Bernhard Hollinger’s '1987' Is a Boundless, Visionary Triumph That Redefines Composition and Orchestrates Emotion
- STAFF
- Apr 30
- 6 min read
By: Staff
1987 delivers an electrifying rush of artistry, a bold and beautiful sensory takeover unlike anything else.
We found the very deep, complex, tantalizing, and eccentric artist, Bernhard Hollinger. His latest release, the album 1987, is an exceptional creative statement, an adventurous blend of emotion and sonic experimentation that reaffirms the boundless potential of modern music. This is the kind of work that doesn’t just push at the edges of genre but steps fully into new creative territory. It’s a reminder of why we listen in the first place, to be moved, surprised, and awakened. We’re genuinely excited to have come across this and can’t wait to share it with you.
We began with “Fly,” a track that opens not just the album but your senses. The intro is slow-building, charged with a restrained force, like pressure rising under the surface, waiting to burst. There’s a kinetic tension in its pacing, with textures that seem to approach you in waves. Subtle layers of sound quietly take hold, and soon they occupy your full attention; there’s nothing else, only this unfolding moment. Each note lands with purpose, delivering a strange satisfaction that pulls you deeper. There’s a temptation to dissect its meaning, to figure out the logic behind the beauty, but the music keeps shifting, eluding your analysis. And what also becomes clear is that its purpose may simply be to make you feel joy in the most unexpected ways. Then, right at that moment of reflection, the track erupts, drums crash in, rolling and thunderous, while a soaring guitar arcs overhead. The bass expands beneath it all, anchoring the chaos into cohesion and driving the sound forward with an effortless pulse. At this point, you’re no longer grounded in reality. You’re floating, untethered, in your own imagination. You silently hope it never ends, that it could go on like a river running over your feet forever. Drum fills sweep through the soundscape like gusts of wind, the music rising and falling with a graceful unpredictability. That unpredictability becomes its own thrill. Then comes the guitar solo, gliding in with long, weeping notes that blur the line between instrument and emotion. The guitar begins to sound like a violin, and suddenly, you’re unsure what you’re even hearing. Has something transformed mid-song? Is the instrumentation shape-shifting in front of your ears? As it slips into a gentler interlude, a physical release happens, you notice your blood pressure drop, a realization that until now, adrenaline was coursing through you like jet fuel. It’s a flush of relief, of recalibration. The track seemed to control everything: perception, emotion, even biology. And when it lets go, you're left wondering how something so abstract had such power over you.
“Fly” is a definitive high point. It’s a living example of how music, when created with sincere emotional intention and executed with mastery, can fully take over the listener’s experience and shape it into something overwhelming and euphoric.
Next, we encountered “Through the Darkness of Future Past, No More Dark, Through”, a piece that felt like being dropped into a dream where nothing is safe and innocence slowly disintegrates. It begins with a childlike, chiming motif, a lullaby, but twisted. The melody lingers only briefly before receding, replaced by an eerie forward-driving synth that alters the emotional temperature entirely. There’s a creeping realization: what we thought was comfort is now becoming distorted. The track feels like a sonic metaphor for the passage from childhood into adult disillusionment, not as it is lived, but as it is felt by the unfiltered perception of a child. There's something haunting in the way the music whispers, as though the world is revealing itself too soon. The beauty of this track lies in its ambiguity, its ambient structure encourages you to bring your own interpretations, to let your mind drift and extract meaning from feeling. It’s not a song that tells you what to think, it’s a song that reveals what’s already buried in you. The horns and delicate guitars cry out in what feels like sorrow or regret, their tones fragile and aching. There’s a quiet desperation to the way the sounds interweave, like something is trying to break through. As the track builds, the sonic density grows and eventually becomes a low, buzzing pressure in your ears, stopping you in your tracks. Then, drums crash in, chaotic and frenzied, like an emotional storm finally arriving. When it all settles again, the silence feels changed, as though you’ve learned something you can’t unlearn. You come out of it with a sharper understanding of fear, and maybe of memory too.
Following that was “Winter Melody,” a track that instantly shifted the atmosphere. It opened with a warped, brass-forward lead, an odd, twisted horn sound that was strangely soothing. There was something meditative in its off-kilter calm, like watching ripples in water. The piece slowly built in clarity and confidence, eventually sliding into a jazz-driven rhythm section that brought it alive with warmth and elegance. It felt like a breath after holding it for too long. And what also stood out was how expertly it walked the line between structure and abstraction, rooted in jazz tradition but always just on the edge of something more experimental. As the song faded, a distinct sense of cleansing lingered, like a rinse for the psyche.
