Musings of the Past

My recent trip to Germany reminded me that I previously wrote about German music artists and bands who perform their songs in German. This includes the following post, which originally appeared in June 2017. This republished version has been slightly edited. I’ve also added a Spotify playlist.

Germans Who Rock In German

Germany may be much better known internationally for engineering and beer than music, but there is much more to the latter than the Scorpions

In some ways, this post is a bit of a remake of my previous thoughts on German rock music. Obviously, what I said last October remains true today. Other than a few acts like the Scorpions, electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk and Neue Deutsche Härte group Rammstein, I can’t think of any other German rock music artists with a significant following beyond German-speaking countries.

Undoubtedly, one of the key reasons is the fact that many German rock bands are singing in German. Some go further and sing in dialects spoken in their native regions. This may make it tough even for other Germans to understand their lyrics – not exactly a recipe for international fame!

Following is a song selection from German-singing rock bands and artists, including some of my favorite acts from the Deutsch Rock genre. The caveat is most of them are “old guys,” who do not well represent what’s in the German charts these days, which I honestly don’t even know. But, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Old guys rock! 🙂

Niedeckens BAP

Niedeckens BAP, formerly known simply as BAP, probably remains my favorite German rock band. They perform their songs in the dialect spoken in the town of Cologne, Niedecken’s hometown. A huge fan of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen (and friends with the Boss!), Niedecken is the mastermind of the band, which was founded in 1976. During its 40-plus-year history, BAP have seen various changes in its lineup. Niedecken remains the only original member. Here’s a clip of Halv Su Wild, the title song from BAP’s 17th studio album released in 2011.

Wolf Maahn

This singer-songwriter, actor and producer initially started his music career in 1976 as a founding member of the Food Band. Mixing soul, jazz, pop and rock, this group sang in English. Wolf Maahn’s “German language music career” kicked off in the early ’80s with the studio album Deserteure. He gained broad national popularity in the mid ’80s, starting with the 1984 record Irgendwo in Deutschland. The studio album included Fieber, one of his best-known songs. Here’s a clip.

Marius Müller-Westernhagen

Westernhagen started his professional career as a 14-year-old actor in 1962, before he became interested in music during the second half of the ’60s. He continued acting and music, though his early recording efforts were largely unsuccessful. That changed in 1978, when Marius Müller-Westernhagen  released his fourth studio album Mit Pfefferminz Bin Ich Dein Prinz. The record’s title song remains one of his best-known tunes. Westernhagen continues to be one of Germany’s most popular music artists. Here’s a clip of a killer live version of Pfefferminz.

Udo Lindenberg

In addition to being a rock musician, Udo Lindenberg also is a writer and painter, making him one of the most versatile German music artists. He first hit the music scene in the early 1960s, when he was 15 years old and played as a drummer in bars in the German town of Düsseldorf. In 1968, Lindenberg went to Hamburg and joined the City Preachers, Germany’s first folk-rock band. In 1969, he left and co-founded the jazz-rock formation Free Orbit. They released an album in 1970, Lindenberg’s first studio recording. Only one year later, his eponymous solo album appeared. It would take another two years before Lindenberg achieved commercial breakthrough success with Alles Klar Auf Der Andrea Doria, his third solo album. He continues to record and perform to this day, still going strong at age 71. In 2008, Lindenberg had a major comeback with Stark Wie Zwei, his 35th studio release. Here’s a great clip of a live performance of Mein Ding, one of the tunes from his comeback release.

Herbert Grönemeyer

Grönemeyer is another long-time German multi-talent, who in addition to being a singer-songwriter is also a producer and actor. While some of his music is rock-oriented, overall, I would describe his style as pop. After his acting role in the acclaimed 1981 motion picture Das Boot, which also became an international success, Herbert Grönemeyer increasingly focused on music. His big national breakthrough as a music artist came in 1984 with his fifth studio album Bochum. One of my favorite Grönemeyer tunes, Vollmond, is on 1988’s Ö, his seventh studio release. Grönemeyer has since recorded seven additional studio records, the latest being Dauernd Jetzt, which appeared in Nov 2014. Here’s a clip of a live performance of Vollmond. Grönemeyer’s voice sounds a bit strained, but it’s still cool.

Brings

Brings are another act from Cologne, singing their songs in the local dialect. They started out as a great rock band in the early ’90s before they drastically changed their style to pop/”Schlager” in the early 2000s. This change, which I find quite unfortunate from a musical perspective, brought the band new popularity. They’ve since become a mainstay during the Cologne Carnival, a longtime tradition of the city that culminates with a week-long street festival where people go out masqueraded. Here’s a clip of Nix För Lau from the band’s second studio album Kasalla, which appeared in 1992.

