Nova Celestia Hendrik Eichler's Manic Anomaly

• 1 Calling Anomaly 05:24
• 2 Temporal Rift 03:07
• 3 Alien Heart 04:57
• 4 Nova Celesta 05:15
• 5 Downfall of Trantor 04:36
• 6 Gargantua 04:42
• 7 Astral Ascent 06:54
• Total Runtime 34:55

Info for Nova Celestia

With "Nova Celestia", drummer and composer Hendrik Eichler presents the debut of his project "Manic Anomaly" – an energetic space-jazz odyssey that blends avant-garde, improvisation and complex rhythmic worlds.

Inspired by science fiction and synaesthetic soundscapes, seven compositions unfold an interstellar journey full of dynamism, contrasts and sonic expansiveness. Eichler’s compositions combine dense grooves with atmospheric passages, whilst allowing the outstanding international line-up plenty of scope for creative expression. Featuring Kirke Karja, Teis Semey, Louise van den Heuvel and Angelika Niescier, the album brings together some of the most exciting voices on the European jazz scene.

The result is a powerful, imaginative debut that combines virtuoso enthusiasm with cinematic imagination, whilst re-exploring the boundaries of contemporary jazz.

Hendrik Eichler’s Manic Anomaly

Hendrik Eichler
(born 1993) is a Cologne-based drummer and composer working at the intersection of modern creative jazz, improvisation, and conceptual sound art. His musical language is shaped by rhythmic innovation, atmospheric sound textures, and the exploration of new forms of expression on the drums, expanded through electronic effects, prepared elements, and narrative concepts.

He is an active part of the jazz scenes in Germany and the Netherlands and has performed at festivals including Moers Festival, Cologne Jazzweek, inJazz Rotterdam, Mondriaan Jazz Festival, and Jazz International Nijmegen, as well as at renowned venues such as the Bimhuis (Amsterdam), Paradox (Tilburg), domicil (Dortmund), Jazzschmiede (Düsseldorf), Stadtgarten (Cologne), and many more.

As a founding member of the Doppler Trio and Ingen Navn Trio, he has released several internationally acclaimed albums. The debut album Elewha (Ingen Navn Trio, 2023) was nominated for the German Jazz Prize 2024 in the category “Debut Album of the Year.” In 2021, the trio also won the Jazz Competition of the Carl Dörken Foundation. With the Doppler Trio, he most recently released the highly acclaimed album Archean (Berthold Records, 2021). He is also a member of Swiss guitarist Mareille Merck’s band LARUS, alongside Louise Knobil.

A particular focus of Eichler’s work lies in collaborations across artistic disciplines. In the dance production “What, Where, When Are We?” and the improvisation series “Synergie” at domicil Dortmund, he developed performative formats combining music, light, movement, and space. He is currently working on his new project Hendrik Eichler’s Manic Anomaly — a science-fiction-inspired concept project combining a visual stage language, digital innovation, and an international line-up.

Alongside his artistic work, Hendrik has been active as curator of the Jazzorama concert series at Artheater Cologne and as part of the organising team of the IMPAKT Kollektiv Cologne, which has, among other distinctions, received the APPLAUS Award.

Hendrik Eichler studied for both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at the renowned ArtEZ University of the Arts in Arnhem, the Netherlands. There, he studied jazz/pop drums with Etienne Nillesen and René Creemers, complemented by individual lessons with internationally renowned musicians including Jim Black, Jonas Burgwinkel, Christian Lillinger, Bodek Janke, Stéphane Galland, Amir Bresler, and others.

His Bachelor’s and Master’s theses focused on “Odd Meters” and “Morphing Rhythms” respectively, reflecting his ongoing interest in experimental rhythm and narrative structure in music.

Hendrik Eichler was born in Wuppertal in 1993, the son of jazz pianist Wolfgang Eichler and music educator Doris Eichler, and the brother of jazz bassist Inga Eichler. Growing up in a musical household, he received his first drum kit at the age of five and initially taught himself to play.

From 2006 onward, he studied at the Bergische Musikschule Wuppertal with Jörg Hedtmann and was later accepted into its pre-college programme, which included advanced tuition in music theory, piano, and drums.

He participated in numerous jazz workshops throughout Germany, including in Hilden, Burghausen, Solingen, Hagen, and Remscheid, and won second prize at “Jugend jazzt NRW” in 2012. From an early age, he gained stage experience in a wide range of ensembles, from big bands such as The Real McCoy and Junior Big Band Schwelm to pop projects such as Perforated, as well as musical and choir collaborations including A Jazz Mess and Die beste Schule Deutschlands.

A particularly formative influence was the regular experience of playing music with his father, which introduced him deeply to the world of jazz from an early age.

This album contains no booklet.