The Brvtalist proud to present a new interview with Rosa Anschütz. The German artist, composer and vocalist has become an influential force in electronic music; journeying through various fields of Transmedia Arts with a focus on sound, object and scenery including photography and film, creating a collage within and beyond her music. Her debut record, Rigid (Quiet Love Records, 2019), successfully amalgamated rituals, emotions and more and that was followed by her first album, Votive, which was met with critical acclaim.

Fast forward to 2022 and Anschütz brings us Goldener Storm (BPitch), a powerful work which is perhaps her most intimate and complex release to date. Pushing her artistic boundaries even further, Goldener Storm creates a whole universe of sound infused with everything from post-punk to pop and is also accompanied by four stunning music videos which add a new layer to the album’s experience.

On August 12th, Anschütz will be performing live as part of the opening night at Krake Festival with an incredible lineup which also includes the legendary Tangerine Dream all at Silent Green in Berlin. Ahead of this otherworldly night, we are thrilled to present this interview with the artist where we discuss her release, performance and more. (see below)

The Brvtalist: First off, how has your summer been going? Do you feel back back in the swing of things after night life and performances returned in the spring or maybe something is still missing for you?

Rosa Anschütz: I concentrated very much on the releases of the singles and the album, there was a lot of work in between. Fortunately I was lucky enough to not really feel the difference between not playing an playing when it was possible again. I just recognized the exhaustion as a consequence of not paying attention to it.

TB: You released Goldener Strom in May, which fuses multiple elements from pop to cold wave and far beyond. Tell us a little about the journey from creating the album to finally seeing its release a couple months ago.

RA: I enjoyed expressing different characters or moods through my singing. I produced the tracks thinking about being on stage, thinking about performance and movement and combined it to lyrics that are having a clear expression. Goldner Strom is full of energy and strong-willed. In the title track I am singing about becoming an island. Sometimes that’s what I think of when I am feeling overwhelmed by everything happening around me, but on the other hand I would literally need a boat, that still connects me to the mainland, to not become totally mad.

TB: Goldener Strom also comes with multiple videos (4 I believe?). Tell us about those and how they fit in with the album/tracks.

RA: It was always a dream of mine to film my music videos more like a movie. The music videos of Goldener Strom are building up on each other. I also had the word release in mind, because since I had finished that album it was released for me.The single to single release strategy got me nervous and also thinking about a way, how to use it as a creative output.

I quickly assembled a great team comprised of Alexander Deprez, Anna Lugmeier, Floris Van Severen and Gilles Pollak in Gent and we had only a weekend to shoot all four videos. We chose the rooms of an old theater in Gent with the name „Tinnenpot“, a place that has a very own character and also many great stages. I especially liked the room for the video of „Sold Out“,it is so clear and somehow sincere, it was the kind of a room I was thinking of, producing the track. Each video is about introducing such a room. The viewer is following me from the first video, which is „Their Blood“ until the stage of Goldener Strom. For the last video I came up with a choreography, which should be like my very own translation of the lyrics.

TB: As a performer, how important is the audience connection for you? I think there’s also a big difference between the club and a live stage performance that I realised I missed more and more too.

RA: It is not necessarily important that I connect, and how should I really know if it has been the case, even if I felt it. But there are such nights, which usually come with nice organizers or venues. I often have the feeling that every aspect or encounter of a gig is very connected and makes the experiences whole. I prefer to play a live stage setup, because I don’t like to get lost behind the CDJs, I love to stretch out when I perform.

TB: Your live performance at Krake will take place at Silent Green, one of the most interesting spaces in Berlin I think! Do you like performing in all different types of venues/spaces? Do you change your live performance approach depending on where it might be?

RA: Oh certainly! I am very excited for Krake Festival and I am preparing something new for it, I will play new material of an EP that I recorded this year beginning of May which is linked to visuals. After the album release I had a great opportunity to be the guest of Elia Rediger at the „Deutsche Oper“ in Berlin, shaping a night. That was a massive project of only a one evening performance linked to an exhibition of my visual works and the installation of my album on the main stage. Next to getting to know the Opera piece „Der Schatzgräber“ from Franz Schreker.

For the concerts I played so far this summer, I had visuals, I was thinking of stage elements and I love to work on the outfits.

TB: What’s coming up next/what are you working on now + anything else you would like to mention.

RA: There is this EP that I recorded, that has to find the right spot and more tracks for another album probably. I am already I'm patient because I keep on writing new music. My dream is to also be able o work in different fields of music, film or games etc and also start to collect my writings and see if I can find a way to publish them. Thank you for the interview!

For more on the artist follow on IG and for tickets to Krake Festival visit: https://krake-festival.de/

-JRS