Michael Ranta/Mike Lewis/Conny Plank: Mu – 2CDbox

The only time this ensemble got together before was for the singular and legendary ‘Wired’ session recorded in 1970 and published on the Deutsche Grammophon box set ‘Free Improvisation’ in 1974. The Wired session also included Karl-Heinz Böttner while this release of ‘Mu’ just has the trio of Ranta, Lewis and Plank.
Mu got recorded a few months after the ‘Wired’ session, in Plank’s studio, but got never released strangely enough. Yet it’s a true hidden treasure of marvellous minimal psychedelic improvisations with an oriental touch controlled and mixed by ‘Diabolis in Musica’ Conny Plank.
Although the intense recording session ended early in the morning the mixdown was still done straight afterwards of which this is the direct result for MU1, Mu2, and Mu4. For Mu 3 Michael Ranta added live percussion to the original tape mix and dedicated it to Mike Lewis. Due to circumstances and moving to different continents they never had the chance to meet again.

Michael Ranta : percussion, guitars and prepared thundersheet,
Mike Lewis : keyboards, wind instruments and percussion,
Conny Plank : live electronics, sound control, recording supervision, mix.

Hardcover linen CD box including 26 page booklet.
Metaphon 003, 2012

“What a stunning surprise discovery of this obscure ensemble with Michael Ranta, Mike Lewis and krautrock master Conny Plank. As on the legendary ‘Wired’ LP on the ‘Free Improvisation’ box set (Deutsche Grammophon 1974) they created an amazing free form abstraction, a floating resonant and timeless music, similar in many ways to th early experiments of Tangerine Dream but in a world of its own, in all their twisted exotic and melancholy beauty…
To be filed under classic krautrock, a masterpiece!” (Steven Stapleton)