UPFRONTBEATS

Martin Buttrich is famously as fluent behind a mixing console as in front of a virtual drum kit. That technical prowess, combined with a fascination for music of every shape, has resulted in outstanding releases on influential labels such as Planet E, Four: Twenty, Cocoon, Poker Flat, Nervous and Desolat. Having recently retired from DJing, Buttrich has devoted himself entirely to his own productions over the last few years.

‘I discovered how much better I am as a producer. I’m so happy in the studio, and so productive. It feels good after 15 years on the road as a house and techno DJ to take a little breather and gain perspective,’ says Buttrich. Relieved from heavy touring schedules and the pressure to make dance music, the veteran producer took a trip down memory lane for his latest album project, Light Vessel Automatic, which he releases under the new alias Stoned Autopilot.

With a career with roots in Berlin and Hannover clubs, through to his notorious collaboration with Timo Maas at Peppermint Jam distribution, to formative years in New York working alongside Loco Dice, Buttrich has throughout the decades collected a vast array of musical influences that have shaped his groove into one that is instantly recognizable for the discerning listener. Light Vessel Automatic is a collage that colourfully brings together these musical memories, with an especially jazzy and chillout sway – a style of music that has always been a passion of his, but that had somewhat been sidelined by his career entertaining dancefloors worldwide, ‘I’m definitely not letting go of dance music, but over the last few years it just didn’t feel right releasing big bangers out there,’ says Buttrich.

It’s not just the catchiness of his compositions or the way he manipulates beats into unique tapestries that have earned Buttrich his stripes. His skills with a sonic scalpel, that esoteric ability to navigate the spectrum of audible (and inaudible) frequencies have given him cachet among even the most meticulous of sound engineers. For Light Vessel Automatic, Buttrich is unafraid of putting solemn piano melodies and cinematic strings side-by-side wacky synth dings, reggae bounces or retro-house beats.

‘Nothing fits in one direction, it’s a bit chaotic, so I thought of having this stoned autopilot go through it all,’ notes Buttrich. Even more impressively, he manages to give every sound on the album orchestral coordination and breathing space, stretching out tracks until they feel like whole universes with colours and textures. Within what is a highly personal journey, an exercise or recollection really, Buttrich also finds space to look forwards, inviting a younger generation of musicians to contribute on the album, as is the case with Greg Foat’s luxurious rework of Lovefields. ‘I’m a little older, and there’s a whole new generation of producers, a great new movement from people I wanted to support,’ says Buttrich.

Attention to detail is a trademark of the producer, but so is his ability to never sound fastidious ‘ above all, there’s an overarching playful and nonchalant attitude to Light Vessel Automatic. It’s an album for slow appreciation and careful consideration, much like pictures in a photo-album, every track on Light Vessel Automatic captures a memory of a moment in time of Buttrich’s rich musical life. In all its layers it expresses just how far Buttrich has come as one of Germany’s foremost producers.

Credited - For The Record