Tocotronic

Founded in 1993, Tocotronic is an indie rock band from the northern German town of Hamburg. Admittedly, I know very little about their music, but there is one tune I’ve liked from the first moment I heard it. It’s called Gegen Den Strich and was included on the band’s seventh studio album, Pure Vernunft Darf Niemals Siegen (2005). Tocotronic have since released six additional studio records, the most recent of which (Nie wieder Krieg) appeared in January this year. Here’s a clip of Gegen Den Strich. The sound reminds me a bit of The Church and their great 1988 album Starfish.

Spider Murphy Gang

Named after the gangster Spider Murphy in Elvis Presley’s Jailhouse Rock, this band from the Bavarian town of Munich became known with classic rock & roll style songs performed in their native Bavarian dialect. The Spider Murphy Gang started out in 1977, covering top 40 rock & roll tunes from Presley, Chuck Berry and other classic rock & roll performers. In 1980, they recorded their German debut album Rock’n’Roll Schuah. The follow-up Dolce Vita brought them national acclaim, fueled by the tune Skandal Im Sperrbezirk, which became a staple of the so-called Neue Deutsche Welle (German New Wave). While the Spider Murphy Gang have had numerous changes in their lineup and haven’t recorded any new music since 2002, they continue to perform. Here’s a clip of an extended live performance of Schickeria, a tune from Dolce Vita.

Revolverheld

This rock band was founded in Hamburg in 2002. Initially, they were known as Manga before they changed their name to Tsunamikiller in the autumn of 2004. Following the devastating tsunami in Thailand in December that year, the band changed its name to Revolverheld. Like Tocotronic, I’m not well familiar with their music. The tune I’d like to highlight is Freunde Bleiben from their eponymous debut album in 2005. Here’s a clip.

L.S.E.

Named after the first letters of each member’s last name, Rolf Lammers, Arno Steffen and Tommy Engel, L.S.E. are yet another band from Cologne, which was founded in 1992. Like BAP and Brings, they sing in the local dialect. During their active period between 1992 and 1996, the band recorded three studio albums. While they haven’t made any new music since 1996, L.S.E. haven’t officially dissolved and still perform occasionally. One of my favorite tunes by this versatile band is the title song of their debut album Für Et Hätz Un Jäjen D’r Kopp, which was released in 1992. Here’s a great live version together with German comedienne, TV actress and multi-talent Carolin Kebekus, captured in September 2014.

– End –

The original post, first published on June 17, 2017, ended here. The following Spotify playlist has been added. It includes most of the above songs and some additional tunes by the featured artists.

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Time For Some Additional German Music

This post was inspired by a recent short trip back to Germany, the country in which I was born and lived for the first 26 years of my life. While I didn’t have time to look for new CDs by German music artists, I ended up listening to a playlist of German rock and pop songs while driving on the Autobahn from Frankfurt to the beautiful Rhine city of Bad Honnef near Bonn.

Once again, I was reminded there is some great German music out there, except it’s barely known beyond the country’s borders. To be clear, what I’m talking about is German language music, not German bands singing in English like Scorpions or electronic pioneers Kraftwerk. While I already previously posted about German music artists here and here, I thought this would be a good time for an encore. Since I left Germany more than 25 years ago, I’m not aware of any younger acts, so I’m revisiting artists I’ve known and liked for many years.

I’d like to kick things off with Wolf Maahn, a singer-songwriter, actor and producer. Born on March 25, 1955 in Berlin, Maahn got his initial start in 1976 as a founding member of the Food Band, which mixed soul, jazz, pop and rock and sang in English. His German language music debut was the album Deserteure from 1982. In 1985, he gained broad popularity as the first German act performing during Rockpalast Nacht, a recurring live six-hour concert event broadcast throughout Europe. To date, more than 20 studio, live and compilation Maahn albums have appeared. Slow-Mo In New York is his recently released latest single from an upcoming new studio album titled Break Out Of Babylon. ‘Wait a moment,’ you might think, didn’t I just note this post is about German language music? Yep, the lyrics are in German – for the most part. 🙂

