Die Toten Hosen
Encyclopedia
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band from Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
. They have enjoyed decades-long mass appeal in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
The band's name literally means "The Dead Pants" (i.e. trousers) in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, although the phrase "tote Hose" is a German expression meaning "nothing going on" or "boring". Their name is figuratively best translated as "The Dead Beats".
History
The members of Die Toten Hosen are Campino (Andreas Frege), Kuddel (Andreas von Holst), Vom (Stephen 'Vom' Ritchie), Andi (Andreas Meurer) and Breiti (Michael Breitkopf). Although most of the members are German, drummer Vom is actually from England and replaced Wölli as the drummer in 1999; Wölli's untimely departure from the band was due to injuries caused by a car accident. Wölli himself had replaced Trini in 1985, and is still an honorary member of the band; Trini became the band's manager when Wölli joined.The band has existed for over 20 years, and their songs' focus gradually shifted from funny and nonsensical to serious; the songs from their first LP
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
were mostly about having fun, but by the end of the 1980s they were focusing more on political and social issues such as racism
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
.
Part of the folklore surrounding the band is the story that in their early days they played for free at private birthday parties or similar events. However, this was only under the condition that the host provided an unlimited beer supply and paid for all damages caused by the band.
The debut single "Wir sind bereit
Wir sind bereit
"Wir sind bereit" is the debut single by Die Toten Hosen, which wasn't originally released on any albums, later added to Reich & sexy though....
" ("We are ready") was released in 1982
1982 in music
This is a list of notable events in music from 1982. 1982 was a big year in music with Madonna making her debut as well as the year that Michael Jackson released Thriller which became the world's best selling album and it still holds that title today....
, and was followed by their first album, Opel-Gang
Opel-Gang
Opel-Gang is the debut album of the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The title is a reference to an article in a Düsseldorf newspaper, where a gang of small-time thieves, who drove self-tuned Opels, were named Opel-Gang, even though the band wasn't initially into car modding...
, the next year. In 1988
1988 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1988.-January-March:* January 1 – André Rieu's Johann Strauss Orchestra plays its first concert....
, Die Toten Hosen released the LP Ein kleines bisschen Horrorschau
Ein kleines bisschen Horrorschau
Ein kleines bißchen Horrorschau is the sixth LP by Die Toten Hosen, released in 1988...
("A little bit of horrorshow" ("horrorshow" is Nadsat
Nadsat
Nadsat is a fictional register or argot used by the teenagers in Anthony Burgess' novel A Clockwork Orange. In addition to being a novelist, Burgess was also a linguist and he used this background to depict his characters as speaking a form of Russian-influenced English...
for "ok", coming from the Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
word хорошо (horosho (good))) referring to the phrase in "A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange is a 1962 dystopian novella by Anthony Burgess. The novel contains an experiment in language: the characters often use an argot called "Nadsat", derived from Russian....
"), which featured the song "Hier kommt Alex
Hier kommt Alex
"Hier kommt Alex" is a song by German punk band Die Toten Hosen. It is the first single and the first track from the album Ein kleines bisschen Horrorschau. The song in concept introduces Alex, who is the central character on the concept album...
" (referring to the movie A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange (film)
A Clockwork Orange is a 1971 film adaptation of Anthony Burgess's 1962 novel of the same name. It was written, directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick...
based on the book
A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange is a 1962 dystopian novella by Anthony Burgess. The novel contains an experiment in language: the characters often use an argot called "Nadsat", derived from Russian....
by Anthony Burgess
Anthony Burgess
John Burgess Wilson – who published under the pen name Anthony Burgess – was an English author, poet, playwright, composer, linguist, translator and critic. The dystopian satire A Clockwork Orange is Burgess's most famous novel, though he dismissed it as one of his lesser works...
); in 1988, Bernd Schadewald produced a German theater version of the book, in which the band performed as actors and musicians. "Hier kommt Alex" (Here comes Alex) was later redone for the unplugged show in 2005 with the opening piano of Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
's Moonlight Sonata.
Their 1000th concert was on 28 June 1997, in the Düsseldorfer Rheinstadium, and was attended by more than 60,000 fans. A Dutch girl, Rieke Lax, died in the crowd; later the band produced the song "Alles ist eins" ("Everything is one") in memorial for her.
Their first tour after this event was as part of the 1998 Warped Tour
Warped Tour
The Warped Tour is a touring music and extreme sports festival. The tour is held in venues such as parking lots or fields upon which the stages and other structures are erected. The BMX/skateboarding shoe manufacturer Vans, among others, has sponsored the tour every year since 1995, and it is...
to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, and included hospital visits for Campino after two of the nine Australian dates (Byron Bay and Geelong).
Die Toten Hosen have collaborated with numerous other musicians (like Bad Religion
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is a punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles in 1979. Their current line-up consists of Greg Graffin , Brett Gurewitz , Jay Bentley , Greg Hetson , Brian Baker and Brooks Wackerman . Gurewitz is also the founder of the label Epitaph Records, which has released almost all of the...
, AC/DC
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...
