Rokost’s music is structured yet uncompromising — harmonically clear, melodically focused, rhythmically direct, but never predictable. All compositions are written by Schroeder, though the band reshapes them in rehearsal through improvisation and reinterpretation. What begins on paper often transforms entirely once the group engages with it. “We almost never play a piece exactly as I wrote it,” Schroeder explains. “That’s what makes it feel alive — it becomes collective.”

Unlike many electronic-jazz hybrids, Rokost avoids presets. The band programs its own synthesizers, designs its own effects, and works extensively with tools such as Max/MSP and Ableton to craft an individual sonic language. The result is a sound that feels raw and immediate — fittingly echoed in the band’s name. “Rokost,” derived from the German word Rohkost (raw vegetables), began as a playful brainstorm. Over time, its meaning stuck: fresh, rough, unprocessed — music served without decoration.

Schroeder, known previously for his work with acoustic ensembles and large-format jazz projects, founded Rokost out of a desire to explore a more groove-oriented, high-energy sound world. A recipient of the Werner Burkhardt Music Prize (2026), Lübeck Jazz Award (2018), and Jazz Promotion Award of Schleswig-Holstein (2021), Schroeder has built a reputation as a composer for big bands and crossover ensembles. With Rokost, he steps into new territory — merging his trumpet voice and compositional craft with electronic production and club aesthetics.

After its debut concert in late 2023, Rokost quickly gained momentum, performing across Germany at festivals including Elbjazz Festival, Regensburg Jazz Weekend, and Travejazz Festival. In May 2024, the band recorded its first album at Studio Nord in Bremen. Mixed and co-produced by drummer Leon Saleh alongside Schroeder, the recording captures the intensity of the group’s live presence — a charged intersection of acoustic improvisation and electronic pulse.

Rokost does not aim to fuse genres for novelty’s sake. Instead, it builds a bridge: between jazz audiences and electronic music listeners, between composed structure and spontaneous risk, between tradition and digital experimentation. The music is direct and physical, yet layered with detail — energetic, sometimes abrasive, but always intentional.

With their debut album capturing the urgency and chemistry of a band still in rapid evolution, Rokost marks a new chapter in Michel Schroeder’s artistic path — one that embraces raw sound, collective creation, and the pulse of the present.