ABOUT ME

STATIONs of life

1969

I was born in Lüneburg.

1974

The start of my enthusiasm for turntables.

(Original quote: "Guck mal, ein Drehe Drehe!" = "Look, a rotate rotate!")
It has to be the parents' singles. My fascination:

WENCKE MYHRE / ER HAT EIN KNALLROTES GUMMIBOOT (7")

1977

I take piano lessons. One of the most important decisions of my life.

While strolling around town in Lüneburg, I can choose my first own record as a present:
BACCARA / YES SIR, I CAN BOOGIE (7")

1978

The people agree: "An LP with only one piece on each side? And that for 12.99 DM? You get cheated on! What an insolence!"

I, on the other hand, am fascinated by the size and beauty of these new "Super Sound Singles" and buy my first one: BLONDIE / HEART OF GLASS (12").
The beginning of my 12" record collection.

1979

Admission to the Amelinghausen Wind Orchestra. Clarinet lessons and musical training expand my understanding of music immensely. It doesn't matter if you play pop, jazz or marches - the musical rules stay the same.

1980 - 1983

I play pop songs and film scores on the piano by ear. Then I start composing my own music on the piano. The quality of the recordings via microphone on compact cassette is unfortunately cruel. But I still think the ideas in it are great today.

1984

Just turned 15, I'm allowed to go to a disco for the first time: GALACTICA Lüneburg. Craziness.

1986

First visit to FRONT Hamburg. An instant love until the end.

1987 - 1989

First DJ attempts and various music projects with friends. We mess around with vinyl records, synthesizers, and samples. We record our own video clips on VHS.

23.03.1990

The legendary BOXFRONT party at FRONT in Hamburg.

Boris Dlugosch and I dare to experiment: Protected in the DJ booth, which cannot be seen from the outside, Boris puts on his records while I play with prepared samples on the keyboard of a borrowed YAMAHA sampling synthesizer. Boris uses the pre-listening function and brings me to the right places via the fader. We play with bleeps, crazy sounds, signals, horns and vocals.

The word "respect" from ADEVA is played up and down the scale syllable by syllable - AND THE PEOPLE GO CRAZY. The door to the pulpit opens and closes because someone wants to know which great record is currently being played and what the remix is called.

That was over 30 years ago and the technology was still very limited back then. The samples were uploaded using 3.5-inch floppy disks (!) and only 1 sample was available to me distributed across the keyboard. It was the coolest thing we had achieved in the interaction between people and technology and it had a roughness, warmth and resonance that still gives me goose bumps in my memory today.

Silvester 1992

1994

I meet Christian Wilmes for the first time at his performance in the E-WERK. A week later we're in the studio together and creating our first track DEVIL.

In the same year Christian has his next appearance in the E-WERK. This time I come on stage for the joint tracks DEVIL and DR. BRADFORD in a self-made suit made of colored diodes. I flicker and blink like the bridge at STAR TREK. In my hand I hold a tap as a joystick and run like a video game character steering myself across the stage.

That night we received offers from 3 record labels.

We choose Marc Reeder and his label MFS (Masterminded For Success). For the release of our first single DR. BRADFORD we need a project name as soon as possible. I look around my desk and see a calculator. The birth of CAL-Q-LATOR.

1995

WASH MALFUNCTION

A well-known fabric softener is advertised on television. The melody to it is so memorable that we dare to try a hard techno version of it. We see hit potential and want to release the track under the French fragrance name of the fabric softener as FRAÎCHEUR D'AVRIL. Marc Reeder's attempt to find the composer in order to clear up the rights fails because of the stubbornness of the fabric softener manufacturer, who is allegedly planning a technoid release of his promotional song himself. In view of possible high fines, the publication is canceled.

Unfortunately, at this point in time, the cover in the version of brands that was very popular at the time is already finished. So the multi-layered 10-minute track WARP MALFUNCTION is quickly converted from the B-side to the A-side. In order to match the artwork, it is renamed to WASH MALFUNCTION. So now this song is officially no longer about a warp drive malfunction, it's about a washing machine malfunction. And in terms of the sounds, this interpretation fits much better in retrospect.

Hannes Talirz contributes a remix as POSITIVE THINKING. The record is filled with 30°/60°/95°, a corruption of the washing machine theme and a soft version of the first CAL-Q-LATOR song DEVIL, which now has the addition IN THE WASHING MACHINE. The devil is not only in the details, but sometimes also in the washing machine.

FREE MASON

As a thank you for his remix, I visit Hannes in his studio. At the end of the day there is our SECRET HAND SHAKE MIX of his song FREE MASON, which will be released on the POSITIVE THINKING single THE TEMPLE AND THE LODGE.

TÜRK TATLI

With CLUB EUROPEAN, Marc Reeder creates a series in which the MFS Artists each represent a country on the European continent and process them thematically in a song. The singles come out as 10" with 2 artists each. We choose Turkey and are represented with the song TÜRK TATLI. Together with Paul van Dyk and THE GREATNESS OF BRITAIN we share Volume 2.

1996

MISUNDERSTOOD

The UK label VOLUME releases the compilation BERLIN UNWRAPPED. The following applies to all artists: the tracks must be previously unpublished and exclusive. We are submitting our recently completed track MISUNDERSTOOD, which we can therefore no longer release as a single. For the release party, we're going to a live performance with MFS in London.

An English music magazine chose CAL-Q-LATOR as number 1 of the stupidest band names. Well, at least something. ;-)

CAN WE GO NOW?

With CAN WE GO NOW? we manage to create a hypnotic track that still captivates me today. It is released as the 4th single. Oliver Lieb and Mike Bülow each contribute a remix.

2001

Our last single YOUR ATTITUDE is released a lot late. Unfortunately neither our original mix from 1998 nor one of our 3 own remixes is included.

The release of our repeatedly postponed and rearranged album WE CAN GO NOW as a statement and bracket for the 1996 single CAN WE GO NOW? does not take place either.

We are tired, disappointed and have other things on our minds.

2002 - 2005

Life is work, work, work.

2006 - 2008

What happens in the BERGHAIN stays in the BERGHAIN.

2011

Diego Palazzo has just released the album ECCE HOMO with his band EGOKID. I really want to do a CAL-Q-LATOR remix of L'UOMO QUALUNQUE together with Christian. So Diego sends me the tracks of the song and releases our remix on SOUNDCLOUD that same year.

2020

The lockdown makes me creative - again. Just for my own fun I start remixing 80s pop, funk and disco songs. I suddenly end up at Madonna's and in a very short time I produce an entire album: RIKWATER'S HANDS ON MADONNA.
It remains a lover's project.

2021

Why actually use up your creativity for something that can probably never be published?
So I finally start to create my own music and I am satisfied:
That sounds exactly how it looks inside me!

THE START OF DREHE DREHE.

2022

A long-standing friendship, a shared passion for electronic music and the right timing lead to an enthusiastic exchange with Björn Wilke alias PIEUX. After mutual remixes, the plan is for further joint projects. We should be excited.

2023

The wonderful collaboration with Falko Horstmann alias WANDERBREE results in the production of a joint release on the new sub-label SPIN SPIN. I'm full of ideas and drive.

In April my life grinds to a halt as I am confronted with the sudden and unfathomable death of my beloved life partner. Everything is different. Everything is hard. Suddenly the world consists of question marks.

2024

After the pain of last year, I consciously gave myself a lot of time.

Time that was not only used for intensive work on my first release of 2024. Because my cousin also took the opportunity to give the label design a fresh coat of paint.

So 2024 really marks a new beginning.