DIE TOTEN HOSEN - Pushed Again EP 1998

Before I pay full attention to the DFB Cup semi-final in Gelsenkirchen a fine release by Die Toten Hosen from Düsseldorf. I don't think I must say much about this five gentlemen. The legend start as ZK in 1978 in its three-year life span, two 7Inches and three albums were published. In 1982 Campino, Andreas von Holst and the roadie Andreas Meurer founded then the Hosen. They released sixteen studio albums by May 2017, many 7Inches and are one of the most successful bands in Germoney. Personally, I like their first three albums because they are rougher/crazier and rarely played on Radio or TV. Also songs were written in English and Pushed Again is one of them and here I like them very much, two in English, two in German and for the Australian fans was create 1999 the album Crash-Landing with sixteen nuggets. I'm not the band's big fan but sometimes they kick out a burner. Enough blah blah, listen and watch soccer!

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MALE - Die Toten Hosen Ihre Party EP 1991

Male was one of the first German punk bands, founded 1976 in Düsseldorf and the four songs on this EP were recorded by Jürgen (vocals/guitar), Stefan (guitar), Rüdiger (bass), Claus (drums) between 1976-1982 and released via Teenage Rebel Records. Their debut Zensur & Zensur is nowadays a very sought record among collectors and shine with fourteen simple minimalistic pieces. I guess, those leftovers didn't make it onto the album, but since they are good friends of the Toten Hosen, they probably decided to put out this EP, a good decision. It's time for the weekend, I'm getting tired from work.

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DIE TOTEN HOSEN - Battle Of The Bands 1985

Out of the ashes of ZK were 1982 formed Die Toten Hosen in Düsseldorf. They enjoy over decades a strong popularity in Germany and they exist for over thirty years and their songs' focus gradually shifted from funny and nonsensical to serious and on this rare 12'' they perform as five different bands. The album is not the best and they don't really like it.. yes even find embarrassing! The songs have been written for the extrem badly "Formula One" movie. This vinyl is not exactly overwhelming but it has a little charm and good humor. Well, when I listen to Opel-Gang or Damenwahl then this slab is quite far away from both. But hey - check for yourselfs!

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DIE TOTEN HOSEN - Unter Falscher Flagge 1984

Under false flag is the second studio album by Die Toten Hosen, released via Totenkopf/Virgin Records, and even if they reap commercial success today and sound cleaner, their early records still are blessed Gassenhauer. Because of the cover, the disputes with EMI continued immediately after publication. In the picture, the band, dressed as pirates, poses on a ship in front of the Düsseldorf Rheinturm. At the bow of the ship a black flag is attached. In the first version she is painted with a graphic by Michael Roman. It shows a dog skeleton sitting in front of a gramophone. EMI interpreted this symbol as a denigration of their landmark His Master's Voice. The band was forbidden by the court to distribute this version of the cover, and the record was sold for the time being with almost completely blackened cover and a sticker "censored" provided. Some, distributed for promotion purposes plates but was a photo Campinos, as he kneels in front of a dog in front of a gramophone. With the later release as CD, a third version of the cover was created. The picture is similar to the first version, but the black flag carries a drawn bony eagle. The Persiflage on the German Federal Eagle is still a common emblem of the band together with the grinning skull. The new edition of the album for the 25th anniversary of the band in 2007 shows on the front again the original cover picture with a dog skeleton on the flag.

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V/A - Cannabis Weekend 1995

Let's start June with a nice German compilation with a heavy funny title and almost all twenty-one songs of course deal with pot smoking or goes with it. Except Serene Fall and they were the reason I must bought this CD. 'Faces' is one of the best songs from the Gladbach band and only here released in their original four piece line-up. It's about bad feelings which eat yourself and go into the mark, stay there because it can't goes worse, know what I mean?... let's see for yourself - The record is a very good mix of alternative/punk goodies, my favorites are the unforgotten Bates, Three O'Clock Heroes, Tote Hosen, Rausch and Fitt Band Experience. Ca 80% exclusive tunes on Dope Records.
A perfect opener for sunny days or.... ?

