Frequency Drift

Frequency Drift

Frequency Drift is a crossover prog group from Bayreuth, Germany, active from 2007. It is formed by classically trained keyboard player and multi-instrumentalist Andreas Hack, who remains the central figure in the group, and later works with Nerissa Schwarz became an important part of its sound. The band develops a style built around cinematic arrangements, unusual instrumentation and female vocals.

Career and recordings

Frequency Drift begins with the Personal Effects concept albums. Personal Effects Pt. 1 appears in 2008 on Musea and tells a story about two sisters in a futuristic setting, with inspiration drawn from films such as Blade Runner and Ghost in the Shell. Personal Effects Pt. 2 follows in 2009 on Cyclops and continues the emphasis on melody and atmosphere.

The 2011 album Ghosts… marks the first notable appearance of Nerissa Schwarz as a guest composer and musician, playing electric harp. On this release, the band moves further towards a mixture of art rock, ambient, folk and metal. …Laid to rest follows in 2012 on Gentle Art of Music and adds world music influences, with instrumentation including gemshorn, flute and clarinet alongside harp and violin.

Over appears in 2014 and establishes a writing partnership between Andreas Hack and Nerissa Schwarz. It expands the group’s sound further through electric harp textures and keyboards, and combines old school progressive rock with post-rock, pop, classical music and world music. In the same year, the band also releases Summer, a collection of previously unreleased songs, and drummer Wolfgang Ostermann joins, adding a stronger rhythmic element.

The 2016 album Last. Stranger and darker than earlier releases, but still highly melodic, it is presented as the band’s most cohesive and cinematic album. In 2018, Frequency Drift releases Letters to Maro, a melodic and experimental final album that combines melancholy, lightness, energy, rhythmic complexity, inventive sound design and memorable vocal lines.