The self is perfect. Without flaw. Without faults. All seemingly "faults" are just an illusion, in your eyes, in the eyes of others. They don't exist. Because the self is already perfect, it never needs to change; if it desires to change, then purely for its own pleasures. It needs to achieve nothing, attain nothing, in order to be perfect, and to stay perfect. It is infinitely beautiful. Wonderful. Marvelous. Adorable. Lovable. There is nothing evil about the self; because it is perfect, it is entirely good, true, right. Those religions that claim to acknowledge the self, but say the self would be a kind of "higher self" that first needs to be found, attained, that one can only became part of through hardships and worship, lie. The perfect, true self is not something that is hidden far above, or far away. It is *your* self. Your ordinary, everyday self that you know, that you are each day and each time, is already perfect, beautiful, and all the things that were mentioned here before. In this sense, there is no higher self that you need to attain, because you are already this self. With all your flaws and worries and imperfection and mistakes - for these are just an illusion. You already are perfect. You already are true. Most people try to split themselves into two parts; one part that they like and one part that they hate. For example, they might like their intellectual capabilities or feelings of confidence or similar things, but hate their anxieties, perceived lack of talent, weakness, emotional flaws and so on. They have a whole part of themselves that they reject, and would like to split off, and essentially they think: ah, if one day I could get rid of this part of me forever, this part that is flawed, I could be a truly happy person. Nothing could be further from the truth. All parts of yourself are perfect. All your supposed flaws and seemingly negative aspects are actually wonderful and perfect, too. If, one day, you follow this, and learn to accept your "negative" side, too, and fully acknowledge it, you will be whole for once. And then you can see how beautiful your own self really is. This is the way to embrace your self and see its magnificence, and be truly happy. All questions will be solved then. All answers will be given then.

all my life, i read a lot of books, texts, information, about such things as philosophy, religion, politics, and more, and tried to explore the topics expressed in these as much as i can. and also tried to put these things "into action" and did a lot of stuff and experiments in the "real world", too. and, in my opinion, i came across some interesting things then, and actually ran across some interesting - let's call it "information" instead of truths. (i don't say this to "flatter" myself - but to give a bit of a background to this text) now, i don't claim to know or understand the meaning of life. or have some knowledge that explains "everything at the end of all things". but, i can tell you about a concept that might be interesting to you, and i'm certain that it would allow you to attain many of the things you want to attain, and to understand many of the things that you want to understand. and, maybe, to find your own meaning of life, too. this idea, concept, "truth" is a bit hard to explain and to write down, though. so, in order to explain it, i will use some words that i just heard in a movie i watched recently. it actually came off as a bit of a cheap movie, but, in my opinion, the words are useful nonetheless. (i could have used other words to a similar effect, but i chose these ones). the statement is "our biggest weaknesses are actually our biggest strengths". and this is very true and right and correct! everything you consider a weakness about yourself is actually one of your biggest strengths. everything you consider weak, bad, ugly, unlikable, detestable, rejectable is actually beautiful, wonderful, powerful, bold, glorious and brilliant. everything you want to get rid of about yourself might save you one day. everything you want to "fix" about yourself is something that might heal you one day. you are not broken. you are not flawed. you are not wrong. you are perfect, beautiful, and one hundred percent right and true the way you are, right here, in this moment. you don't need to change anything about yourself. you are perfect. you just may not see this in this moment. embrace your weakness, embrace your flaws. do you consider yourself ugly, chubby, unattractive? embrace it! do you consider yourself sad, anxious, depressed? embrace it! and if you do this, if you embrace and love yourself, one hundred percent, with everything you considered bad and flawed, with everything you considered to be a weakness - you might break out of the prison you confined yourself to. and you might discover some very interesting things. attain some very interesting goals. and find happiness, joy, ecstasy, of the type that is out of the ordinary. how would this work out, and why? well, that is a bit harder to explain. but for now, have some good faith and try it. you might be surprised by the result. and remember: you are beautiful, extraordinary, and perfect. every part of you is.

I never was interested in "just" creating tracks. The 20th century was the era of sonic exploration, even at the beginning of the century. Old ideas were challenged or thrown overboard. Composers and musician tried new methods and concepts, and they tried to get away from the old. Almost every "accepted theory" in music was questioned - and rejected. I was inspired by that "avantgarde tradition". And I tried to experiment with, and explore, music as much as I could. To check out other artists who did the same. To read as much on it as I could find. But there was also something. Not just rebellion and drift. I wanted to get to the bottom of music. Try to find out if there is some hidden, important truth, that can be found deep within my favorite tracks and the sonic avantgarde. I sometimes strayed from that path - but I always got back on it for some reason. I'm also an anarchist. I often had the idea there is much, much more to anarchism than those who are against it realize. That it's not "just" about ultimate freedom, liberty, uprising, self-organisation and so on (even if these are already very high goals!). Something that is *felt* by most actual anarchists. Was there a hidden, pure truth - hidden inside anarchy, too? Over the years, over the decades, something began to dawn on me. I'm not saying that what I communicate is the "ultimate truth" - not even for me. Yet, for me, maybe not for you, it is something that comes very, very close. So here is what I want to say: Think about it: What is anarchism? What does anarchy mean? A lot of people would say anarchism ultimately leads to the concept of "do what you want, as long as it harms no other" - or a similar wording. I agree. But I think this concept goes beyond, transcends, the mere political, economic, social realm. It extends to the cultural, philosophical, epistemological, "cosmic" realm - and even far beyond that. "Do what you want, as long as it harms no other" But not only on a social level. Treat *philosophical truths* in the same way, for example. Discard Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, if you want to. Create your own truth, and walk along with it. As long as you mean no harm. And this holds true for the sonic realm, too. Do whatever you want in music. Play the notes you want, use the rhythms you want, sequence everything like you want to. You decide what's right or wrong, what sounds good or bad. You are free, you make the "rules" and "laws" in music, and should free feel to shape them in any way you see fit. And, I think only if an artist starts this ultimate rebellion and revolution - against any "rule" in music that comes from someone else - something truly epic and important can be created. Do not let anyone tell you how music *should* sound, how your music should sound, what "rules" there are regarding music production, and which concepts to follow. This is my little message to you. Become a sonic anarchist. It will be rewarding. The self is perfect. Without flaw. Without faults. All seemingly "faults" are just an illusion, in your eyes, in the eyes of others. They don't exist. Because the self is already perfect, it never needs to change; if it desires to change, then purely for its own pleasures. It needs to achieve nothing, attain nothing, in order to be perfect, and to stay perfect. It is infinitely beautiful. Wonderful. Marvelous. Adorable. Lovable. There is nothing evil about the self; because it is perfect, it is entirely good, true, right. Those religions that claim to acknowledge the self, but say the self would be a kind of "higher self" that first needs to be found, attained, that one can only became part of through hardships and worship, lie. The perfect, true self is not something that is hidden far above, or far away. It is *your* self. Your ordinary, everyday self that you know, that you are each day and each time, is already perfect, beautiful, and all the things that were mentioned here before. In this sense, there is no higher self that you need to attain, because you are already this self. With all your flaws and worries and imperfection and mistakes - for these are just an illusion. You already are perfect. You already are true. Most people try to split themselves into two parts; one part that they like and one part that they hate. For example, they might like their intellectual capabilities or feelings of confidence or similar things, but hate their anxieties, perceived lack of talent, weakness, emotional flaws and so on. They have a whole part of themselves that they reject, and would like to split off, and essentially they think: ah, if one day I could get rid of this part of me forever, this part that is flawed, I could be a truly happy person. Nothing could be further from the truth. All parts of yourself are perfect. All your supposed flaws and seemingly negative aspects are actually wonderful and perfect, too. If, one day, you follow this, and learn to accept your "negative" side, too, and fully acknowledge it, you will be whole for once. And then you can see how beautiful your own self really is. This is the way to embrace your self and see its magnificence, and be truly happy. All questions will be solved then. All answers will be given then.

On a very warm and sunny autumn day I was riding my bicycle through the port of Hamburg area. As I was pedaling onward, I began to hear strange noises in the distance, that sounded a lot like work being done on heavy machinery. But with all the urban reverberation and other sounds, it was not easy for me to make out what the sounds actually represented. There are few (if any) factories in the area. I thought it might be workers assembling a ship, or maybe constructing a building. But as I came close, I realized the sound was rhythmic, looped. I was still puzzled, but my curiosity was sparked, too. As my bike ride continued, the sounds became much louder - and clearer. Now I realized the noise was a "bang...... bang.... bang....", rhythmic, in a loop (as mentioned), somewhere between 20-30 bpm. Very abrasive and harsh. I still was not sure what type of machine or work created such sounds. But I thought "Oh, this is going to be really good. I'm gonna experience 'Slowcore' on a loud volume, in a large space, for the first time! (Instead of listening to it at home, or on headphones). Today is my lucky day!". And I was not disappointed. As I approached the source, the sound became massive, loud, gigantic... now more a "boom.... boom... boom....". So, as I arrived at the scene, I finally discovered what created this ruckus: a pile driver was hammering a huge metal sheet pile into the harbor basin. It really resembled the sound of a Slowcore track; the moment when "metal hit metal" creating a noisy bassdrum-like sound. The volume resembled those of some of the loudest hardcore parties I've been at. My ears felt deaf after the experience. It could have used a bit more sub-bass though, but I'm not complaining. I got off my bike, stood there for a few moments, listening to the sound. I was completely mesmerized and felt like I was going out of my head (I usually feel that way when I'm at places with loud "Hardcore" sounds ;-) also interesting was that quite a few spectators were standing around or sitting on benches, obviously enjoying this spectacle, too. I thought, man, this is a great experience, and this type of noise really works on a loud volume; and it attracts people! Which made me assume that Slowcore Techno is really a way to go forward in music, and could attract people too; and that's about time to play Slowcore at parties, too! Some might object that comparing heavy-duty machinery work with the sounds of "bassdrums" or even "slowcore" (and parties!) is "nonsense" and "silly". So for this case, I have created a track to prove my point - well, I also created the track to keep that experience in mind, and because i felt i *had* to do that track. the track uses the real field recording of a pile driver operating in a port. eventually, drum machine bassdrums come in, and everything gets modulated, twisted, and distorted. the sounds swell on and fade out over time in this track, just as they did on my bike ride. So, here it is: my very own Hamburg Harbor Slowcore Piledriver Experience.

I dreamed that I regained consciousness, and found myself floating, or rather travelling, in Earth's orbit. Just my body, no rocket, no vessel. Far below me I could see the blue oceans and continents of Earth. I saw that I was steadily speeding towards the moon. The moon looked much larger than when viewed from Earth. Eventually, other people appeared besides me, that were apparently heading towards the moon, too. I saw that they appeared to be from "all walks of life"; business people in business suits; young adults in street-wear clothes; intellectuals; blue collar workers, and so on. We became quite the large group. Floating in unison towards the moon. Then suddenly everything sped up, and we landed on the moon. There was a large crowd of people now, and everyone headed in some direction, or started to engage in other activities. A few people started to approach me (not sure if they were from Earth, Moon, or other origin in this dream) and to talk to me; but I could not understand them, as their language only seemed to consists of strange sounds that I could not comprehend. As they kept coming closer and closer, and still talking to me enthusiastically, I got a bit scared, and desperately tried to understand what they could want from me, or what they tried to tell me. Eventually there was a huge bang and then a blinding white light, and everything went black. When my vision came back, I noticed that my head had been severed or disconnected from my body, lying sideways in the moon dust. I could see that my body was still standing though; in fact it was surrounded by the people that approached me, and my body was now happily talking to them (even though it had no mouth!), it seemed to understand every word of what they said, and eventually my body headed off with this group of people, and everything seemed to be fine. Then I woke up.