"It was always my goal to make Drahdiwaberl the most extreme and obscene band and I think we did that!" (Stefan Weber) - Drahdiwaberl is a politically oriented band, which was founded in Austria by singer Stefan Weber in 1969. The name is derived from the Viennese term for a roundabout. In the early years the band was in the first place a cover combo and interpreted music of bands like Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones and The Beatles in German. In the mid 70's they wrote their own songs. During this time, the first demo tapes were released. Their first official appearance was in 1972 at the University of Vienna. In 1978, Falco comes into the band. A year later they were on the amazing punk compilation Wiener Blutrausch on Schnazz-O-Phone/Tonau Records for which the band contributed three songs. A lot of gigs followed and the first records were released on GiG Records.
Musically Drahdiwaberl are difficult to classify. This is due, among other things, the ever-changing band line-up. Already in the first years their songs were distinguished by a high degree of individuality, although the band almost exclusively lectured cover versions of famous rock & roll pieces. Through the bizarre mixture of jazz and blues many cuts were barely recognizable. In the 70s, they devoted themselves with their political and aggressive lyrics to punk rock, instrumental during this time were deliberately distorted and poorly tuned guitars and the more restrained use of the drums. The left-leaning lyrics of the band related work across the years almost always to current political events, always with a touch of cynicism and black humor. Issues with which the band continues to set apart, include racism in Austria, the Red Army Faction (Baader-Meinhof Group), the FPÖ and George W. Bush. Drahdiwaberl was primarily known for their live performances.
Weber emphasized always wanting to do something for the public, so that it would entertain. So the band decided to accompany their performances with a flash show, often ended with home bans and sanctions by the organizer.
On this superb 7inch is with 'Lonely' a nice rockin' ballad and the flip is an interesting cover version of the 60s classic 'Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Honolulu Strandbikini'. Two cool tracks I like.
Hey WDM,
ReplyDeletegood description about Drahdiwaberl ;)
Wouldn´t go that far to call this a superb 7", nevertheless it´s a cult release.
I remember I didn´t like this tune at all when it was in the charts back then - probably I didn´t get that it was meant to be a persiflage.
Some years later I discovered Drahdiwaberl, when they released their infamous "Jeannys Rache". An all-time classic cult album in my stock, containing their smash hit "Mulatschag".
Nice to get remembed to some tunes of my youth, hehe.
RunningWild