Ages ago I've reviewed another releases involving Michael Renkel and here he is, back with a brand new work but the quality is still the the same. With this Active Center project , Renkel and Burkhard Beins have been using guitar and objects creating a bunch of damn interesting electro-acostic tracks, what surprises me about both is the fact despite their apparently inexpressive/abstract musical style they haaven't lost a sort of melodic edge and that is not a natural consequence of the fact there's a string instrument, in fact the reach the shape of a song even while playing non melodic part with the shade of a structure. When dealing with this structure thing we encounter some of the most interesting characteristic of Renkel plus Beins' cd, a good example of that could be represented by the ideas floating in the opening track where they pass from electro-acoustic to quasi contemporary classic influence to what sounds like ambient music. In some way this work brings my mind to "All cracked medias" from Dean Roberts but it's more difficult, dead serious, if Berlin was still the grey town it used to be we cold speak about the influence of the architecture. Another things that here and there resurfaces quite easily from the music is a Seventies aura even. Three long tracks and two short intervals and the usual Absinthesque-7"format. The strength of this duo and their music lays in composition.