"For us Kurt Schwitters as an artist represents a powerful and living link with two of the pioneering experimental and radical impulses that went to form early Modern art: Dada and Merz.“
Ian Hunter and Celia Larner (Littoral)
Die Kunst at Merz
In 2014, Ian Hunter and Celia Larner (Littoral) invited Die Kunst (with Saxophonist Graham Revell) to visit Kurt Schwitters Merz Barn in Elterwater in the Lake District in order to spend a weekend making and recording new music. The resulting recording is based on several sessions of improvisation recorded in one room with one microphone.
About Littoral
LITTORAL describes itself, as “an arts research and development Trust which promotes new creative strategies, artistic interventions and cultural partnerships in response to issues about social, cultural and environmental change.” http://www.littoral.org.uk
About Die Kunst
Die Kunst is an on going musical collaboration between Richard Hylton, Martin Vincent and David Mackintosh. The collaboration takes the form of an experimental rock band, performing its particular brand of ‘rock’ in art galleries or at other special events associated with art galleries and artists’ presentations.
More about Die Kunst
Die Kunst have been working together since 1997 and have several recorded works including Sweden, Finland and fast and loud/ slow and quiet. They have produced and performed live soundtracks Paul Wegener’s 1920 film Der Golem: wie er in die Welt kam (performed in New York, Plovdiv, Holland and Bradford) and a selection of Segundo De Chomon’s early short films. In 2011, Die Kunst were invited to take part in The Good Life by artists Rushton and Tyman at Lanternhouse Arts Centre, Ulverston resulting in a live recording of their new work. http://www.castlefieldgallery.co.uk/event/the-good-life-book-launch-with-live-performance-by-die-kunst/
During their formative period, Die Kunst were actively involved in organising ‘Kunstlerpop’ music events involving several ‘art bands’ from across the UK such as Martin Creed’s OWADA, The Ken Ardley Playboys, Beefer and Interspecies Love Child. Die Kunst have performed at a wide range of art and non-art venues including, Bank TV, London, 1996; Bring Your own Walkman, Gallery 139, Amsterdam; Crash, ICA, 1999;; The International Language, Belfast, 2001; Episode two, London 2001; a parking space project, The Independent, Liverpool Biennale, 2002; MIME, Middleborough, 2006; Artis Den Bosch 2009 and Viva, 16 Spanish and Latin American Film Festival, Cornerhouse, Manchester, and Wysing Arts, Cambridge (September) 2010.
The collaboration takes the form of an experimental rock band, performing its particular brand of ‘rock’ in art galleries or at other special events associated with art galleries and artists’ presentations. Die Kunst performs a unique brand of experimental rock music, once described by music journalist Jon Rob as ‘a collision between Television and Pavement.’ Equally, this music has been described as ‘the sort of music, people who shop in Aldi have in their heads’.
In truth however, it is hard to pin down Die Kunst’s music. It’s fair to say, that their catchy instrumentals, shuddering rhythmic melodies and terse lyrical content (touching on life, love, death, war and the lot of the artist) owe as much to krautrock as they do to punk and jazz.