LP, Deluxe Edition
Monkeytown Records – MTR122DLX (2022) GER
- Deluxe LP: 180 gram heavy vinyl, Leoporello (fold out poster), Printed inner sleeve, Die-cut outer sleeve, Lyrics
MORE D4TA, Moderat's fourth album, arrives more than six years after its predecessor (2016’s III), yet its contents are quintessentially Moderat. Although the trio’s hiatus was absolutely real—exhausted after years of touring, Apparat (a.k.a. Sascha Ring) and Modeselektor (a.k.a. Gernot Bronsert and Sebastian Szary) spent two years away from one another, focusing instead on their own respective projects—once they decided to resume working together, the music (eventually) started flowing again.
Although the LP’s title is an anagram for “Moderat 4,” there’s more to it than cheeky wordplay. In a time where everyone is constantly bombarded with content, and taking part in the cultural conversation requires engaging with digital platforms more interested in harvesting data than celebrating art, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and disillusioned. MORE D4TA acknowledges that reality, but it also refuses to be cowed by it. Moderat’s new album is ultimately just another addition to the content pile—there’s no escaping that—but the trio still yearns to create and connect. They’re not a conceptual outfit, and never have been: After spending the better part of two decades making music together, they’ve carved out a sound and aesthetic that are all their own, and MORE D4TA showcases a group that’s creatively recharged and fully dedicated to its craft. Maybe bands should take hiatuses—real ones— a little more often.