, U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Rolling Stones); they are also one of the few German punk bands popular outside of Germany (esp. in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
) other notable bands being Die Ärzte
Die Ärzte
Die Ärzte is a punk band from Berlin. Die Ärzte are one of the best-known German punk rock bands and have released over 20 albums. The band consists of guitarist Farin Urlaub, drummer Bela B. and bass player Rodrigo González...
and WIZO
WIZO
Wizo is a punk rock band from Sindelfingen, Germany. The band was formed in 1985. Their messages run from political to humorous, and they are strongly opposed to Nazism, fascism, racism, and "all of that crap"...
.
As longtime fans of their local football team, Fortuna Düsseldorf
Fortuna Düsseldorf
' is a German association football club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, currently playing in the second tier of German league football, the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga...
, they sponsored the club from 2001 to 2003. Fortuna Düsseldorf
Fortuna Düsseldorf
' is a German association football club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, currently playing in the second tier of German league football, the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga...
plays the chorus of "Strom" when a goal is scored at the Esprit Arena. They also published a song named "Bayern
Bayern (song)
"Bayern" is a punk hymn by Die Toten Hosen. It's the third single and the sixteenth track from the album Unsterblich.It is an anti-FC Bayern Munich song, which is the most successful German football club. A slogan from this song has become synonymous with DTH among the fans, which can be...
" in 2000, referring to the famous football club in Germany. Roughly translated, the text reads "many things can happen, many things can occur, I just know one thing for sure, I'd never join FC Bayern Munich".
In August, 2006, Campino (Andreas Frege) starred as Mack the Knife
Mack the Knife
"Mack the Knife" or "The Ballad of Mack the Knife", originally "Die Moritat von Mackie Messer", is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their music drama Die Dreigroschenoper, or, as it is known in English, The Threepenny Opera. It premiered in Berlin in 1928 at the...
in a new version of "The Threepenny Opera
The Threepenny Opera
The Threepenny Opera is a musical by German dramatist Bertolt Brecht and composer Kurt Weill, in collaboration with translator Elisabeth Hauptmann and set designer Caspar Neher. It was adapted from an 18th-century English ballad opera, John Gay's The Beggar's Opera, and offers a Marxist critique...
" staged at Berlin's Admiralspalast
Admiralspalast
The Admiralspalast is a theatre in the Mitte district of Berlin, Germany, located on Friedrichstraße No. 101. Opened in 1910, it is one of the few preserved variety venues of the pre-World War II era in the city....
, a short distance down Friedrichstrasse from where the play received its premier in 1928. Staged by actor Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer
Klaus Maria Brandauer is an Austrian actor, film director, and professor at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna.-Personal life:...
, the much-awaited production opened to mixed reviews, with cheers for German rock star Campino, but scattered boos for Brandauer's "conventional" staging.
Artist Andreas Gursky
Andreas Gursky
Andreas Gursky is a German visual artist known for his enormous architecture and landscape color photographs, often employing a high point of view...
sold a famous work called "Tote Hosen", a blown up photograph of the crowd from a Die Toten Hosen concert. It features a crowd of German youths, many wearing the red Hosen shirt, excitedly cheering for the band. It is in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
.
Faith No More
Faith No More
Faith No More is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, formed originally as Faith No Man in 1981 by bassist Billy Gould, keyboardist Wade Worthington, vocalist Michael Morris and drummer Mike Bordin. A year later when Worthington was replaced by keyboardist Roddy Bottum, and Mike...
seem to be fans as well, as bassist Billy Gould
Billy Gould
Billy Gould is an American musician and producer. He is noted for playing bass in the band Faith No More.- Faith No More :...
has been seen wearing a Mach et. .. ficken, bumsen, blasen T-shirt on their greatest hits album, This Is It: The Best of Faith No More
This Is It: The Best of Faith No More
This Is It: The Best of Faith No More contains 19 signature tracks from albums and singles released between 1985-1997. It includes four rarities & the then out-of-print soundtrack cut "The Perfect Crime" from the soundtrack to the movie Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey...
. In addition, Faith No More have covered the song "Hofgarten" in live shows.
Fellow German rock group Samsas Traum
Samsas Traum
Samsas Traum is a band from Germany fronted by Alexander Kaschte now based in Austria. Their music consists of elements of Symphonic metal, Neue Deutsche Härte and Cantastoria. The name is derived from the 1915 novel The Metamorphosis's character Gregor Samsa by Franz Kafka.- Biography :Samsas...
covered "Hier kommt Alex". This was a remarkably different version to the original, as it featured a more goth orchestration take on the song, and main singer Alexander Kaschte changes the final lyric to "Hey! Ich bin Alex!" (Hey! I am Alex!) for a joke on the song's theme itself. Also, legendary UK punk band UK Subs
UK Subs
The U.K. Subs are an English punk rock band, among the earliest in the first wave of British punk. Formed in 1976, the mainstay of the band has been vocalist Charlie Harper, originally a singer in Britain's R&B scene. They were also one of the first street punk bands.-Career:The U.K...
recorded an English-language cover of the song on their 1993 album Normal Service Resumed. "Hier kommt Alex" is featured in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is a music video game, the third main installment in the Guitar Hero series, and the fourth title overall...
as well as a song on the European disc of Rock Band. The song was also released as a downloadable track on the American version of Rock Band on 27 May 2008. Die Toten Hosen also have a special edition of "SingStar
SingStar
SingStar is a competitive music video game series for PlayStation consoles, developed by London Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. 23 English-language instalments of the series have been released for the PlayStation 2, and six versions for the PlayStation 3 have been released...