1.The Deal - AG HANF 
2.All Shut Up - THREE O'CLOCK HEROES 
3.Gute Reise - DIE TOTEN HOSEN 
4.Warten - TIEFLADER 
5.Lazy - FITT BAND EXPERIENCE 
6.Witness - AG HANF 
7.Begreife Deine Wirklichkeit - KALTE ZEITEN 
8.Zuviel - LEMON 8 
9.Heo - THE BATES 
10.Rollerskates On Ice - THROW THAT BEAT 
11.Marc's Kochstudio - PHASE IV 
12.Stoned Faces Don't Lie - ANDREAS DORAU 
13.Looser - M.WALKING ON WATER 
14.Holiday From Myself - RAUSCH 
15.The Cops - AG HANF 
16.Faces - SERENE FALL 
17.Paint - 2 BAD 
18.Envy - GUNJAH 
19.Reggae Music - OUTASPACE 
20.Homecoming - AG HANF 
21.Mit Einem Bein - HIGHZUNG

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ARAM & DIE SCHAFFNER - Zieh Nur Alleine 7'' 1984

This rare record was released at Sneaky Pete Records and is the only output from Aram & Die Schaffner. The band were founded 1981 in Düsseldorf, a few members played later in Die Toten Hosen and Aram was kind of a rag-tag combo to make music at all and gigs they had not much, of course they did not long exist. But this little piece of vinyl is nowadays on top in the lists of the sought-after plates, and certainly pressed in a small edition. Musically we have two solid punk tracks with a typical touch of the Düsseldorf sound like Mittagspause, KFC, ZK or Fehlfarben. Peter Hein, singer of Fehlfarben, founded Sneaky Pete Records 1984 in his hometown of Düsseldorf after he left the band. Features of the publications was that Peter used the phone number of his friends as catalog numbers of his publications and most bands on his label come from the Düsseldorf scene around the Ratinger Hof. In the late 80's Peter closed the label. So this two mid-tempo rockers are delicious and they had the potential for more.... Mörder!!!! Mörder!!!!!!

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PETER & THE TEST TUBE BABIES - Crap Californian Punk Band 7'' 2017

Weekend and suitable for this is the following musical explosion and Peter's Test Tube Babies (known as much for their snarky sense of humor and working-class outlook) pre-released this 7inch from their album That Shallot on Arising Empire Records and is limited to 400 copies. Short story: in 2017 the four toured the United States in support of their above mentioned album, and they made headlines when Bywaters was deported after a show in which he dressed up as the blond idiot on-stage. Some media outlets reported that Bywaters' less than flattering impersonation of the President was the reason he was sent back to the UK, but US Customs and Border Protection officials insisted it was simply a matter of Peter having the wrong visa. Howsoever, they made an official video for this song which was shot in sunny Hastings and features cameo appearances by Rancid frontman Lars Fredericksen and Hasting’s own Maid Of Ace. The flip is also a small highlight, namely the Toten-Hosen dare to 'The Jinx', the classic Babies hit from the early days. And they don't do that badly at all. In any case, a nice record and you can now open a cool 🍺.

- Great Thx to Fredrik -

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PUBLIC TOYS - Safety-Pins On Television EP 1998

Public Toys was founded in Düsseldorf 1991 by Fossi (vocals), Uwe & Guido (guitars), Roman (bass), Usenburger (drums) and they convey a whole attitude towards life that was long thought to be extinct. At the beginning of the 90s, a couple of guys from Düsseldorf get together and want to play punk. You'd heard it somewhere before - that's why various newspapers at the time associated: “The grandchildren of the Toten Hosen are now inheriting their inheritance!” But they go their own way and create their own style. "Punkrock has no idols!" and the Public Toys are certainly not a band that could be described as a copy of some punk greats. At the end of 1997 singer Fossi left the band and Pascal joined them as new singer, who from then on wrote many lyrics for the band. All in all, they have enriched the nineties with their refreshing sound and the result are three albums and a few singles (I don't even want to talk about the numerous compilation contributions). This little dittie was released through Pascal’s own label Dirty Faces and transports four catchy numbers in your house and give you peace. An Opinion: "The Public Toys are the last and only true punk heroes. So sweet that the girls lie to their feet, hard enough to hit it off with the punk scene and smart enough to write controversial lyrics that when brought together with the right music are so melodious that you don't want to withhold it from anyone..." (BUT Fanzine). Can stay like this.

