Kraus (musician)

Kraus (also known as Pat Kraus, formerly known as Prince Kraus[1]) is a New Zealand experimental musician and composer. The New Zealand Listener called him "a national treasure" and "one of the most quietly important and interesting people making music in New Zealand".[2] His music crosses the boundaries of electronic music, post-rock,[3] no wave,[4] space folk,[5] noise pop, punk rock and martian stomp.[6]

Kraus
Also known asPat Kraus
BornNew Zealand
GenresPop, experimental, instrumental
Occupation(s)Musician, composer
InstrumentsOrgan, guitar, drums, synthesiser
Years active1998–present
Associated actsThe Futurians, The Aesthetics, Pouffe, The Maltese Falcons, Olympus
Websitewww.kraus.co.nz

Work

Kraus has stated that he makes music for freaks, outsiders, losers and weirdos.[7] Most of his music is released under a Creative Commons license[8] with a non-commercial clause,[9] consistent with his communist ideology.[10]

He is influenced by medieval music, renaissance music, traditional Japanese music, psychedelic music and electronic music.[11]

Kraus's work has been compared to Raymond Scott, Norman Mclaren,[12] Moondog, Doctor Who,[13] Sun Ra,[14] Amps for Christ, Joe Meek, the Shaggs,[15] John Frusciante,[16] Pumice,[17] Bruce Haack, Tangerine Dream, Flower Travellin' Band, Can, Kraftwerk, Goblin, Throbbing Gristle, Brian Eno, The Residents,[18] Randy Holden,[19] Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix,[20] Jean Michel Jarre,[2] Peaking Lights,[21] Emily Dickinson,[22] Tod Dockstader, Marvin the Martian,[23] Maureen Tucker, Men's Recovery Project,[24] Captain Beefheart and Royal Trux.[25]

Kraus started performing live in late 2013 with a revolving cast of supporting musicians, including Stefan Neville (of Pumice and the Five Satans), Angeline Chirnside (of Currer Bells and It Hurts), Claire Mahoney, Nell Thomas, Dan Beban, artist Bek Coogan, Reuben Derrick, Sean Norling, Alex Brown, Gary War, Marijn Verbiesen, composer and pianist Hermione Johnson, and the writer Maryann Savage.[26][27][28][29]

In 2014 Kraus was awarded the Audio Foundation Winter Residency.[30]

The name Kraus was partly inspired by Dagmar Krause and Inga Swenson's character on Benson.[31]

Other activities

Kraus was a founding member of the Futurians and has played in the Aesthetics and the Murdering Monsters. He currently records and performs in Pouffe (with Matt Plunkett of The Trendees[32]), the Maltese Falcons (with Ducklingmonster Futurian of It Hurts, Stefan Neville of Pumice, and Sean O'Reilly of SF), Olympus (with Stefan Neville), Magic Mountain, The Gaze, and various ad-hoc improvised ensembles.[10]

He hosts a fortnightly radio show,[33] and builds his own synthesisers and guitar pedals [34][35] which are used by many New Zealand bands including It Hurts.[36] He has been instrumental in setting up and curating the Musical Electronics Library and has been running synth-building workshops around New Zealand.[37][38][39]

Recordings

Solo albums
  • Joy cassette (2002)
  • Prince Krauss CD (2003)
  • Emily CD (2003)
  • I Could Destroy You with a Single Thought CD / LP (2004)[40]
  • Lamentations of an Ape CD / cassette (2005)
  • Red, Green and Blue CD (2006)
  • The Facts cassette (2007)
  • Harmony of the Squares Volume 1 CD (2007)
  • Faster than the Speed of Time LP (2010)
  • Blank Mountain CD (2010)
  • Golden Treasury CD / cassette (2010)
  • Supreme Commander LP / cassette (2011) - released on "outer space wax" (vinyl with white specks)[41]
  • 14/10/12 (2014) - recorded live in Kingsland for a WFMU broadcast. Featuring Maryann Savage and Stefan Neville.[42]
  • Interior Castle cassette (2014)
  • Workers in Kontrol CD (2014)
  • Here Come the Recorders cassette (2015)
  • Mountain of the Moon cassette (2016)
  • Grip the Moon cassette (2017)
  • Pudding Island cassette (2019)
  • Valley of the Gourds cassette (2019)
  • A Golden Brain cassette (2020)

Solo singles

Compilation appearances
  • Arc Death cassette / CD (2001)
  • Animals 2CD (2004)
  • Sink or Swim cassette (2009)
  • Menhir double 7"EP (2009)
  • La Bamba LP (2009)
  • Dirt Beneath the Daydream CD (2009) - free with White Fungus and The Wire magazines.
  • If you Wanna Rob a Bank, Own One: Credit Card Singles, 2009-2010 CD (2010)
  • Realistic Pillow 7"EP (2013)
  • Deep & Meaningful Volume 1 postcard album (2014)
  • You’re Not Invited: New Zealand’s Underground, 2010-2015 triple-album (2015)
  • Deep & Meaningful Volume 2 postcard album (2014)
  • Deep & Meaningful Volume 3 postcard album (2015)
  • Psi-Solation (Celebrate Psi Phenomenon 2020)

