Band
Bio Klepka
A voice that gives you goosebumps, at times a scent of lavender, at other times a thunderstorm, blown around by curiously tuned guitars, Nintendo synths and whirlwind drums: that's the sound of Klepka. The Swiss band of four headed by amateur ornithologist Jasmin Lötscher performs songs about love, death and life, always highly energetic, but also as if lost in a dream. In sum, this results in a sound between art rock and jazz, which gives the impression that King Krule is fighting with Khruangbin over the aux cable in the car. In short: Klepka!
Text EP «Somber Prayer»
What kind of music does an amateur ornithologist, trained in big bands, enthusiastic about pop acts, compose? Klepka answer that right away themselves with their debut EP "Somber Prayer". The Swiss band of four performs songs about death, love and life, highly energetic and yet as if lost in a dream.
Jasmin Lötscher acts as the brains behind the compositions, artfully transforming childhood experiences, social media influences, her love of nature, dreams and more into music. Sometimes the texts seem spiritual, sometimes melancholic, and always they are metaphorical, sometimes even cryptic.
Lötscher doesn't just sing her lyrics. She lives it: vocal virtuosities à la Nai Palm (Hiatus Kaiyote) alternate with parts that range from breaths to roars. The foundation for this is formed by unconventionally tuned guitar patterns. An integral part is further contributed by the three fellow musicians: Guitar grooves (Klara Germanier), whirlwind beats (Janic Haller), and Nintendo synths (Can Etterlin) as well as refined backing vocals create an engaging body of work. Or simply: a sound between art rock and jazz, which gives the impression that King Krule is fighting with Khruangbin over the aux cable in the car.
This is also a blast live and has been correspondingly met with euphoric responses. Journalist Marlon Rusch compared Klepka to Hiatus Kaiyote at the Schaffhauser Jazz Festival and described her as the highlight in the Schaffhauser AZ concert report. At the Lucerne Echolot Festival, the band also wowed through and through. During a 15-minute(!) power outage, the audience even became part of the performance, with Klepka making music with them by clapping and singing to bridge the unavoidable interruption. Or as one member of the management team commented afterwards on the second day of the festival: "Now the event has finally really begun". Merch articles à la artfully crocheted USB stick chains, CD covers and magazines have been produced by the band itself. All handmade.
And this is also true for "Somber Prayer": The five tracks of the EP were recorded in Studio vom Dach, recorded by Joel Banz (Nährwerk). Zita Fahrländer and Tobias Jud are the design team, Dorotea Eichelberg is responsible for the artwork – all four are people from Klepka's immediate surroundings. In addition, the band member, Can Etterlin, was responsible for the mix, the mastering was done by Eliyah Reichen. With the exception of himself, behind all these collaborations lies the idea of actively involving talents from one's own ranks and growing as a whole. A promise for the future, the present and the past – Klepka!
Single Texts
Bitterly (Single 1)
«Bitterly» revolves around the distorted contrast of self-perception versus external perception – and marks the first release by the Swiss band Klepka, which journalists (for example, in the Schaffhauser AZ) have also already described as «the highlight» of a festival. The debut is a delicate indie song with art-pop influences, as pretty as it is melancholic, full of hope and energy.
Rallye 3000 (Single 2)
Sun and moon are lovers who rarely meet in their alternation of day and night: «Rallye 3000» deals with a relationship that will never work, and yet is greater than anything that has ever existed. Symbolically, a rock song emerged, powerful, dynamic and mystical, with driving rhythms – like the sun and the moon.
Somber Prayer (Focus Track)
Somber Prayer is cryptic and personal and was written in the darkest hour of the night. When the weight of the world was heaviest on the protagonist, she found a way – and found a sense of peace – in a spiritual experience that lulled her to sleep. This is how the piece sounds: the framework is a synthesizer jazz ballad, which contains a driven art rock element at its core and finally ends on a conciliatory note.