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Ventschau

Raphael Vanoli

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Label: Carton Records Genre : Électro Release Date : Sep 25, 2026

Ventschau is Raphael Vanoli’s second solo album, released on September 24, 2026, via Carton Records, nearly a decade after his debut Bibrax on Clean Feed/Shhpuma. Over this period, the Franco-German guitarist has deepened his exploration of the electric guitar as a boundless sonic tool, blending acoustic and electronic textures through hyperamplification. Ventschau continues this journey but introduces a more melodic and poetic dimension, shaped by Vanoli’s repeated retreats to a small village in northernGermany, where the forest and solitude influenced the composition of these pieces.

The album expands the solo guitar’s sonic spectrum by incorporating his long-developed “blowing” techniques, where breath against the strings produces resonances and artifacts, sometimes merged with his voice sung directly into them. Alongside these methods, Vanoli employs a Fender Bass VI, a 12-string electric, and a steel-string acousting, creating a broader palette than on Bibrax. The tracks range from delicate fragility to dense, almost symphonic passages, spanning crystalline highs to seismic lows. Everything was recorded live to 8-track tape with no editing, preserving the raw authenticity of the performances, imperfections included.

Standout tracks include Alti Plano, based on a traditional Bolivian melody, which bridges tradition and modernity, while Old Sack of Coal, often highlighted by critics, embodies a kind of ghostly pop, where melodies emerge from a haze of electronic and acoustic textures. Friedenseiche and Serendeep unfold as immersive soundscapes, transforming the guitar into a self-contained orchestra. Venus by Day - to Love, shorter and more intimate, showcases whispered vocals and string resonances, like a conversation between the instrument and its surroundings.

Ventschau represents a turning point in Vanoli’s career, where the pure experimentation of Bibrax gradually fives way to more accessible yet still radical approach. The album does not demand attention but effortlessly commands it through its mysterious and enveloping presence. It reaffirms that the electric guitar, in Vanoli’s hands, remains an uncharted territory where every note carries the echo of a forest and the story of an endless quest.