Recordings with other bands
  • Pretty Picture 7" - Murdering Monsters (2000)
  • Bitch 7"EP - CJA (2000)
  • 12 Truck Drivin' Classics cassette - Murdering Monsters (2001)
  • Crown Sat. Nov. 11 cassette - Murdering Monsters and the Aesthetics (2001)
  • Off CD - The Aesthetics (2001)
  • Blastov! - The Futurians (2002)[45]
  • Untitled CD - Armpit and Kraus (2007)
  • Goldair CD - CJA and Kraus (2010)
  • Bold Mould LP - Olympus (2010)
  • Malll CD - Pouffe (2011)
  • The Maltese Falcons LP - The Maltese Falcons (2011)
  • Live at the Victoria Theatre 7"EP - Olympus (2011)
  • We Live in the Mind CD - Pouffe (2012)
  • I am Lost at Home CD - Pouffe (2016)
  • Caucus LP - Olumpus (2020)

References
  1. "Kraus (Musician)". Library of Congress Name Authority File. Library of Congress. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  2. Dass, Kiran (28 January 2012). "A Journey Through the First Dimension with Kraus by Kraus review". New Zealand Listener (3742). Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  3. Bird, Travis. "Kraus, "A Journey Through The First Dimension With Kraus" 7"". Foxy Digitalis. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  4. Bywater, Jon (25 December 2004). "Made for These Times:The best music of 2004". New Zealand Listener (3372). Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  5. Dass, Kiran. "Kraus". Music 101. Radio New Zealand National. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  6. Mosurock, Doug (2 February 2012). "Still Single". Dusted. 8 (1). Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  7. Russell, Bruce (editor) (2012). Erewhon Calling: Experimental Sound in New Zealand. Auckland, New Zealand: Audio Foundation. pp. 104–105. ISBN 978-0-473-21766-2.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  8. Perron, David. "Kraus". Foxy Digitalis. Archived from the original on 27 June 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  9. "Creative Commons - An Artist's Perspective". Crop (2): 9. June–July 2011.
  10. "About Kraus". Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  11. "Kraus". Free Music Archive. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  12. Moniker Records. "Kraus - Supreme Commander". Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  13. "Our Catalogue". Epic Sweep Records. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  14. Meyer, Bill (Spring 2013). "Supreme Commander". Signal to Noise (65). Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  15. "[ K ] titles at Aquarius Records". Aquarius Records. Archived from the original on 26 April 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  16. Gumshoe. "Supreme Commander". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  17. K, Rich. "WINTER RECORD REVIEWS 2012". Terminal Boredom. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  18. Markley, Jonathan. "kraus - sumpreme commander". Tiny Grooves. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  19. "Reviews – December 2012". Yellow Green Red. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  20. Spicer, J. "Supreme Commander". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  21. Mosurock, Doug (31 March 2011). "Still Single". Dusted Magazine. 7 (3). Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  22. Dianthus. "Pouffe – "Malll"". KFJC. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  23. Berge, Bryan. "Tape Hiss #30". Foxy Digitalis. Archived from the original on 24 July 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  24. Blackshaw, James. "Kraus "I Could Destroy You With a Single Thought"". Foxy Digitalis. Archived from the original on 18 July 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  25. "KRAUS IN THE PRESSES. ie reviews". Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  26. Cudby, Chris. "Kraus". Under the Radar. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
  27. "Kraus: Workers in Kontrol". Free Music Archive. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  28. "KRAUS (NZ) + FLORIS VANHOOF (BE) + CITY HANDS". OCCII. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  29. "kraus". Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  30. "Artist In Residence Winter 2014 – Kraus". Audio Foundation. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  31. "Kraus". The Avant-Guardian. NETWERK centre for contemporary art (V): 3. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  32. http://noisey.vice.com/ja/blog/meet%5B%5D
  33. "AFM - Audio Foundation Radio 88.3FM". Audio Foundation. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
  34. Smith, Emma (11 October 2014). "Smashingly Good Time". New Zealand Listener. 245 (3883): 44–45.
  35. Cudby, Chris (September 2009). "KRAUS GOLDEN TREASURY". Real Groove Magazine (184).
  36. Chirnside, Angeline. "Everything happened (part II): It Hurts". Clean Teeth Recordings Etcetera. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
  37. Silver, Harry. "May Creative Technologists Meetup". Colab. Auckland University of Technology. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  38. Thomas, Melody. "Kraus Synth Workshop". Radio New Zealand National. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  39. "Musical Electronics Library". Sonorous Circle. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  40. "Kraus Albums". Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  41. Bruyninckx, Joeri. "Kraus, The Man from Uranus". Archived from the original on 17 May 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  42. "14/10/12". stabbies etc. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  43. "Kraus - A Journey Through The First Dimension With Kraus". Archived from the original on 23 November 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  44. "New Release". Eager Product. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
  45. "Blastov!". Retrieved 29 June 2013.
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