes, Krautrock is one of our most important influences, it is virtually our lowest common denominator. I'm interested in the herb, the mantra-like, the closeness to the mythical. The repetitive in music can create familiarity, calm thoughts and steer them in unusual directions.

eclipsed: To what extent have the new musicians Sarah Palin and the drums and especially Bahur Ghazi brought about a change and influenced your style?

Kaufmann: We got to know Bahur already two years ago, the new songs were created in cooperation with him. Musically we grew up in different worlds. Bahur plays very virtuosic, has a wide spectrum, played in various formations - from jazz to Swiss folk music. We, on the other hand, have gathered our musical experience with this one band and have always oriented ourselves to this forward moving guitar music. Bahur liked the reduction, we liked the complexity, we quickly approached each other. I think you can hear this on the album. It's denser, more entangled than its two predecessors. Less of the 12th Sarah Palin unfortunately joined the band only one month before the recordings, when the songs were already arranged. We actually only really got to know each other in the studio. Their dynamic playing definitely enriches the band. We are already working on new material, there will be a lot of her in it.

eclipsed: How did it even happen that you integrated an oud? After all an instrument not exactly usual in rock music.

Kaufmann: I got to know many people from Syria, Egypt or Afghanistan in the last few years, which quickly brought me into contact with music from these regions. The oud often plays a central role in this. I wanted to learn to play the instrument myself - I wanted to know if it could be integrated into our musical context. When I told this to a friend of mine, he said that I had to get to know Bahur Ghazi, who had played for him at the festival. We met and understood each other right away.

eclipsed: The last album "Temporämusik 1-13" was rather a collection of single songs. What was your approach to "Acedia" now?

Kaufmann: The writing process was conventional. I wrote songs and lyrics at home, then we did them together. We had been playing concerts for five years and had released songs that were often made out of jams. It was now good to take the time to delve deeper into a subject, to roll one's mind. An album gives you the opportunity to illuminate many facets of the same feeling.

eclipsed: The content seems to be about social doubts and discomfort with one's own actions.

Kaufmann: "Acedia" describes a form of impotence or inertia. The word creation dates back to the early Middle Ages. It was called Acedia when monks were attacked by doubts - about their faith, about the system in which they lived. However, the doubts never led to any action, because the consequences would have been too drastic. It remained with inertia and ambivalent feelings. They thus supported a system that they no longer believed in. With our album we search for analogies in today's world. For example, I feel powerless when I realize that we have established ourselves in an economic system that leads us straight into ecological and social collapse, but from which we cannot escape because our everyday actions are so deeply involved. How do I react as an individual to the force of a global challenge? Do I take myself too seriously when I think I can make a difference? And what are the alternatives? The album revolves around these questions. Is inertia, powerlessness, Acedia, in our present context perhaps even a form of resistance? To be sluggish, to refrain from things seems quite radical in view of the general "you have to perform" imperative.

eclipsed: You have worked with the Lebanese/Canadian producer Radwan Ghazi Moumneh. How'd that go? What influence did he have?

Kaufmann: I knew Radwan as a technician of one of my favorite bands, Suuns, as well as because of his own project Jerusalem In My Heart. Radwan is a musician who uncompromisingly follows his artistic intuition. Arguments such as accessibility are secondary for him. His songs are exhausting and sometimes hard to digest, which fascinated me from the beginning. In addition, accessibility remains an important criterion for me. I wanted to know what would result from this combination. He had no influence on the songwriting, he trusted our intuition again. He focused on sound aesthetics.

eclipsed: How has the band developed over the years since 2011?

Kaufmann: We definitely took a few steps - as musicians* and as a band. Musically, we have become more flexible, we master our instruments better, we design more consciously. The many concerts have also given us a certain security. When I come off the stage today after a lousy concert, I no longer have the feeling that my license as a musician is being taken away. It was different a few years ago. The business around us has also become more professional, and we are now allowed to work with an international team.

eclipsed: You were already on tour outside Switzerland after your first album. How did you do that after just one album?

Kaufmann: There was a lot of initiative involved. We had booked our first "tour abroad" ourselves, but it had little to do with an actual tour. It included a concert in a Prague hotel lobby in front of three drunken tourists, a concert in Bratislava where we had to play bouncers and bar staff at the same time because we apparently rented the club, and a concert in an art exhibition. There we were admonished to play quietly, after all people should be able to watch art undisturbed. It was a great experience.

eclipsed: In September/October/November we will go on tour through Switzerland, Austria and Germany and a few more cities. What can we expect?

Kaufmann: Strong waves.

eclipsed: Is it harder for a Swiss to gain an international foothold than for example a band from Germany? Or has the Internet made sure that the origin doesn't matter?

Kaufmann: I don't know whether it's more difficult than in other countries. But you have to be persistent unless you hit a nerve, as Zeal & Ardor did three years ago. Switzerland is a small music market, you can easily overlook it. Many ambitious Swiss musicians* will eventually go to Berlin or London because they hope for better chances there. At the same time, however, I experience the Swiss music landscape as extremely lively, solidary and relevant. There's a lot going on right now at your own door.