Mangene are:
Eugene S. Robinson – vocals
Manuel Liebeskind – electronica
The duo Mangene may be new to the public eye, yet composer Manuel Liebeskind and lyricist and vocalist Eugene S. Robinson are far from being new to the game.
MANGENE has taken a twisted international route through San Francisco, New York, and Switzerland on its way to being born. Chipping away layer by layer what they reveal is a DNA changing
mélange of electronics and words. Blending industrial and electronic elements with a nod to 80s synth pop, they create a timeless sonic exploration of words, voice experiments and electronic landscapes. If all this sounds familiar it’s because the two did something similar under the moniker The Smoking Word in 2004 with live appearances in London, Berlin, and Milano.
Men, machines, and the slow arc of their arrival in the sameplace/space at the same time, MANGENE is the sound that stops sound. While known for their musical work in such juggernauts as Oxbow, BUNUEL and 16-17, they have also worked with everybody from Barry Adamson to Peter Brötzmann, from Lydia Lunch to Mariane Faithful, from Marian Gold to Jaki Liebezeit and Melt-Banana.
Berlin’s MANGENE has taken a twisted international route throughSan Francisco, New York, and Switzerland on its way to being born. Give the baby a kiss. Psychic and stunning.
«I’ve hated this record for as long as I’ve loved it» says vocalist/lyricist Eugene S. Robinson. «Hated it because it tapped right into the portions of my brain that I hide, not only from you, but also me, the singer. So, listening again? Disturbing and painfully true. »
A sympathy shared by Manuel Liebeskind, the tech genius behind the musical landscaping of MANGENE. «When you work on something as long, hard and deep as we have, » Liebeskind says from his Berlin Studio, «your ability to see it as anything other than a colossal act of a sort of suicide is inevitable. »
Influences reach back to the early singer grands of Jazz and Rock’n’Roll, from Billie Holiday to Screamin Jay Hawkins through contemporary classics from Ligeti to Stockhausen, to intense synth punk and electronic noise legends Suicide, Chemical Brothers and The Prodigy. Add a pinch of 80ies synth pop and old school hip hop, think Fad Gadget meets Grandmaster Flash, and harvest a unique and timeless electronic analogue sound.
Mastered by wizard Alex Buess, «101 Atomic Terms and What They Mean» will likely change your DNA. Which is precisely why the time should be taken to enjoy, enjoy, enjoy what has been laid out before you all here in all of its atomic age goodness.
«101 Atomic Terms and What They Mean» is released on 15.11.2024 on the Basel based boutique label A Tree in a Field Records and is accompanied by a series of videos that will successively be released over the following months.
A collision of raw electronics, hypnotic rhythms, and spoken-word intensity, Mangene is a Berlin-based project led by Eugene S. Robinson (Oxbow, Buñuel) and Manuel Liebeskind (16-17). The duo merges elements of industrial, synth-punk, jazz, and electronic noise, drawing influences from Billie Holiday to Suicide, Stockhausen to The Prodigy.
Formed through an international journey spanning San Francisco, New York, and Switzerland, Mangene strips sound to its core, crafting an analogue electronic landscape of visceral energy. Their performances are immersive, pulsating with raw emotion and dark cinematic textures.
While known for their musical work in such musical juggernauts as Oxbow, BUNUEL and 16-17, they Eugene S. Robinson and Manuel Liebeskind have also worked with everybody from Barry Adamson to Peter Brötzmann, from Lydia Lunch to Marianne Faithfull, from Marian Gold to Jaki Liebezeit and Melt-Banana. Berlin’s MANGENE has taken a twisted international route through San Francisco, New York, and Switzerland on its way to being born. Chipping away layer by layer what they reveal is a DNA changing mélange of electronics and words.
Expect music and a performance of maximum intensity, Mangene will make you sweat and dance.