tracklist

01 error 54

02 mifune mon amour

03 the canny digger

04 big black car

05 permanent peach

06 delicate heroes

07 butter in the shoebox

08 the morel dish

09 everyone everywhere

all tracks written, produced and mixed by me raabenstein.

violins by chatschatur kanajan / track 01 and 09.

guitars by thejis louis / track 01 and 09.

mastered by frederik van de moortel, antwerp.

artwork by simonraabenstein.com

distributed by no.nine recordings

some years after compiling the groundbreaking release xvi reflections on classical music & the slowcream album and, me raabenstein returns to the stage with its successor dan/s.

you always meet twice in life, according to an old wise saying, and without realizing that a decade had passed, no.nine recordings reopens its doors to once again delight the world with subtle electronica. with its 50th release and a rather quiet 25th anniversary, the label embarks on a new chapter in its engagement with contemporary music, albeit this time with one or two changes. a good fifteen years after the release of the highly influential album ‘and’, the producer, visual artist, and publisher of a people magazine martin eugen raabenstein aka slowceam once again engages with the rather intricate connection between dance and music. while in 2009 this referred to ballet, the multimedia virtuoso now turns to dance theater in order to explore how tonality affects individual movement and vice versa.

dance theater can draw on an immensely rich history of intercultural encounters with staged dance, whether in the realm of pure entertainment or in the cultic and ritual. raabenstein derives the sometimes hysterically overflowing energy of his album ‚dan/s’ from the diametrically opposed meaning between the medieval danse macabre and the mexican feast día de muertos. while the former is shaped as a memento mori, a reminder of human mortality that concerns all classes from peasant to emperor, the latter represents the fusion of indigenous and catholic rites into a joyful act that includes death as a natural part of life. situated in the freely interpretable space between admonition and exuberant joy at the same time, the berlin-based artist transforms his interactive idea of movement and dance into six videos accompanying the nine pieces.

raabenstein approaches the question of where and when movement becomes dance through those videos created in connection with each track, examining the role sound — or music in general — plays in this transformation. the precise interlocking of elements is of crucial importance to the artist, and the resulting image/sound combinations directly feed into the process of subsequent works — whether as animated photographs, edits of rare footage, or newly staged live-action scenes. originally conceived as a three-phase release, the remaining tracks not yet translated into visuals stand precisely for the openness of the audiovisual project, and it remains to be seen how the existing gaps will be filled with life.

enjoy the melody !!!

feedback

on the 9-track album…

—

and the sound is something special. at times, even unique. apart from the sheer flow. “everyone everywhere” plays like a hi-fi hidden-camera recording, where the rain cloud from blade runner trades secret information with the best bassline from front 242, and both parties slide straight from business into pleasure. “big black car” is the b-side dial fans have been waiting decades for. “mifune mon amour” scores the seaside walk of patrick mcgoohan and diana rigg in portmeirion under fire from pink little bombs. and “permanent peach” really should have come out on chain reaction. on “dan/s” every beat, every sound, lands perfectly. the mix is wide, expansive, airy. within a firmly electronic framework, jazz, downbeat, and not-quite-straight (thank god!) 4/3.986 grooves weave through the thicket of a daily solar eclipse. everything rumbles with just the right fuzziness and swings with radiant power toward a sunset that was long since canceled. on “dan/s” nothing is as it seems. and that’s a very good thing.

why? martin raabenstein plays with a coherent set of sounds and ideas, but lets them interact in ways no one else has thought of before. the result is a multidimensional fabric of arrangements, structures, references, and ruptures that cause tectonic shifts not only on the beach of portmeirion under rosy bombardment. “dan/s” shakes. continuously and endlessly. it should have happened long ago, in completely different contexts. but it’s never too late for good music.

so let’s dance. let’s have hope. let’s watch the album’s videos and turn the music up louder than possible. let’s just do it again.
(read the original review)
thaddeus herrmann, das filter, germany 10/25

love to see you back in business under your illusive slowcream guise, and all the praise for your work listed in the press release is very warranted, reading some of the reviews helped me see how others interpret and take in your sounds. the entire album is exceptional, my favorites being mifune mon amour, permanent peach, delicate heroes and everyone everywhere. looking forward to playing these and probably others on the show soon…
kerem gookmen, dubmission radio show, usa 10/25

these are good news – amazing album, i like it!
sven thomschke, dr. best, radio-z.net, germany 09/25

on the 3-track preview…

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the berlin-based martin eugen raabenstein works on art, criticism, and music, and has been doing so for quite a while. his project slowcream, dormant for almost ten years, now returns with culinarily refined breakbeat electronica of the fluffiest consistency… the recognition effect is immense and immediate: laid-back analog electronica built from springy beats, cuddly bass, and cloud-foam-like layers.
frank eckert, motherboard, groove magazine, germany 09/25 

crafting a vocabulary for interpreting motion, fragmentation, and form

after a decade-long hiatus, german artist martin eugen raabenstein—working under his long-running alias slowcream—returns with dan/s, a concise yet intricate three-track statement that marks the first phase of a larger nine-part concept album. issued by no.nine, dan/s explores the intersection of structured and spontaneous movement, using a sonic palette rooted in fractured electronics, stuttering edits, and a mature, post-genre sensibility.