Another longtime German music artist is Marius Müller-Westernhagen, also simply known as Westernhagen. The rock musician, who was born on December 6, 1948 in Düsseldorf, started his career as an actor at the age of 14. While he became interested in music during the second half of the ’60s, success didn’t come until the release of his fourth studio album Mit Pfefferminz Bin Ich Dein Prinz in 1978. Today, with 19 studio albums and various live and compilation records, Westernhagen is one of the most successful German music artists. Here’s a clip of Mit 18 from his upcoming release titled Das Pfefferminz-Experiment (Woodstock Recordings Vol. 1), scheduled for November 8. Based on what I’ve seen on the web, this appears to be a remake of the above album with new stripped down versions of the tracks. The album was recorded at Dreamland Studio in Woodstock with American musicians. This included multi-instrumentalist Larry Campbell, who has worked with the likes of Bob Dylan, Levon Helm, Sheryl Crow and Paul Simon. I have to admit the orginal Mit 18 is one of my favorite Westernhagen tunes, but after having listened to the remake a few times, I find it intriguing.

Udo Lindenberg, born on May 17, 1946 in Gronau, is a rock musician, writer and painter. He entered the music scene as a 15-year-old drummer playing in bars in Düsseldorf. In 1968, Lindenberg went to Hamburg and joined the City Preachers, Germany’s first folk-rock band. In 1969, he left and co-founded the jazz-rock formation Free Orbit. They released an album in 1970, Lindenberg’s first studio recording. Only one year later, his enponymous solo album appeared. Commerical breakthrough came with the third studio album Alles Klar Auf Der Andrea Doria. While Lindenberg has consistently recorded throughout the decades, success began to vane in the mid ’80s. Since 2008 and his 35th studio album Stark Wie Zwei, Lindenberg has experienced a late career surge. Today, the 73-year-old continues to go strong. His most recent album MTV Unplugged 2: Live vom Atlantik appeared last year. Here is Du Knallst In Mein Leben, which first appeared on Lindenberg’s 1983 studio album Odyssee. In this version, he shares vocals with German indie pop artist Deine Cousine.

Herbert Grönemeyer is one of the most versatile German artists. The musician, producer, vocalist, composer, songwriter and actor was born on April 12, 1956 in Göttingen. After his acting role in the acclaimed 1981 motion picture Das Boot, which also became an international success, Grönemeyer increasingly focused on music. His big national breakthrough as a music artist came in 1994 with his fifth studio record Bochum. To date, Grönemeyer has released 15 studio albums, as well as various compilations and live records. With more than 18 million units, he has sold more records than any other music artist in Germany since 1975, according to Wikipedia. While Grönemeyer has written some rock-oriented songs, for the most part, I would characterize his music as straight pop. Here is the ballad Warum from his most recent album Tumult, which came out in November 2018.

If I could only select one German rock band, it would be BAP, a group around singer-songwriter Wolfgang Niedecken, which nowadays performs as Niedecken’s BAP. The band has been around with different line-ups since 1976, and I’ve followed them since the early 1980s. They perform their songs in the dialect spoken in the region of Cologne, the home town of Niedecken who remains the group’s only original member. Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen are among his key influences. In fact, Niedecken is also friends with the Boss and has performed with him on the same stage. Niedecken’s BAP’s most recent release is a live album, Live & Deutlich, which was released in November 2018. Here’s Nix Wie Bessher, a track that first appeared on BAP’s excellent 10th studio album Amerika from August 1996.

Sources: Wikipedia; Wolf Maahn website; Westernhagen website; Udo Lindenberg website; Herbert Grönemeyer website; BAP website; YouTube

My Playlist: Udo Lindenberg

Udo Lindenberg is probably one of those artists most people either love or hate. While the rock musician, writer and painter has had his ups and downs over a more than 40-year career, to me he’s one of the leading contemporary German artists. Today, Lindenberg, an early pioneer of Deutsch Rock, released his 11th live album, MTV Unplugged 2: Live Vom Atlantik. His vast catalog also includes 36 studio records, as well as numerous compilations and box sets. With all of that, I felt a playlist feature was warranted.

Udo Gerhard Lindenberg was born on May 17, 1946 in the West German town of Gronau. Already as a child, he developed a good sense of rhythm and was drawn to playing the drums, initially banging on fuel barrels. As a 15-year-old, he started performing in bars in the town of Duesseldorf where he was doing an apprenticeship at a local hotel. After drifting for various years, Lindenberg went to the Northern German town of Hamburg in 1968 where his music career started to take off soon thereafter.

