Neue Deutsche Folklore! This 10″ has a title with historical connotations. Barbarossa was the nickname of the red-bearded emperor Frederik I, Operation Barbarossa was the name of the invasion of Russia by the Germans in WII. With this new 10″ Orplid sets foot on new, more electronic territory. Side A contains the title track ‘Barbarossa’, consisting of three parts. Part I has a minimal electronic accompaniment and ‘Sprechgesang’ from Uwe Nolte, with a long, interesting text (‘Millionen mir folgten, die betend nun knien/In Andacht vor meinem gewachsenen Thron/Sie nennen mich Gott, doch ich, einsam herrschend,/Bin nur ein Gottes verwunschener Sohn.’).
Then follows a triumphant, orchestral piece, more bombastic than we’re used to from Orplid, but excellent. Side A is closed with a short, quiet instrumental part. On the B-side the long and fascinating track ‘Wielands Fluch’, with a lot of stress on the lyrics, a poem from T. Körner with whom I’m not familiar, and a splendid instrumental finale. With this 10″ Orplid proves again that they have a unique sound and quality.