After experiencing 1987, we realized Bernhard Hollinger is a true visionary. There are no limits to his creative range, and no fear in where that range may lead. Each composition is an invitation to step out of passive listening and into active emotional immersion. Whether it’s through evoking joy, disorientation, sorrow, or euphoria, Hollinger’s music doesn’t just move you, it manipulates emotion in a way that feels almost scientific.
His ability to orchestrate this level of impact is something rare and unforgettable. For us, 1987 is a musical experience that resets the bar for what art can do.
Bernhard Hollinger’s 1987 is a mesmerizing, genre-defying masterwork that reshapes sound into pure feeling.
Bernhard Hollinger’s 1987 is a bold debut that resists categorization while honoring the spirit of intuitive and experimental music-making. Released via Boomslang Records, the album was inspired by the surreal storytelling and psychological depth of David Lynch’s work, particularly Twin Peaks, which left a lasting imprint on Hollinger’s creative imagination.
That influence flows through every track, not as mimicry, but as an embrace of ambiguity, fragmentation, and emotional symbolism. The result is a body of work that doesn’t simply reflect dream logic but feels like a dream in sound. Each piece is constructed with a nonlinear structure, shifting dynamics, and open-ended interpretation, inviting the listener into a space where meaning is subjective and layered.
A standout moment includes “Sleeping Tapes,” the only non-original track, which pays tribute to Jeff Bridges’ audiobook of the same name and beautifully rounds off the album’s exploration of altered consciousness. Contributing to this immersive journey is a diverse and global ensemble of collaborators, including Grammy-nominated guitarist Ashton Sellars, trumpeter Ashlin Parker, and other elite talents from around the world.
Bernhard Hollinger’s artistry reaches far beyond performance. As an award-winning bassist, producer, and composer, they move fluidly across genres, spanning jazz, ambient, avant-garde, electronic, and more, while using electric bass paired with effects as their primary voice. Their curiosity drives a fearless blending of styles, often challenging conventions through live improvisation and digital experimentation.
Hollinger’s performance history is equally global and eclectic, with appearances across Europe, the US, Chile, and Japan, including sharing stages with icons like Christian Scott and Lee Ritenour. Beyond the stage, Hollinger curates Lo-Fi Playground, a platform dedicated to unconventional and daring musical formats, and also hosts Space Lab Transmissions, a monthly radio show on 90mil Radio spotlighting experimental and improvisational artists from Berlin and beyond.
We’re so excited to have found Bernhard Hollinger and can’t wait to hear what’s next.
Discover the brilliance of Bernhard Hollinger and make sure to playlist, stream, and share 1987 by Bernhard Hollinger.
Below is full credit to all the amazing artists and creators who breathed life into these incredible performances
Bernhard Hollinger - 1987
A
1. Fly
2. Through the Darkness of Future Past, No More Dark, Through
3. I Just Don’t Know
B
4. Winter Melody
5. Sleeping Tapes
Bernhard Hollinger - Electric Bass/Effects/Percussion/Composition/Arrangement
Augustas Baronas - Drums (except Track 4)
Louis Portal - Drums (Track 4)
Ashton Sellars - Guitar (Track 1, 5)
Teis Semey - Guitar (Track 2, 3)
Sebastian Gampert - Keys/Synth/Electronics (except Track 4)
Larry Sieberth - Keys (Track 4)
Matthias van den Brande - Tenor/Soprano/Glockenspiel (except Track 2 & 4)
Giovanni Cigui - Alto/Effects (except (Track 4)
Yaniv Nachum - Soprano (Track 2)
Ashlin Parker - Trumpet (Track 4)
Oliver Emmitt - Trombone (Track 4)
Alisdair Pickering - String-Arrangement (Track 1)
Alegria Quartet (Track 1):
Lucas Bernardo - Violin 1
Andre Felipe Lima - Violin 2
Sophie Mettefeu - Viola
Chieko Donker Duyvis - Cello
All Tracks by Bernhard Hollinger, except Track 5 by Keefus Ciancia aka. Weelo - "Introduction to Sleeptapes"
Recording by Lex Tanger at Studio -2, except Track 4 by Dennis Kizilirmak at Feinschliffstudio
Mixing by Shai Salon (Track 1 and 5), Fulvio Federico Farina (Track 4), Bernhard Range (Track 2 and 3)
Mastering by Bernhard Range, Schaltgeräte Studios
Cover Artwork "Narrenfeuer" by Hubert P. Klotzeck
Graphic Design by zimoshka
Released on Boomslang Records on 25.4.2025