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MISCAST - s/t EP 1990

Miscast were Lothar (vocals), Thomas (guitars), Didi (bass), Stefan (drums) and formed around September 1983 by people in and around Olten, at a time when American hardcore swept into Switzerland. Back then I was working with Felix Fischer at Jamming Distribution and we were probably the first in Switzerland who were trying to sell stuff like This Is Boston Not L.A. & Flex Your Head comps, 7Inches and 12Inches by SS Decontrol, Negative Approach, Minutemen, White Cross, Minor Threat and the like. Miscast played somewhere around thirteen shows in Switzerland, among them one supporting Toxic Reasons and another playing after Die Toten Hosen. There were several smaller gigs too, one of them we did along with Haine Brigade at an anarchist meeting in Lamastre (France) on July 13th, 1984. It was a time bereft of enthusiasm (the "Youth Movements" had been crushed), various gangs of fascist scums kept attacking gigs, Punks beat up on each other, and so forth. There wasn't very much happening in the way of bands either, most of them were musically and ideologically still rooted in '77, except for a few... GKH for example, from Baden, who were very young (average age: 15) and therefore had quite a devil-may-care approach (meaning guitars with strings missing etc.). Still, they managed to get one song on the second Flipside compilation.

One of them also published the first Swiss hardcore fanzine before he changed sides and became a nazi-skin (with all but the drummer and their later bassplayer doing likewise... The drummer is now in Jaywalker). Brutal Menekken, Decontrol, Attax and Kosili too were early, moderate (and tame!) attempts at hardcore. None of them, however, were quite as fast, original and hard as Miscast. But sometime in Autumn 1984 the story had already come to an end, about half a year after the Miscast demotape was released on Stechapfel-Vertrieb. (words by Simon and translated from the liner notes.) - Cool Eighties Stuff!

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SCHLIESSMUSKEL - Untergang Der Abendländischen Kultur 1987

Last week I had some time to rip some old D-punk classics and the next four posts belong exclusively to this. Let's start with the awesome debut from Schliessmuskel (German punk band of the late 1980s and early 1990s from Hamminkeln). Along with groups such as the Mimmi's and the Abstürzenden Brieftauben they were among the best-known German bands of this genre (FunPunk). The band itself always rejected the classification "FunPunk" and saw the band rather as Punk (Hardcore) combo and I agree absolutely with them. After the band's formation in 1983 by Ede Wolff (guitar), Schlaffke Wolff (vocals), Techt Tetmeyer (drums) and Böckler Hachenberg (bass) they released their debut EP Komm Setz' Dich Zu Uns (WeBite Records) in 1986 with six short punk attacks and with their debut LP one year later they continued their fast hardcore style, same applies for the 2nd album Sehet, Welch Ein Mensch! In the coming years they played gigs with the Spermbirds, MDC or the Adicts. 1990 they were on the compilation Festival Der Volxmusik that brought together the most important German fun punk performers. The next album Weniger Fett-Mehr Muskeln appeared in the same year and reached four digit sales figures and held for weeks in the independent charts. Mid-1990 it was quiet about the group and the split from WeBite follows. In 1993 the musicians performed as the opening act for Die Toten Hosen. Renamed in Die Muskeln and in the following years, the band retreated, still published recordings (in 2000 again under the old band name). Singer Schlaffke began after the withdrawal of the group under the name "Zwakkelmann" a solo project but with no comparable success. In late 2005 the band were reformed and played in Oberhausen and early 2006 in Essen two gigs. Rumors of a reunion but were rejected. So don't be afraid what you see or read about them, Schliessmuskel is one of the best German Punk bands I've ever seen.

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V/A - Halt! 2023

All right! Now, after a long time, one more selfmade Compilation is coming and there are songs on a certain topic that I don't usually do, but this time it was a need for me and it's quite possible that a second one will follow. It's about society & people, and I took thirty-seven killers which I like and think, they're fit. This manipulated society that is trapped in those systems and marches along tightly without following their own emotions and demands, that others hate because of a pimple on their forehead and let themselves be fooled every day and are numbed by the guidelines that are presented to them. Frightening & Incomprehensible this mass social control... I'm so sick of them! Certainly not just here but everywhere and I guess you know what I'm talking about, you see it every day. Anyway, this is my small contribution from the WDM Records headquarters with a lot of help by friends. Enjoy!

