Track By Track: Die Orangen - Zwei Orangen

Music

Two years ago Australian producers and pals Dreems and Kris Baha released their first album as Die Orangen on Berlin via Tel Aviv label Malka Tuti. The label has been a home for the duo since their debut EP in 2016, which was followed up by their long player Zest; an exploration of organic rhythms inspired by the scenery and landscapes of their home land, which led to them coin a sound they term as "krautback".

On their new album Zwei Orangen Kris and Angus have developed a more mature sound sparked by the story behind it; a reflection on the pair's movements through life and finding a new way of being in a new place. Here the pair break down the album for us track by track…

For our last album, we used the concept of ‘a fascinating place called Australia’ to help pull all the music together and give it a certain one-ness, sculpted from recordings, samples and sessions recorded over there on that big island. Returning to the drawing board, we used the distance between us and that place to draw a more objective sound palette. What does it sound like for an outsider? What do you see when you remove yourself from your common surroundings?

Wires in the Outback

First, there was electricity, then there came the rocks… and the rolls.

The Island (Back to Me) *

Recorded in Berlin on a cool winters day – this is three Australians in a room together dreaming of ‘home’… Our friend and legendary Australian music maniac Jono Ma was the third Orange on that day.

Desert Metallika

A large part of our consciousness was taken up by the knowledge of our Earth’s demise caused by global warming when recording this album. We wanted to capture a feeling of a world heating up, coming to a boiling point – slowly, yet inevitably.

Severed Did I? [Featuring Alex Akers]

Continuing with the same thematic storyline as ‘Desert Metallika’ we ask ourselves, we ask the listener – who has the answer? In a world where nobody wants to put themselves at blame, can we admit to ourselves that we have the answer – and we are the problem. We grew up in a time where ignorance was bliss, however, we must now take the knowledge presented to us and admit act upon our wrongdoings.

Sonne

Plants need the sun to survive, and we need the plants to survive. This is our dedication to them and their tireless (and often unrewarded work they do every day here on planet earth). We disguise ourselves and use the voice of flora to give our thanks and admiration for the sun and its vitality. Much in the same way that there is a chemical reaction that takes place inside the plant, we feel that there is a reaction that we have towards plants that give many humans the want and need to worship the sun. We are, indeed, not only praising the sun when we do this but also the plants who are the beneficiaries that keep us alive.

Myrmecia Hill

Ants. They are amazing. This is our song for them. For they are just super cool, and will probably be around when we have long since ceased to exist.

Deep Chrome Red

Bush-fires are no bullshit. We’ve grown up with them in our backyard – at times almost all too literally. In the last few years, we have all seen the world set ablaze – due to rising temperatures and unseasonably warm seasons. It is a battle that a few brave people fight day in and out. Firefighters not only protect humans and their material objects, they fight for all the flora and fauna on their land. Deep Chrome Red is a warning – that we are not invincible, that these fires are out of control, that we need to help our fellow beings in the battle against these blazes before we let nature destroy itself.

Cape Grim

We tried to keep a cohesive narrative to the album, and Cape Grim harks back to the previous track and reminds us that we are here together, we are only going to solve this problem united.

Zwei [Featuring Hayley Morgan]

Hayley moved to Berlin around the same time we did. We got to know each other in the early days and although she does not classify herself as a performer she has a distinctive voice that is soft, warm and affectionate that was always going to be perfect for the title track. ‘Zwei’ is a recollection of movements through our life, and discovering a new home and a new way of being. We started our band two years ago and put out our first album. Two years later we’re back, new homes, new lives – we finally know where we are.

Der Krautback

Coining a term that neatly described the music we make without going down the overcrowded path of micro-terminology was always going to be a challenge. We feel that this one probably catches us in an abstraction of humor and seriousness.

Für Alle [Featuring Jono Ma] *

Taken from the same Berlin session as ‘The Island’, we wanted to close the album with a mission statement that was uplifting and easy-going. This song (as the title says) is ‘For Everyone’.