City Preachers in 1970 (from left): Udo Lindenberg, Dagmar Krause, Jean-Jacques Kravetz, Inga Rumpf und Karl-Heinz Schott

First, he became the drummer of City Preachers, which are considered to be Germany’s first folk rock group. In 1969, he co-founded the German jazz rock formation Free Orbit. In October 1970, they released their first and I believe only album. It was in English and featured Lindenberg on drums and vocals. In the early ’70s, Lindenberg also worked with a few other bands, most notably jazz saxophone player Klaus Doldinger for the first record of his jazz fusion band Passport.

Lindenberg’s eponymous debut album, sung in English, appeared in August 1971. It failed to make an impact. The sophomore, Daumen Im Wind (Thumbs In The Wind) from 1972, was his first German language record. It didn’t sell well either, though the single Hoch Im Norden (All The Way Up North) gained some popularity, especially on Northern German radio stations. Lindenberg’s commercial breakthrough came in December 1973 with his third studio album Alles Klar Auf Der Andrea Doria (All Clear On Board Of Andrea Doria). The title refers to the Italian luxury passenger vessel that collided with another passenger ship in July 1956 on route to New York near the coast of Nantucket, Mass.

Udo Lindenberg and Alice Cooper in July 2018

For the remainder of the ’70s and during the ’80s, Lindenberg continued to release studio albums that were pretty successful in Germany, including four records that achieved Gold status. In 1980, he produced the comedy movie Panische Zeiten (Panic Times), in which he also co-starred. During the ’90s and early 2000s, his success on the music front started to wane. Since the mid-’90s, Lindenberg had also increasingly emerged as a painter. His first exhibition was in 1996 and several others followed over the years. In March 2008, Lindenberg at age 62 staged a major musical comeback with his 35th studio album Stark Wie Zwei (Strong Like Two). The record became his first no. 1 in Germany and also charted in Austria and Switzerland, peaking at no. 2 and no. 7, respectively.

In September 2011, Lindenberg scored his biggest music success to date with the live album MTV Unplugged – Live aus dem Hotel Atlantic, his first MTV special. It topped the German record charts and peaked at no. 6 in each Austria and Switzerland; with more than 1.1 million units sold, it also became Lindenberg’s best-seller. His most recent studio album Stärker als die Zeit (Stronger Than Time) from April 2016 continued his string of successful releases. Once again, the record topped the German charts, and climbed two no. 2 and no. 7 in Switzerland and Austria, respectively. Time for some music!

I’d like to start things off with the title track of Lindenberg’s breakthrough album Alles Klar Auf Der Andrea Doria. He wrote the lyrics and the music of the dixieland style tune. The album, which Lindenberg also co-produced, was the first to feature Panikorchester (Panic Orchestra). Founded in August 1973, the band has backed Lindenberg throughout the decades, though there have been numerous lineup changes over time.

Honky Tonky Show is a rocker from Lindenberg’s Ball Pompös, his fourth studio album from August 1974. The lyrics were written by Lindenberg, while the music is credited to him and pianist Gottfried Böttger, who at the time was a member of Panikorchester.

In April 1975, Udo Lindenberg released his fifth studio album Votan Wahnwitz, his first Gold record. Here’s Null-Rhesus Negativ (O Rhesus Negative). Lindenberg wrote both the music and lyrics of the song, which is a good example of his sense of humor. It describes the story of a man who runs into a vampire. When he reveals his blood type, the vampire tells him he doesn’t tolerate it. As a consolation, the guy then invites the vampire to a bar where they chat about life as a creature of the night.

Apart from writing his own music, Lindenberg also created German covers of various famous English songs. Sometimes he used the music and wrote new lyrics, such as for Penny Lane by The Beatles, which he turned into a song about Hamburg’s red light district known as Reeperbahn. In other cases, he developed German adaptations like for The Animals’ We’ve Gotta Get Out Of This Place (Verdammt Wir Müssen Raus Aus Dem Dreck) or the tune I’m highlighting here, Sympathie für den Teufel (Sympathy For The Devil), by The Rolling Stones. He included all of the aforementioned tunes on an album released in May 1978 called Lindenbergs Rock-Revue.

One of my favorite 70s Lindenberg records is his first live album Livehaftig, which appeared in May 1979. Here’s the great ballad Sie Ist 40 (She Is 40), which represents the reflective side of Lindenberg. The tune is about a 40-year-old woman who is stuck in an unhappy marriage, asks herself whether that’s all what’s in store for her and daydreams about living with a guy like James Dean. The lyrics were co-written by Lindenberg and German singer-songwriter Ulla Meinecke, with music by Lindenberg.

