From Cologne, Germany hails the Strategic Tape Reserve, a small independent label releasing tapes of the experimental kind. Unfortunately, the website hasn't been updated in a long time (it ends with release #34), while before me are numbered LBL5 and #60. So there isn't a lot of easily accessible information to write from, but each release on Bandcamp has a little extra info, and many of their prior releases have sold out already. So they're definitely doing a good thing there in Cologne.
The second release in the deck by Strategic Tape Reserve is something different - Something completely different. I've played it several times, and I just can't get a grip on it, which proves that even a C40 cassette will give you hours and hours of pleasure. "Visiting Places (Learning by Listening Vol. 5)" is the fifth tape in a series, but it's only the first I hear. Each time, the artist of the "Learning by Listening" release is different and the subject. This time the artists are Uli Federwisch (synths) and Chip Perkins (voice) and the title "Visiting Places", and this is a road trip. And for this cassette, as said after many listen, I can't tell you if the emphasis is on 'road' or 'trip'.
The five parts of this release tell a story, but only with complete dedication, you will find out exactly where and which roads (Belgium?). Carl's voice seems to be used with just some general effects, and Uli's synth work ranges from minimal experimental electronics (sometimes hitting an 8-bit sound feeling) to soundscapish moments. The atmosphere is very well caught, even if you don't know when, where and what it is all about.
Maybe it's the enumeration of animals on side B, but at some point, I had to think of the epic "Alice in Wonderland" by Randy Greif. That classic release is one huge LSD trip, as we all know, and this tape is definitely not as massive as "Alice". But this is a nice road trip too. Maybe not the full experience on LSD, but magic mushrooms will get you there too.
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