Terranova

German electronic collective Terranova made their name during the mid-'90s as eclectic producers of trip-hop and downtempo breaks. Over the years, their sound gradually became more energetic and club-based, ranging from new wave-inspired electro to hypnotic tech-house. The latter direction found the group a home with revered German techno label <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Kompakt%22">Kompakt</a>.

Terranova could arguably have started back in the '80s, the instant founding member Fetisch (Dietrich Bergmann) heard the heavy beats of American hip-hop strut through his homeland. An inspired move to New York City happened shortly thereafter, leading Fetisch to numerous DJ appearances and an early bond with <a href="spotify:artist:1k8VBufn1nBs8LN9n4snc8">the Stereo MC's</a>, but it was only when he returned home and met up with Marco Meister (a classically trained pianist) and <a href="spotify:artist:0KURTnU2sPmu0EymZWZRpp">Kaos</a> (a graffiti artist) to eventually release a handful of 12" under the professional wrestling-friendly moniker of <a href="spotify:artist:3hfYJZzLoYWW2csyC34obh">Turntable Terranova</a> that the production trio was truly born. The group shortened its name to Terranova in 1997, debuting the abbreviated moniker with "Tokyo Tower," a collaboration with legendary guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:38KMWWA4MPJ6VxlO9kx6CU">Manuel Göttsching</a> of <a href="spotify:artist:5f6eufK2ZswS7hxhEZyIG9">Ash Ra Tempel</a>.

Terranova's anti-provincial beat experimentation nimbly entered dance culture with their lasting, much-respected DJ Kicks installment, released in 1998, while endless comparisons to <a href="spotify:artist:39ywlwtGw8RTGobakgb11L">Kruder & Dorfmeister</a> or <a href="spotify:artist:6hhA8TKRNryM8FNzqCqdDO">Tricky</a> were lavished about. What really seemed to mark Terranova as a unique rhythm in trip-hop, however, was 1999's Close the Door, a surprisingly original debut full-length put out by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Copasetik+Recordings%22">Copasetik Recordings</a> with collaborations by <a href="spotify:artist:7KomCxZv6D5qCVvefwMnwB">Einstürzende Neubauten</a>'s <a href="spotify:artist:7yRg26OvUSHv5dQOqlS0Px">Alexander Hacke</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6hhA8TKRNryM8FNzqCqdDO">Tricky</a>, San Francisco's <a href="spotify:artist:3W9SDpMLYOSVYn5zIqr90j">Rasco</a>, and -- coming full circle -- Cath Coffey of <a href="spotify:artist:1k8VBufn1nBs8LN9n4snc8">the Stereo MC's</a>. In 2002, the Berlin trio emerged with the eclectic Hitchhiking Non-Stop with No Particular Destination, with B-Sides & Remix Sessions appearing the same year. Peace Is Tough, the group's slightly more aggressive third album, was released by <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22%21K7%22">!K7</a> in 2003.

Terranova moved to the more mainstream <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Ministry+of+Sound%22">Ministry of Sound</a> label for 2004's electro-charged Digital Tenderness. Following this, the group's members devoted time to side projects. Bergmann and <a href="spotify:artist:1xdAuUtmnHCuG5gAaZwhgO">Sebastian Müller</a> formed <a href="spotify:artist:2MTk4UhHHyOnwyZGNpsrCm">Lotterboys</a> with Paris the Black Fu of <a href="spotify:artist:57SxomZx6rGWH3aJMAJxiu">Detroit Grand Pubahs</a>, releasing Animalia on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Eskimo+Recordings%22">Eskimo Recordings</a> in 2006. Following this, Bergmann and André Boadu collaborated with <a href="spotify:artist:7JQn9DfFTtsFTg2dFc75jM">Princess Superstar</a> as <a href="spotify:artist:1kxv40Rjxixyh1FCo4rIKO">Lottergirls</a>, producing Right On in 2007. Bergmann and Boadu then released a few singles as Fetisch & Me on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22International+Deejay+Gigolo%22">International Deejay Gigolo</a> and <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Souvenir%22">Souvenir</a>.

In 2011, Terranova signed with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Kompakt%22">Kompakt</a>, issuing two singles that year, which set the stage for the 2012 full-length Hotel Amour. The release featured guest vocals by <a href="spotify:artist:3GCuuMLMs37izZ3q5vFpcX">Billie Ray Martin</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0FEx2DeyIuHKZN5zQX6XOs">Khan</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:50Lr1puweM1hFsF1LpIZLM">WhoMadeWho</a>'s Tomas Høffding, and was far more uptempo than Terranova's earlier work. Numerous singles and remix EPs followed, and Restless, Terranova's second <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Kompakt%22">Kompakt</a> full-length, appeared in 2015. A selection of the group's tracks was used as the soundtrack to the film Wild; <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Kompakt%22">Kompakt</a> digitally released the soundtrack in 2016. During the same year, Terranova collaborated with <a href="spotify:artist:1k8VBufn1nBs8LN9n4snc8">the Stereo MC's</a> on the Connected in Dub EP (which did not contain dub remakes of the latter group's hit "Connected"). In 2017, Terranova and <a href="spotify:artist:6ymI8iWj5p9Ezgyz3b2ICX">Reinhard Voigt</a> released Speicher 94, an installment of <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Kompakt%22">Kompakt</a>'s long-running series of singles and collaborations. ~ Dean Carlson & Paul Simpson, Rovi