" for PlayStation 2, devoted exclusively to the band, featuring 24 tracks and videos from over the decades, which was released in 2007.
MC Frontalot
MC Frontalot
Damian Hess , better known by stage name MC Frontalot, is a Brooklyn-based hip hop musician and self-proclaimed "world's 579th greatest rapper". He is best known in nerdcore hip hop and video game culture, for naming the nerdcore subgenre, and performing at Penny Arcades annual Penny Arcade Expo...
, in collaboration with faux-German electronic musician KOMPRESSOR on the track "Rappers We Crush", rhymes "What did I do to deserve this?/What was my crime?/Was it because I sampled Die Toten Hosen that one time?"
In 2002 and 2005 the band played at the biggest open-air festival in Europe (400.000 - 500.000 rock fans every year) - Przystanek Woodstock
Przystanek Woodstock
Przystanek Woodstock is an annual free rock music festival in Poland, inspired by and named for the Woodstock Festival, that has taken place since 1995...
in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
In 2010, the band played several dates in Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
and became the first non-local rock band to perform in the former Soviet republic of Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
since 1991. These concerts were later criticised when it was confirmed that the supposedly anti-establishment group had sought and accepted 68,000 Euros of German government funding to support their tour .
On Saturday, 2 October 2010, The band played for the first time in the Middle East for the 20th anniversary for the fall of Berlin Wall, specifically in Amman, Jordan. And the concert was a great success.
Musical Style
Although the band has its roots in punk rockPunk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, their style is far more than just punk rock. The band has visible influences from Hard Rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
, Heavy Metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, Hardcore Punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
and also Alternative Rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
.
Discography
- 1983: Opel-GangOpel-GangOpel-Gang is the debut album of the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The title is a reference to an article in a Düsseldorf newspaper, where a gang of small-time thieves, who drove self-tuned Opels, were named Opel-Gang, even though the band wasn't initially into car modding...
- 1984: Unter falscher FlaggeUnter falscher FlaggeUnter falscher Flagge is the second album of the German punk band Die Toten Hosen.-Track listing:...
- 1986: DamenwahlDamenwahlDamenwahl is the third studio album of the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The term "Damenwahl" appears in "Verflucht, verdammt, gebrandmarkt" and the intro of "Altbierlied"...
- 1987: Never Mind the Hosen, Here's Die Roten RosenNever Mind the Hosen, Here's Die Roten RosenNever Mind the Hosen, Here's Die Roten Rosen, sometimes Never Mind the Hosen, Here's Die Roten Rosen is the first cover album of the German punk band Die Toten Hosen, released under the pseudonym Die Roten Rosen . The band covers German schlagers on the album. This is the first DTH album to reach...
- 1988: Ein kleines bisschen HorrorschauEin kleines bisschen HorrorschauEin kleines bißchen Horrorschau is the sixth LP by Die Toten Hosen, released in 1988...
- 1990: Auf dem Kreuzzug ins Glück
- 1991: Learning English Lesson 1
- 1993: Kauf MICH!Kauf MICH! (album)Kauf MICH! is the ninth album by Die Toten Hosen, released in 1993. The LP is mainly a concept album dealing with consumerism and ultraconservatism. Along with the album's art and several songs addressing commerce, satirical advertisements and infomercials are interspersed among the music...
- 1996: Opium fürs VolkOpium fürs VolkOpium fürs Volk is the seventh studio album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. Although it's not considered a concept album, it has a central theme of religion . It's regarded as one of the best DTH albums...
- 1998: Wir warten auf's Christkind...Wir warten auf's Christkind...Wir warten auf's Christkind... or Wir warten auf's Christkind is a christmas album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen, released under the alias Die Roten Rosen .For Australia, a version with an English language title Waiting for Santa Claus... or...
- 1999: UnsterblichUnsterblichUnsterblich is the eighth studio album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The band has stated dissatisfaction with the cover, which is a photo by Johann Zambryski...
- 2002: AuswärtsspielAuswärtsspielAuswärtsspiel is the ninth studio album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. This is one of the favourite albums for the band. The album is much more personal than previous albums...
- 2004: Zurück zum GlückZurück zum GlückZurück zum Glück is the tenth studio album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The cover is designed by Dirk Rudolph.-Track listing:# "Kopf oder Zahl" Zurück zum Glück (Wordplay: Back to happiness/Fortunately back) is the tenth studio album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. The cover...
- 2008: In aller StilleIn aller StilleIn aller Stille is the eleventh studio album by the German punk band Die Toten Hosen. It's the first studio album in 4 years. The cover was designed by Dirk Rudolph...