by LORRAINE CARPENTER

As Schneider TM, Germany's Dirk Dresselhaus puts himself to the test as man and man-machine. A devout indie rocker before his conversion to electronica (with 1998's Moist LP, followed by Zoomer in 2002), Dresselhaus pairs smart, sensitive lyrics with vocoders, samplers and laptops with acoustic guitars and technical proficiency with plain goofiness.

"It's interesting to play for people who are confused," he says, referring to a few shows on his American tour with the Faint and Les Savy Fav. "Sometimes we would wear white lab coats and Stetsons - it was a little bit freaky."

Costumed or dressed down, Dresselhaus had a fantastic time introducing Americans to his personable electropop last year, and he's eager to do the same for Canadians. MUTEK has booked Schneider TM as well as Angel, Dresselhaus' improv noise duo with Ilpo Väisänen, half of Finland's renowned minimalist duo Pan Sonic.

Schneider TM also requires an experimental mindset and informal setting to function, and not only on stage, where he often swerves off cruise control with his live bandmates Kpt. Michigan and Christian Obermaier, but while recording in his home studio.

"I'm not only inspired by music, but everything around and inside me, like dreams or sound from the street, and it's much easier to let those things come into the music at home than in a studio situation where everything is controlled and cleaned," says Dresselhaus, who's currently hard at work on a new LP.

Between albums, Dresselhaus is a prolific remixer, though he prefers complete reworkings to radio and dancefloor edits or extensions. Likewise, he and Kpt. Michigan launched a series of electro-Britpop tributes in 2000 with "The Light 3000," their take on the Smiths, and they've just completed a cover of Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now."

But before any new records hit the shelves, Montrealers will be graced with a live preview and, Dresselhaus promises, a playful show.

"Schneider TM is like a little band out of the box," he says. "We play a lot of funny electronic machines, guitars, vocals and records, so it looks like a playground for big boys."

Schneider TM, with Smith N Hack, Junior Boys and VFU, at SAT on Wednesday, June 2, 10:30pm, $20. Angel, with Original Hamster, Portable, Errorsmith, Kpt. Michigan, I8U and Magali Babin, at SAT on Saturday, June 5, 3pm, $15

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