1.Bullshit Society - CRUMBSUCKERS

2.Fuck The Media - ANTIDOTE

3.Schmetterling - TEAM SCHEISSE

4.I Don't Wanna Work - QUEERS

5.Cremation In Belsen - THE GROUT

6.Knowledge - NYAM NYAM

7.One And One Is Two - BADBEATS

8.Punk's Not A Fashion - STRAIN

9.Don't Classify Me - TAZERS

10.A Year Without Summer - THE DICEMEN

11.I Don't Love You - DISHRAGS

12.Get Out Of My Life - VIOLATORS

13.Und So Weiter - DIE TOTEN HOSEN

14.Sick Society - HANGOVER

15.System - CRASS

16.Ihr Nennt Es Leben - INZEST

17.Society - THE RUTS

18.Nazi School - CRACKED ACTOR

19.Linke Spießer - SLIME

20.Don't Care - BLITZ

21.Sad Society - CHAOTIC YOUTH

22.I Hate People - ANTI-NOWHERE LEAGUE

23.Money Talks - PENETRATION

24.Dead Serious - ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT

25.Sick Society - DEEP SIX

26.Police Brutality - VICIOUS CIRCLE

27.World's Going Insane - THE INSANE

28.Society Rules - VIOLENT APATHY

29.Fuck You - THE STIFFS

30.I Like Drugs - SIMPLETONES

31.Essential Services - HERCO PILOTS

32.I'm So Sick Of It - BILLY SYNTH & THE TURN UPS

33.Just Be Yourself - NEGATIVE ELEMENT

34.Kill Someone You Hate - RED CROSS

35.Don't Believe - KRAUT

36.Insane Society - MENACE

37.Halt! - RAMMSTEIN

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RODGAU MONOTONES - Volle Lotte! 1984

Einen hab ich noch and we meet local heroes Rodgau Monotones, a rock combo founded in 1977 and they are especially popular in the Rhein Main area around Frankfurt/Main and in the German federal state of Hessia because of their biggest success Die Hesse Komme from 1984, which is sort of an unoffcial hymn for the region. This is their third album on Rockport with eleven solid rock songs. Bandinfo: In November 1977, five musicians from Rodgau met for the first time in the rehearsal room and founded the Rodgau Monotones. They wanted to make music which is not German or jazz rock, but rather party rock. In the early years they limited themselves to offering pieces by ZZ Top, Johnny Winter and Queen with German lyrics. In 1978, Hendrik "Henni" Nachtsheim joined the band with his saxophone, later known as a member of the comedy duo Badesalz. The first appearance of the band took place on Carnival 1978 @ the Roxy in Offenbach am Main - as a break filler of "Hartz Reinhard Revival", also played in the Mob and Osti. This was followed by a series of performances in smaller venues, where already up to 2000 people came to the concerts when the band was still unknown in Frankfurt. In 1980 followed the first appearance in the Batschkapp in Frankfurt-Eschersheim, which was terminated after only one hour due to lack of repertoire. In 1982 they took their first album Wollt Ihr Musik, Oder Was? on and went regional tour. With the single release Ei Gude as from the 2nd slab Fluchtpunkt Dudenhofen they made their first radio appearances. The chart sequence of the album Volle Lotte! (16th place) and the single Die Hesse komme! (#22) helped the Rodgau Monotones to the final breakthrough. In 1985, they put on the longplayer We see ourselves in court (# 23) and the singles Hello, I am Hermann (75th place) after. In the same year they played in the band for Africa together with other rock greats on the Cologne cathedral plate the German contribution Nackt in the wind to the "Live Aid Concert". The participation in the festival in the stadium @ Bieberer Berg 1983 in Offenbach with Santana, Bob Dylan and Joan Baez followed in 1984 "Pampa Power" in the stadium of the FSV Frankfurt on Bornheimer Hang with Flatsch!, Die Crackers, Feinbein, Hob Goblin, Roger Chapman ", the anti-WAAhnsinns festival and on October 19, 1985, following an appearance at Kuli in one, will also win one more in the ARD Rockpalast. As part of the Deep Purple Open Air 85 on June 29, 1985 on the Mannheim Maimarktgelände and on July 6, 1985 @ the Zeppelinfeld in Nuremberg they were honored to open both festivals (with Roger Chapman, Mountain, Meat Loaf & Deep Purple). The cartoonist Chlodwig Poth produced in 1985 with his daughter Leonore Poth a 30-minute music film with animated elements called "Rodgau Melodies - Die Rodgau Monotones and their songs" for the Hessischer Rundfunk. The rudimentary plot of the film - now available on DVD - played at a Rodgau kiosk. On 27 July 1986 they had a joint appearance with Herbert Grönemeyer and the band Die Toten Hosen in the demonstration against the planned nuclear reprocessing plant Wackersdorf. In 1987 saxophonist Achim Farr joined the band for his "Sportsmen" tour. In 1990, Henni Nachtsheim left the band and concentrated together with Gerd Knebel von Flatsch! based on the early eighties comedy duo bath salts. For a year and a half the band paused, then they found the right replacement for the vocals with Kerstin Pfau. In the middle of 2001 there was another break when Achim Farr left the band at his own request. With this departure also the horn section with Joachim Kunze (trumpet) and Thomas Wimbauer (trombone) was dissolved. The new saxophonist was Matthias "Mattl" Dörsam.

