Listen to the record

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One December day in 1981, Manuel Göttsching has to catch a flight to Hamburg. Before leaving, he has a simple idea: record a track to listen to on his Walkman during the flight. A perfectly ordinary thought. Except with Manuel Göttsching, “a little something for the plane” turns into nearly an hour of synths, sequencer, electric guitar and minimalist trance. No grand scheme. No label concept. No press release titled “we’re going to revolutionize electronic music.” Just a musician in his studio, a loop that keeps moving, a guitar that seems to float, and that strange sensation of already being above the clouds while still in the room. When Göttsching listens back, he realises it all holds together: the length, the repetition, the slow ascent, the almost mechanical calm. The small, unexpected euphoria that arrives like an inner flight attendant. He barely edits it. The piece is released in 1984 as E2-E4. It doesn’t set the world on fire at first. Then it travels—slowly, dangerously—to the right ears. DJs play it. Clubs absorb it. The Balearic scene turns it into dancers’ secret. House and techno recognise an ancestor that never meant to show up to the party. Perhaps that’s the best part: E2-E4 wasn’t recorded to conquer dancefloors. It was recorded to float on a plane. And sometimes, apparently, that’s exactly how you invent part of the future: by cobbling together a cassette to stave off boredom between cities. Comforting news for anyone still postponing real work with “one quick idea.” Direct access: Work: E2-E4 Artist: Manuel Göttsching Country / year: Germany, 1984 Listen via the link in bio. Credits: Music: Manuel Göttsching Label: Inteam / MG.ART Images: Manuel Göttsching archives / E2-E4 sleeve / D.R.