DIE BESONDERE (The special one) - DEUTSCHLAND 2
BILWESZ
Spring

(Emmuty Records 571.0004.2, www.bilwesz.de)
16 Tracks, 70:42

Merit Zloch (harp and vocals), Simon Wascher (hurdy-gurdy) and Matthias Branschke(bagpipes, flute) choose the melody of  „Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland“, in their version ironically called "Loser",  to start their second CD. The German-Austrian Trio proves (together with guest musician Jörg Mikula) that traditional music from the German- speaking area is not at all boring, and that there is a lot of intoxicating music to be (re)discovered.
Like on their first CD Zlochs harp swings and grooves, Wascher draws fascinating sounds from his Alto hurdy-gurdy with his uncommon double keyboard technic and the young bagpiper Branschke developes to be one of the greatest German players of this instrument.
Besides the virtuosicly played instruments there are inspiring arrangements, always surprising, always opening new sound spectrums, always designing new, electrifying rhythms.
„File under organic dancefloor/world“ is to be read on the cover, on the homepage the band calls their music „Agri-Pop“. But this virtuosic, imaginative mixture cannot be sorted in or labeled easily. One has to listen to bilwesz. Preferably loud. For me Spring is the CD of the year. 

Ulrich Joosten