In March 2003, the Rodgau Monotones celebrated their 25th stage anniversary ("Silver Wedding") in two sold-out concerts in the Stadthalle Offenbach together with their old companions Flatsch!, Hob Goblin, the Crackers and 8000 fans. The "Monotones" celebrated their thirtieth anniversary on August 30, 2008 together with numerous guests such as Anne Haigis and Wolfgang Niedecken and companions such as Hendrik Nachtsheim, Gerd Knebel and Jürgen Zöller in the Hanauer Amphitheater. The three-hour concert was broadcast on 28.September 2008 together with the two-hour unplugged concert of the "Monotones" in May 2008 and the film Rodgau Melodies by hr-Fernsehen as "The Long Rodgau Monotones Night". On April 2, 2009, Rodgau Monotones received the Citizen Medal in gold from the city of Rodgau. In March 2018, the band celebrated their 40th anniversary at the Stadthalle Offenbach. In the more than three-hour show they met again with old companions.

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DIE MIMMI'S - Was'n Hier Los? 1984

Die Mimmi's were founded in 1982 after the dissolution of Dusseldorf punx ZK (Campino, Kuddel, both now Die Toten Hosen, and Isi, Panhandle Alks) by drummer Fabsi (Claus Fabian) in Bremen. Fabsi was the lead singer of the otherwise fully moved frequently from women existing band and the occupation. After Fabsi didn't found a label for the first 7'' "Deutscher Meister Wird Der SVW", he founded the Weser label, where it finally appeared in self-published, as well as all later Mimmi's albums. The debut album "Was'n Hier Los?" was released in 1984 and from that point on they belonged to the core of the German punk scene.

Meanwhile, the cast changed frequently. Professional commitments of the group members required that many concerts take place on weekends and short tours were about regularly put into the Christmas period. In the press because of the ZK's Song "Dosenbier" they were often counted for Fun-punk, a term that they felt themselves to be too superficial. Visit the Mimmi's at home for more info. The sixteen songs handle mostly from the strange thing called love and the little everyday things that happen in life as a Punk. In 1996, the Mimmi's broke up after internal strife and private blows. On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Weser label in 2002 Fabsi and drummer Lars decided to revive the band and since then they are ravaging the German cowsheds. Want listen to more Mimmi’s?

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V/A - For Our Beloved Departed! [Special] 2014

Exactly one year ago, I lost my love - R.I.P. my beloved Girl, still missing you!

1.In A Lonely Place - NEW ORDER

2.Gone - DAVID HOLMES

3.Jewel - CRANES

4.Into My Arms - NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS

5.The Sage - VAMPIRE STATE BUILDING

6.Nur Zu Besuch - TOTEN HOSEN

7.Kein Zurück - WOLFSHEIM

8.Der Tanz Der Schatten - THEATRE OF TRAGEDY

9.Where The Lights Won't Shine - PSYCHED UP JANIS

10.Atmosphere - JOY DIVISION

11.Roads - PORTISHEAD

12.Missing You - PINK TURNS BLUE

13.Let Your Fingers Do The Walking - SORT SOL

14.It's All Over - THE GOD MACHINE

15.Late Night - THIS MORTAL COIL

16.Exit Music - RADIOHEAD

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DIE GOLDENEN ZITRONEN - Porsche, Genscher, Hallo HSV 1987

After two nice 7Inches the Bremer Weser Label released the debut of Die Goldenen Zitronen (The Golden Lemons), punx from Hamburg that are known for their entertaining and politically relevant style. Their original name was Die Deutschen Nazikartoffeln (the German Nazi-potatoes). When the band formed in 1984 at the beginning of the “Fun-Punk”-movement, punk was their main style and over the years the band added more experimental musical forms combined with different styles. Their lyrics are political and take a critical view of society from a left to left-radical perspective and they are also especially known for its chaotic live performances.

