Apparat’s “Goodbye”

Now that I’ve got at least one holiday post behind me, I’m switching gears to something a bit moodier and darker, yet still winter appropriate. The track is called “Goodbye” and it’s from German electronic musician Apparat, with vocal support from Austrian artist Soap&Skin. I actually intended to post this yesterday, but just wasn’t feeling it. But today I am … so here we go.

My introduction to “Goodbye” was through the title sequence of German series “Dark,” a binge-worthy episodic sci-fi thriller that Netflix brought stateside and billed as the next “Stranger Things.” Well, “Dark” isn’t exactly that. It’s primarily lacking the nudge and wink ’80s nostalgia factor. But it does focus on the unique, dramatic, and slightly weird. It’s also tonally dark, as the title suggests. And like its American counterpart, it features a memorable mood-setting piece of music for its title sequence, in this case, the aforementioned “Goodbye.”

Soap&Skin’s Anja Plaschg. Photo by Wolfgang Lienbacher, circa 2011; sourced from artist’s Facebook.

“Goodbye” is a fairly low-key minimalistic shade of winter ambience. It’s loaded with despondent melancholy, with dulcimer instruments flittering in and out over a buried percussive beat. Vocals from Anja Plaschg, a.k.a. Soap&Skin, infuse a bit of downtempo energy, accompanied by a lonely solitary piano. Ultimately, this one’s a quiet affair, more introspective than overt.

Apparat, a.k.a. Sascha Ring, tends to specialize in these moody atmospheric compositions, many of which end up in film and television shows like “Dark.” In his earlier days, he crafted more beat-heavy techno tracks. He’s since moved onto ambient pastures, crafting singular soundscapes, keeping things spatial and minimal, emphasizing exploration and experimentation over immediacy.

“Goodbye” is a particularly effective example of this aural ambience. Check out Apparat’s cold contemplative quietude and see how it sits among your winter days and nights.

“Goodbye” from the 2011 album “The Devil’s Walk.”

If you’re curious, here’s how “Goodbye” is implemented in the melancholic and surreal title sequence for “Dark.”

Apparat:

Soap&Skin:

Netflix’s Dark: