Le Millipede – which has the meaning of “Centipede”, describes his unvisible arms controlling a number of instruments, making noteworthy diverse layers into his music with piano, xylophone, glockenspiel, stylophone, Moog, harmonium, and so on. It is the band project of the artist Mathias Götz, who is also the member of the band such as Alien Ensemble, the Münchner Hochzeitskapelle, and the Unterbiberger Hofmusik. Le Millipede creates instrumental, minimal, but also pop gems, tracks with an immediate quality that seem rather simple, at first to listen.

Facts

1: Best, favorite and biggest are strange words. Normally I don’t have biggest, best or favorite things or places.

2: Music is Live

3: There is never just one way that something works

Questions

1.What is the biggest inspiration for your music?

One thing I would say, is that so much inspiration comes from my friends and colleagues.
Recently I could count on Micha and Markus Acher in very certain way. Before I met those guys, I played in many Big Band s where the fellow of trombone player inspired me. For example, Rainer Sell, Gerhard Gschlößl, Martin Ostermeier or my most important teacher during the jazz studies, and Thomas Zoller, who is now a professor of the composition department in Dresden.
At the same time, there were band s who we played several pieces together with, as well as rehearsing and recording together, like „Das rote Gras“ with (among others) Daniel Glatzel, Gabriel Hahn and Karsten Hochapfel. And of course there is inspiration in music I listen to at home. Although that sinks more into the subconscious as the greatest power, but it is the moment which brings many audible elements into the daylight, without knowing exactly where they come from…

2.How and when did you get into making music?

My father was conductor at a music society for over 30 years. Before that my grand father let the society for over 40 years. So there was a big long tradition of making music in our family.Therefore I started to have a relationship with music relatively early. I was 8 years old. For a year, I studied the music theory and rhythm, before I then started learning trombone using my uncle’s.

3.What are your 5 favourite albums of all time?

That is of course a difficult question, because one’s taste keeps developing so I can’t really say which are my 5 favorite albums for my whole life. I would rather say, that the following albums are some of my current favorites:

The Night of the Purple Moon – Sun Ra
Club Kama Aina – Kama Aina
HIVE1 – Tyondai Braxton
Les Ondes Silencieuses – Colleen
Illinois – Sufjan Stevens

4.What do you associate with Berlin?
When I’m there, it is usually to play with good friends in great clubs. There are wonderful street arts. And you can usually get something good to eat no matter what time it is.

5.What’s your favourite place in your town?
My balcony. When I come in my flat, the first thing I do is go into the kitchen and open the door to the balcony, look out and take a seat. I don’t really have a favorite place in the city.

6.If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
I would built or repair the instruments I play. As this is brass wind instruments, that might be tricky. Otherwise I’d live to study and observe swarm behavior in birds.

7.What was the last record you bought?
People are Strange -Stina Nordenstam (very very nice)

8.Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Colleen or Sufjan Stevens

9.What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
One of the nicest concerts was with Le Millipede on a boat called MS Stubnitz in Hamburg. It’s an amazing atmosphere there. Down on the second lower deck, if that’s the right term. The boat is an old fish cutter from the former GDR.

10.How important is technology to your creative process?
On the one hand very important, on the other not so important really. I’m more an intuitive musician, who start with an idea, and the rest comes out seemingly by chance. And sometimes it happens really quickly. Technology helps with this a lot, although I have got pretty basic knowledge about technology. Or better to say, I have to make it have done with relatively limited knowledge about it. So it remains very intuitive.

11.Do you have siblings and are they proud or jealous of you?
I have two older brother, who both also do music. My oldest brother plays flugel horn and the other plays drums and sometimes he sings. I think they are probably proud of his little brother, but I guess they wouldn’t want to swap our places.

Le Millipede going to play at Grüner Salon Berlin, on 4th June in Torstrassen Festival. Details here.