The founding members were Schorsch Kamerun (vocals), Ale Sexfeind (drums), Ted Gaier (bass & guitar), and Aldo Moro (guitar & bass). Initially they combined hard rock with 1970s-era punk and lyrics that were both angry, yet comedic and pop-like. The band rejected the traditional music industry, seeing themselves as a symbol of artistic independence not wanting to "serve the structures of rock" (Ted Gaier.) Of the founding members, only Schorsch Kamerun and Ted Gaier remain. The new members are Thomas Wenzel (Die Sterne) under the pseudonym Julius Block, keyboarder and drummer Mense Reents (Egoexpress, Stella), and Enno Paluca. Their song, "Für Immer Punk," is a cult hit in the German punk scene, inspiring comparisons with bands such as Abwärts, Die Toten Hosen and Die Ärzte. Sixteen varied highlights and a debut that is much more than fun punk.

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V/A - Nazis Raus! 1991

More relevant than ever, see the current circumstances every Monday in Dresden, or remember this date 1938 in Nazi-Germany or the racist riots in Hoyerswerda in 1991. I can't understand how they can deal with such a stupid ideology that brought nothing except death and destruction. I guess it's easy to throw life away and lose dignity & respect when you only feel hatred. Life is not always easy but that excused nothing. The one-way thinking is modern and easy but to have an own opinion is really not hard. Maybe this compilation helps, released via Weird System, show nineteen bands that there is another way and encourage to think about yourself.... more relevant than ever!

1.Nazis Raus! - BETONCOMBO

2.Hallo, Ich Heiss' Adolf - ABWÄRTS

3.Eckensteher - NEUROTIC ARSEHOLES

4.Herrenreiter - MITTAGSPAUSE

5.Nichts Gelernt - STUNDE X

6.Schweigen - EA80

7.Fahnensog - RAZZIA

8.Nie Wieder Faschismus - DIE MIMMI'S

9.Deutsche Raus Aus Deutschland - THE BUTTOCKS

10.Party In Der Gaskammer - MIDDLE CLASS FANTASIES

11.Vaterland - MALE

12.Fünf Vor Zwölf - DIE TOTEN HOSEN

13.Seekarten - SLIME

14.Glanz & Gloria (Armes Deutschland) - BLUT+EISEN

15.80.000.000 Hooligans - DIE GOLDENEN ZITRONEN

16.No Nazis - RUMBLE MILITIA

17.Gavur - EMILS

18.Dachau Disco - CRETINS

19.Faschos In Sibirien - PISSED SPITZELS

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BAD LADIES & THE WILD LOVERS - s/t EP 1986

This band is a short side-project of the Mimmi's from Bremen and this is their record at WeserLabel with three sexy pieces. Info: On 18. October 1986, the Mimmi's and ZK came together again for a concert on the occasion of the "Wir Lassen Uns Das Singen Nicht Verbieten (We Won't Let Us Be Forbidden To Sing)" solidarity festival in Berlin's Tempodrom. The proceeds of the concert, at which dozens of artists performed, including Die Toten Hosen and Die Ärzte, served to cover the legal costs for the Heino parodist Norbert Hähnel. With Lars on drums, Mimmi's remnants Fabsi (vocals), Elli (guitars) and Sylke (bass) formed Bad Ladies & The Wild Lovers in October 1986, with whom they produced the only record later that year, the first 100 came in clear vinyl. In early 1987, the Mimmi's reunited and the Bad Lovers were buried. This is their humble little legacy, undiscovered and unloved. Certainly interesting for some, the Bremen Under Cover compilation, on which they were allowed to take part briefly.