opening track “permanent peach” is a bold reentry—disorienting in the best way. shifting rapidly between musical ideas, it evokes the sensation of spinning a radio dial, catching fleeting atmospheres that drift in and out of range. a steady undercurrent of chilled, forward-moving percussion guides the listener through the haze, creating a sense of momentum without urgency. detuned loops and melodic fragments surface briefly, casting glimmers of familiarity before dissolving back into the flow. raabenstein constructs the track with a delicate balance of motion and restraint, crafting a listening experience that feels intuitive, yet deliberately sculpted. it’s a composition in constant motion, where texture and rhythm lead the way.

with “the morel dish,” the focus sharpens. tones are more assertive, the pacing more deliberate, but the unpredictability remains. layers of digital grit and reassembled beats interlock like pieces from mismatched puzzles. raabenstein’s background as a multimedia artist is clear in his use of space and contrast—each sound feels positioned, framed, and momentary. despite its abstract construction, the track has a kinetic energy, hinting at the physicality of its conceptual origins in dance and movement.

rhythms are teased and then withdrawn

the final piece, “delicate heroes,” leans into restraint and precision. it’s the most linear of the three, but still peppered with disruptions—melodic threads are interrupted, rhythms are teased and then withdrawn. there’s a tension between smooth surfaces and jagged edges, a sense of pushing minimal gestures through a complex signal chain. rather than reaching a grand conclusion, the track ends with a sense of continuation, as if it’s a node in a larger, unfolding process.

dan/s is not interested in genre conventions or easy categorizations. it’s an album made by an artist who has clearly spent time outside the music world, returning with sharpened tools and a refreshed perspective. these pieces speak a mature electronic language—one informed by years of artistic inquiry and an ear for modern composition. raabenstein isn’t just assembling sounds; he’s crafting a vocabulary for interpreting motion, fragmentation, and form.

if the remaining six tracks of dan/s follow the lead of this opening trio, slowcream’s return marks a significant chapter not just in his own evolution, but in the broader conversation surrounding contemporary electronic music as a platform for critical, interdisciplinary expression. released in three stages, each track in dan/s will be accompanied by a specially created video clip, forming a cohesive audiovisual dialogue. across all nine compositions—including these cinematic works—raabenstein pushes toward a deeper connection with dance theater, exploring how sound and image can communicate the nuanced meaning of movement and sequence for the berlin-based artist.
(read the original review)
don haugen, igloo magazine, usa 07/25

cool. cool. cool. i like ‚delicate heroes‘ very much. big up.
cay taylan, vienna, 06/25

very handsome, always busy, i like it…
martin backes, berlin 06/25

it’s been a minute since i last heard the name slowcream, but glad to have it back in my life just like that, the door has always been open. congrats on reaching the 50th release, that’s a big accomplishment, and knowing the no.nine stamp of quality that comes with it i’m ever-impressed. all three tracks here are splendid, i will in fact play ‘em all on the show over the next three weeks with your blessings of course…
kerem gokmen, dubmission radioshow, wyep pittsburgh, usa 06/25

delicious. super sexy…
peter welz, berlin 06/25

very fine, your new work!
helmut neugebauer, vienna, austria 06/25

this is exactly what i needed to give me a burst of inspiration and motivation! oh shit! braaaa this is amazing!  i’m loving this! the visuals and the music goes hard! firstly, your piece “the morel dish” is fuckin’ amazing! what I LOVE about this tune is how the snare/second beat hits! something about it is very unique and how you isolated that is crazy! this tune has a lot of movement, without even having a lot of hi-hats going on in it! that’s what’s crazy! ‚delicate heroes‘ is fuckin’ intense too! it’s fuckin’ juicy! you definitely understand texture! ah, and ‚permanent peach‘ !? this is the one which drove me crazy too! that clipping sound, or element all over! And this reminds me of a ravey, dub tune! these are beautiful!
drew m, toronto, canada 06/25

‚permanent peach‘ fav here, love the artwork too, i hear raabenstein and at the same it sounds fresh dude. finally back to beats, sounds really good.
geer mussert, rotterdam, holland 06/25

niiice…
philipp lachenman, berlin 06/25

slowcream by isabell simon