In January 1983, Lindenberg’s 16th studio album Odyssee appeared. It became popular largely because of the single Sonderzug Nach Pankow (Special Train To Pankow). Pankow refers to the borough in East Berlin where the government of the GDR (the former East Germany) was based. The song was Lindenberg’s appeal to GDR head Erich Honecker to allow him to perform in East Germany. Just like in the Soviet Union, Western rock music was banned in the GDR, since the socialist regime regarded it as subversive. The tune illustrates Lindenberg’s political side, which became very active during the ’80s. The music is based on U.S. swing classic Chattanooga Choo Choo.

Next I’d like to jump to Lindenberg’s above mentioned 2008 comeback album Stark Wie Zwei (Strong Like Two). One of the tunes on that record is Mein Ding (My Thing) with lyrics by Lindenberg and music by guitarist Jörg Sander and songwriter/musician Sandi Strmljan. Here’s the official video featuring cartoon drawings by Lindenberg.

The last tune I’d like to highlight is from Lindenberg’s new live album MTV Unplugged 2: Live Vom Atlantik: No More Mr. Nice Guy (So’n Ruf Musste Dir Dir Verdienen) featuring Alice Cooper. The album was compiled from three concerts Lindenberg conducted with prominent guests in July 2018 at Kampnagel, a performance venue in Hamburg. Cooper  co-wrote the song with Alice Cooper rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Michael Bruce for the band’s sixth studio album Billion Dollar Babies from February 1973. Apparently, Cooper and Lindenberg have known each other for 40 years. Here’s a cool video of the tune.

Over his career, Udo Lindenberg has sold more than 4.4 million records in Germany. His first MTV unplugged album accounts for approximately 1.1 million of these units, making it one of the best-selling records in Germany since 1975. The companion video album sold more than 200,000 copies and is also one of the most successful such releases in Germany. In addition, Lindenberg has received multiple awards for his artistic work and his social and political engagement. The latter includes the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Bundesverdienstkreuz), the only federal decoration of Germany, for his efforts to advance peace and understanding between East and West.

Sources: Wikipedia, Udo Lindenberg website, YouTube

Germans Who Rock In German

In some ways, this post is a bit of a remake of my previous thoughts on German rock music. Obviously, what I said last October remains true today. Other than the Scorpions, one of my favorite bands, electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk and perhaps heavy metal formation Accept, there aren’t any other German rock music artists I can think of, who have a significant following beyond German-speaking countries.

Undoubtedly, one of the key reasons is the fact that many German rock bands are singing in German. Some go further and sing in dialects spoken in their native regions. This may make it tough even for other Germans to understand their lyrics – not exactly a recipe for international fame!

Following is a song selection from German-singing rock bands, including some of my favorite acts from the Deutsch Rock genre. The caveat is most of these artists are “old guys,” who do not well represent what’s in the German charts these days, which I honestly don’t even know. But, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Old guys rock! 🙂

Wolfgang Niedeckens BAP

Niedeckens BAP, formerly known simply as BAP, probably remains my favorite German rock band. They perform their songs in the dialect spoken in the town of Cologne, Niedecken’s home town. A huge fan of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen (and friends with the Boss!), Niedecken is the mastermind of the band, which was founded in 1976. During its 40-plus-year history, BAP have seen various changes in its lineup. Niedecken remains the only original member. Here’s a clip of Halv Su Wild, the title song from BAP’s 17th studio album released in 2011.

Wolf Maahn

This singer-songwriter, actor and producer initially started his music career in 1976 as a founding member of the Food Band. Mixing soul, jazz, pop and rock, this group sang in English. Wolf Maahn’s “German language music career” kicked off in the early ’80s with the studio album Deserteure. He gained broad national popularity in the mid ’80s, starting with the 1984 record Irgendwo in Deutschland. The studio album included Fieber, one of his best known songs. Here’s a clip

Marius Müller-Westernhagen

Westernhagen started his professional career as a 14-year-old actor in 1962, before he became interested in music during the second half of the ’60s. He continued acting and music, though his early recording efforts were largely unsuccessful. That changed in 1978, when Marius Müller-Westernhagen released his fourth studio album Mit Pfefferminz Bin Ich Dein Prinz. The record’s title song remains one of his best known tunes. His latest, 19th studio album Alphatier appeared in 2014. Westernhagen continues to be one of Germany’s most popular music artists. Here’s a clip of a killer live version of Pfefferminz.

