MINISEX - Bikini Atoll 1982

Early morning and it goes a bit poppy with the second record by Minisex, an Austrian band from Vienna, founded 1980, of the "Neue Deutsche Welle" (?), which celebrated great successes in the Eighties. With their music they wanted to fight against the then popular songwriters' scene. At the beginning they were still singing in English, but then they switched to German. They released four albums and broke up 1990. In mid-2009, the group reunited for a charity concert and since then they play live, mostly in Austria. In March 2014 the fifth album appeared and the band keeps goin'. I bought this platte for five bucks and well, nine pretty audible relaxed danceleg swing songs. Simply said: 8 points out of 10. Check these both compilations for more Austrian music.

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COSMETICS - s/t LP 1982

Now female fronted and come to a band from beautiful Vienna and there's not really much info in the www. The Cosmetics were founded in 1981 by the producer-couple Gitti and Ernie Seuberth. 'Coconut Smoother' is their debut 7'' which was released on Lemon Records (Zitronenklang) and with their second single, 'Hello Man' they held for weeks at No.1 the Austria charts. At the Rennbahn-Express-Star selection-1981 they were voted as the most successful local band (before Chuzpe). Gitti Seuberth sang also in the new-wave band Minisex and with the director Niki List the theme song to his cult film (and there are not many in Austria) Müllers Büro. I'm really happy and grateful for this album because it's so fuckin 'rare and only a few know, it's worth to listen to every song. Excellent pop with a fat touch of punk (KBD fit). And the band's not afraid to play a few covers, examples: 'Last Time' by the Rolling Stones or 'Summertime Blues' by unforgotten Eddie Cochran. Curious? - Very good!!!!!

- Huge Thx to Reinhard -

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V/A - WienmusikK 1981

Last post for this month and it belongs to our dear nice neighbors, this fine and rare compilation is one more a great punk/synth/avantgarde release from Austria which came out via Schallter Records. Very weird noises and electronics plus a few punk tracks can be heard and it's again, like Die Tödliche Dosis record, a interessting mix of the early underground scene from Austria's beautiful capital city Vienna, varied, charmin' and for all those who like to discover new music styles just right. Although no big hits on it but absolutely worth hearing. And this is the tingly stuff for this awesome Blog! - Hell Yeah!

1.Radio Radio - TOM PETTINGS HERTZATTACKEN

2.Push - MINISEX

3.Spy - STANDART OIL

4.Du Brichst Mein Herz - ROSACHROM

5.You're Trying To Tell Me - NOVAK'S KAPELLE

6.Fühlen Sie Die Macht - ERNSTE JUGEND

7.Ist Gut - LEIDER KEINE MILLIONÄRE

8.Get Away Dark Side - ROTER ROT

9.La Plage - FLAMINGO

10.Neapolytaner - GELBE ZONE

11.Die Straße Ist Nass (Ich Tu, Was Ich Will) - HOTEL MORPHILA ORCHESTER

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V/A - Wiener Blutrausch 1979

This sampler is ringing the bells of the punky revolution 1979 in Austria, but at least a decided departure from Austro-Pop, ORF Big Band sound and singer-protest-folk, a peculiarly divergent cross section documented through the underground, the little one common denominator except for a cheeky-cheeky had attitude. The information gathered on the Blutrausch sampler primal sounds of Drahdiwaberl, Minisex (then: Mini-sex), Metzlutzkas Erben, Chuzpe & Mordbuben AG managed at least distance to a generation of musicians with the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin or Cat Stevens grew up - was alone in the strict punk, British sense was the only somewhat. Check out this brilliant piece of cult for yourselfs.

1.Kaiserhymne Pink Punk Shirt - DRAHDIWABERL

2.Low And Order Man - DRAHDIWABERL

3.Tropic Chaotic - MINI-SEX

4.Valium - MINI-SEX

5.Dark Visions - MINI-SEX

6.Infrarot Klosett - METZLUTZKAS ERBEN

7.Panik / Alanig - CHUZPE

8.Beislanarchie - CHUZPE

9.Terror In Klein-Babylon - CHUZPE

10.Mordbuben AG - MORDBUBEN AG

11.Mi Hat, Mi Hat Der Größenwahn - MORDBUBEN AG

12.Heimatland - MORDBUBEN AG

13.Weg Vom Fenster - METZLUTZKAS ERBEN

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RAINER ZUFALL - Modemann 7'' 1981

Behind the band name Rainer Zufall lies a fascinating piece of Austrian music history. It is not a conventional, permanent band, but rather a parody and studio project by the well-known Austrian singer, composer, and actor Günter "Mo" Mokesch from Vienna. Mo is a familiar face in the Austrian music and cultural scene; he was a singer with the legendary Viennese pop-theater group Hallucination Company and later achieved major pop success with his band Mo & The Gangsters in Love. For this unique project, he simply adopted the name Rainer Zufall and handled all the vocals himself. Mokesch specifically created it as a parody of Joachim Witt. The song 'Modemann' parodied that very specific, minimalist, and slightly arrogant NewWave vocal style, and the fact that the single was released on the Schallter label was a perfect fit.

Founded by Wilfried Scheutz, the label was the premier platform for the Viennese avant-garde, New Wave, and PostPunk scenes at the time. The cover art is simple, evoking the cool, detached gloom typical of German NewWave. Yet, behind that seemingly dead-serious expression lies one of the most charming and incisive parodies of its era. It features a minimalist, pulsating synth-bass, a drum machine with mechanical precision, and that signature angular, almost arrogantly monotonous spoken word vocal style. The lyrics gleefully skewer the emerging, superficial New Wave yuppie culture and the excessive fashion obsession of the early 80s.

The genius of it all is that Mokesch doesn't parody the genre by making it look ridiculous, but rather by imitating it to perfection. It was produced with punchy energy and could easily be played in clubs without anyone realizing it was a parody; only upon closer listening does the subtle Austrian wit (*Schmäh*) reveal itself. The B-side features an instrumental track that consistently carries on the electronic experiment but ventures in an even more experimental direction. Choppy rhythms and playful synth effects dominate here. It is a quintessential B-side track of the era: bold, slightly offbeat, and perfect for underground DJs in the Vienna scene.

Modemann is a prime example of the versatility of "Austro Wave." While bands like Minisex or Blümchen Blau adopted the sound earnestly, the Rainer Zufall project demonstrated that the Viennese scene could also think and laugh outside the box (and at their German neighbors). A rare, wonderfully aged time capsule that belongs in any well-curated record collection.

- Great Thx to Reinhard -

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