Karbido
The Polish avantguarde group Karbido (authors of well-known soundworks such as »The Table« or »Music4buildings Series«), which has existed since 2003 and is made up of bassist Marek Otwinowski (Poland), guitarist Igor Gawlikowski (Poland), sound producer and multi-instrumentalist Tomasz Sikora (Poland) and drummer Peter Conradin Zumthor (Switzerland), have committed themselves to free improvisation and exploring new layers between music and poetry. Post Rock, Folk and Noise-Electro are combined and brought to life in freestyle. Karbido’s music hovers between truth and lies, kitsch and art, and lives from its wide diversity. Since 2005 they have worked on triptych project »Samogon/Cinnamon/Absinth« with the Ukrainian writer Juri Andruchowytsch. For »Cinnamon« (2009), which was presented on big tour in Ukraine and Poland in spring 2010, poems from Andruchowytsch’s »Exotische Pflanzen und Vögel« (1991; 1997 edition with »India«; tr: Exotic Plants and Birds) are brought together with music and video. Once again, Karbido and Andruchowytsch show us that poetry set to music does not have to be either monotone or depressing. It can be anything: full of melancholy beauty, hilarious, critical, dangerous and life-affirming as well.