The band Sinessence that consists of two sound engineers from Berlin, Sten and Ryko,
as well as the Paris djane Lili, thrives on the different musical backgrounds of their members.
The band, founded by Sten in 1997, bears some resemblance in sound processing to
bands like Mentallo & the Fixer, Skinny Puppy or Front Line Assembly, which comes
from Sten's musical roots. Beside his main band Sinessence, Sten is also involved in
other ambient-, industrial- and pop projects like Teamleiter.
Ryko comes from the noise/industrial sector and he colours the production style with
noise attacks and square-edged melodies. Lili's heart beats for Front 242 and Oldschool electro/E.B.M. So the band's own
motto arose: "Phat hooks on screaming sounds with noisy flavour".
Their debut CD "Thrillseeker" is full of powerful beats, careful arranged sounds and a fascinating intricacy. But also the
texts are convincing because the willing listener can frequently discover a message - a band which has to tell something.
The much variable vocals and versatile vocal lines complete the Sinessence sound perfectly. The sound isn't obtrusive, but it
is smoothly absorbed by the consciousness of the listener. So they achieve something that a lot of releases in this genre are
lacking. A self-willed but own sound that will emerge for the patient listener bit by bit and gives hope for a new generation of
electro heroes.
As an appetizer for their fulltime album, Sinessence released their digital-only single "Between" in December 2009. It contains
exclusive tracks - like the French song "Noir Blanc" or the remixes by Supreme Court and Dismantled. The video of
"Between" already got a lot of attention before the single was available.
The threesome have played live on several festivals like "Planet Myer Day", on their own concerts in Germany, Poland and
France, and as support for bands like Fixmer/McCarthy, Solar Fake, Haujobb, Sero.Overdose, Painbastard or Rotersand.
But Sinessence didn't only convince on stage, they also satisfy the scene of their quality by providing their own sound and
highly acclaimed remixes. So, in January the long awaited album of the electro legend NITZER EBB was released, including an
exclusive Sinessence remix of the song "Once You Say" whose backing vocals were contributed by Depeche Mode's Martin
Gore. But also other acts, such as Solitary Experiments, Mezire, Mechanical Moth or Leaether Strip, were impressed by
the quality and put a Sinessence remix on their new album release.
Update (November 2010):
In November 2010 Lili left the band.
Update (July 2011):
In February 2011 Sten suddenly passed away. RIP
Update (September 2011):
Hans-Jörg Rothe, Marko Knauft, Michael Wolff join Enrico Straube to regroup Sinessence.
Update (September 2013):
Sinessence will disband in November. New project of Ryko is MDS51.