AGF & Gudrun Gut make live debut, plus Angie Reed and Cobra Killer in Berlin

Festival proves that women, despite their lack of penis, are fully capable of creating and performing music by electronic means

Angie Reed by Charlie Le Mindu

The Wie Es Ihr Gefällt (“As She Likes It”) festival in Berlin continues this weekend, the 19th and 20th of March, at Maria am Ostbahnhof. Whereas the first part surveyed women’s contributions to electronic music in an academic and experimental framework, the second part will focus more on contemporary artists with a pop angle.

Friday night’s lineup showcases musicians who share a flirtation with performance art, including the multitalented Angie Reed (right) whose printed résumé could kill a rainforest: “pop opera” recording artist, film actress, painter, sculptor, video artist, former member of Stereo Total, vocalist with Puppetmastaz, and so on. Count on a strong visual element to complement her music, and with her next album (produced with Eric D. Clark) on the way, hearing new material seems likely as well.

Also performing are Cobra Killer, the glammy electro/punk duo of Gina D’Orio and Annika Trost. Since their start with Alec Empire’s Digital Hardcore Recordings in the 90s, they have gained a supportive fanbase that includes Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth), J. Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.) and Jon Spencer (Blues Explosion), who all guested on last year’s album Uppers & Downers. Both on record and live, Cobra Killer remain seductive yet confrontational, abrasive yet catchy — check out the clip below. Rounding out the bill are DominaDea Special (electronics, voice and sax) and interdisciplinary three-piece Mädchenzimmer.

Gudrun Gut by Anja Freyja

The highlight of Saturday is the new collaboration bewteen Berlin underground veterans Gudrun Gut (left) and Antye Greie-Fuchs. Gudrun Gut entered the scene in the early 80s as member of bands such as Einstürzende Neubauten and Malaria, and since 1997 has run her own label Monika Enterprise. AGF (now a Finnland resident) is a singer and digital songwriter, half the duo Laub, and also known for her work with Ellen Allien and Vladislav Delay. Following their broadcast last year on BBC Radio 3, Greie und Gut now make their first live appearance in Germany, previewing their forthcoming album Baustelle (“Construction Site”). If the lone track currently in their MySpace player is any indication, expect intelligent pop mixed with industrial debris and a tinge of dubstep. Completing the lineup for this night are Japanese singer/producer Mico and minimalist composer Io Casino from Andorra.

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