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ABWÄRTS - Der Westen Ist Einsam 1982

An album that I haven't heard for a long time and thanks to iNgo, I dug up this nugget and realize how great this stuff is, the second Abwärts album. It sounds somber and darker than anything that previously appeared from the four, and can certainly be viewed in the context of the emerging Gothic culture. Critics put it in line with releases by British post-punk bands such as Theatre Of Hate and Killing Joke. Band boss Frank Ziegert confessed in an interview with Diedrich Diederichsen in 1988 that Abwärts had to a certain extent been forced by the punk audience at the beginning of the 1980s not to present any sophisticated compositions: “[…] we were literally afraid to make music. Everything always had to be hard, that was the word: hard. We increased ourselves into a senseless aggressiveness that had nothing to do with us at all, I wasn't really tough all the time and neither were the others." Unsatisfied with the care of their previous independent label ZickZack Platten, the group wanted to work more professionally and offer their next album to a major label. Work on it began in the autumn of 1981 at Hafenklang Studio Hamburg. A whole month of self-financed and self-produced studio recordings was followed by a week of mixing at The Town House in London by producer Nick Launay. At the end of 1981 the album was finished, which was then offered to various record companies for publication. For an advance payment of allegedly 50.000 DM, the band finally signed with the German major label Phonogram which released first the Beirut, Holiday Inn 12" with four tracks. "Der Westen Ist Einsam" is the first band release without Margita Haberland, who left the group in 1981.

The album was released in April 1982. For publication, they went from May 11th to June 13th 1982 on an extensive tour with side trips to Switzerland and Amsterdam. The group made a spectacular appearance at the Münchner-Rocktage-Festival, at which FM Einheit destroyed parts of the stage structure. At some concerts, the newly founded Toten Hosen played the supporting act. Down, in turn, was hired as the opening act for The Cure tour. On the title "Beim Ersten Mal Tut's Immer Weh", Muscha and Trini Trimpop produced a video clip and the group even published a homestory in the youth magazine Bravo. Despite all of this, the album did not achieve the sales figures we had hoped for. As a result, FM Einheit and Marc Chung left the band for good to concentrate on the Einstürzende Neubauten, of which they had already joined as full members in 1981. In addition, drug problems also led the band to bury themselves for the first time. - And now: Bundesliga ⚽

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ZK - Leichen Pflasterten Ihren Weg 1982

Last month this year and let's start December with a nostalgia record by ZK, a German punk band from Düsseldorf, which is regarded as the predecessor of the group Die Toten Hosen. At first they called themselves the Central Committee of the City Center, but in the scene, the abbreviation ZK was established. ZK was founded in November 1978 by Campino, Ralf Isbert and Claus Fabian. The first performance took place in March 1979 in the Ratinger Hof. The guitarist's position changed at first. It was not until the end of 1980 that he was filled with Andreas von Holst. The group initially played punkrock, but then continued to develop their style and integrated rock and rockabilly elements into their music. The humorous texts of the group were particularly noticeable. They were, for example, filthy phobias, cowboys sitting in bathtubs, or Christmas men with unwanted presents. In 1979 and 1980 they released a single and in 1981 followed the awsome debut album Eddie's Salon. On 21. November 1981, ZK gave their last concert at the "Okie-Dokie" in Neuss. The band members then went on different paths. This live album is so to speak an excellent compilation of all hits with nice announcements and a funny atmosphere. A great band!

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V/A - Break The Rules #7 1996

So that are no gaps here, now the missing piece of the puzzle of the essential compilation series from Incognito/Insekten Records headquarters: Back To Front; Means many rare unsung heroes who created fantastic music & colorful subcultures in the early wild years 1977-1982 worldwide and vehement flouted the dusty degenerate biblehousesocietynorms. Twenty-three brilliant examples prove once again that the music is different and the spirit is more alive than today. Mostly good stuff on this Volume and 1000 copies exist.

1.Züri Brännt - TNT

2.Stocking Clad Nazi Death Squad Bitches - BLEACH BOYS

3.Death By Disco - BLEACH BOYS

4.Stilla Natt - DESPERATE LIVIN'

5.Cover Girls - THE KLAN

6.Jürgen Engler's Party - DIE TOTEN HOSEN

7.Rockets & Rose - SWINGERS RESORT

8.Reagan - THE PAST

9.I.R.A. - THE PAST

10.No Room For You - DEMOB

11.1-2-3-4 - MOPOT

12.Regards - MICKEYNSTEIN

13.Wir Sind Die Marionetz - MARIONETZ

14.Don't Be Afraid To Pogo - THE GEARS

15.Jugend - P-NISSARNA

16.You Better Hear - MACHINES

17.Everything's Technical - MACHINES

18.Desperate - WARHEADS

19.New Trends - YOUNG IDENTITIES

20.Ajo Ajo - INCEST BROTHERS

21.Frenzie - CULT MANIAX

22.Marchin' Men - BELLEVUE

23.Ya Don't Want My Name - MATT GIMMICK

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