Udo Lindenberg

In addition to being a rock musician, Udo Lindenberg also is a writer and painter, making him one of the most versatile German music artists. He first hit the music scene in the early 1960s, when he was 15 years old and played as a drummer in bars in the German town of Düsseldorf. In 1968, Lindenberg went to Hamburg and joined the City Preachers, Germany’s first folk-rock band. In 1969, he left and co-founded the jazz-rock formation Free Orbit. They released an album in 1970, Lindenberg’s first studio recording. Only one year later, his enponymous solo album appeared. It would take another two years before Lindenberg achieved commercial breakthrough success with Alles Klar Auf Der Andrea Doria, his third solo album. He continues to record and perform to this day, still going strong at age 71. In 2008, Lindenberg had a major comeback with Stark Wie Zwei, his 35th studio release. Here’s a great clip of a live performance of Mein Ding, one of the tunes from his comeback release.

Herbert Grönemeyer

Grönemeyer is another long-time German multi-talent, who in addition to being a singer-songwriter is also a producer and actor. While some of his music is rock-oriented, overall, I would describe his style as pop. After his acting role in the acclaimed 1981 motion picture Das Boot, which also became an international success, Herbert Grönemeyer increasingly focused on music. His big national breakthrough as a music artist came in 1994 with his fifth studio album Bochum. One of my favorite Grönemeyer tunes, Vollmond, is on 1988’s Ö, his seventh studio release. Grönemeyer has since recorded seven additional studio records, the latest being Dauernd Jetzt, which appeared in Nov 2014. Here’s a clip of a live performance of Vollmond. Grönemeyer’s voice sounds a bit strained, but it’s still cool.

Brings

Brings are another act from Cologne, singing their songs in the local dialect. They started out as a great rock band in the early ’90s before they drastically changed their style to pop/”Schlager” in the early 2000s. This change, which I find quite unfortunate from a music perspective, brought the band new popularity. They’ve since become a mainstay during the Cologne Carnival, a longtime tradition of the city that culminates with a week-long street festival where people go out masqueraded. Here’s a clip of Nix För Lau from the band’s second studio album Kasalla, which appeared in 1992.

Tocotronic

Founded in 1993, Tocotronic is an indie rock band from the northern German town of Hamburg. Admittedly, I know very little about their music, but there is one tune I’ve liked from the first moment I heard it. It’s called Gegen Den Strich and was included on the band’s seventh studio album, Pure Vernunft Darf Niemals Siegen (2005). Tocotronic have since released four additional studio records, the most recent of which (Tocotronic, aka Rotes Album) appeared in 2015. Here’s a clip of Gegen Den Strich. The sound reminds me a bit of The Church and their great 1988 album Starfish.

Spider Murphy Gang

Named after the gangster Spider Murphy in Elvis Presley’s Jailhouse Rock, this band from the Bavarian town of Munich became known with classic rock & roll style songs performed in their native Bavarian dialect. The Spider Murphy Gang started out in 1977, covering top 40 rock & roll tunes from Presley, Chuck Berry and other classic rock & roll performers. In 1980, they recorded their German debut album Rock’n’Roll Schuah. The follow-up Dolce Vita brought them national acclaim, fueled by the tune Skandal Im Sperrbezirk, which became a staple of the so-called Neue Deutsche Welle (German New Wave). While the Spider Murphy Gang have had numerous changes in their lineup and haven’t recorded any new music since 2002, they continue to perform and are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year. Here’s a clip of an extended live performance of Schickeria, a tune from Dolce Vita.

Revolverheld

This rock band was founded in Hamburg in 2002. Initially, they were known as Manga  before they changed their name to Tsunamikiller in the autumn of 2004. Following the devastating tsunami in Thailand in December that year, the band changed its name to Revolverheld. Like Tocotronic, I’m not well familiar with their music. The tune I’d like to highlight is Freunde Bleiben from their eponymous debut album in 2005. Here’s a clip.

L.S.E.

Named after the first letters of each member’s last name, Rolf Lammers, Arno Steffen and Tommy Engel, L.S.E. are yet another band from Cologne, which was founded in 1992. Like BAP and Brings, they sing in the local dialect. During their active period between 1992 and 1996, the band recorded three studio albums. While they haven’t made any new music since 1996, L.S.E. haven’t officially dissolved and still perform occasionally. One of my favorite tunes by this versatile band is the title song of their debut album Für Et Hätz Un Jäjen D’r Kopp, which was released in 1992. Here’s a great live version together with German comedienne, TV actress and frankly multi-talent  Carolin Kebekus, captured in September 2014.

Sources: Wikipedia, YouTube