Mittageisen (band)
Encyclopedia
mittageisen is a Swiss
Dark Wave band of the early 1980s.
The name refers to "Mittageisen
", a single by Siouxsie and the Banshees that makes use of a John Heartfield
photomontage
on the cover. This picture was originally published on the frontpage of the "Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
/ Workers Illustrated Journal", published on 19 December 1935. Heartfield
(1891–1968) was an early member of the Club Dada
, which started 1916 as Cabaret Voltaire
in Zürich. The picture with the title 'Hurrah, die Butter ist Alle! / Hurray, the butter is finished!' shows a family who eats various pieces of metal. The trigger for it was the following sentence of a Göring
-speech: "Iron made a nation always strong, butter and lard made only the people fat."
-activities (a.o. production of the first Swiss-Punk LP). The other initial members Daniel S (guitar) and Markus Sch (guitar, voice) played up to this time in local punk bands. A view months later Ursula S completed mittageisen as bass-player and the band recorded a demo-tape with six songs, which were partly published on the first album in 1983. Ursula S left the group shortly before the recording-sessions for their first album in the autumn 1982.
As a typical post-punk
band mittageisen developed their own individual music style and became thereby
Beside the music the sociocritical, expressive lyrics written by Bruno W, supplemented the music arrestingly and attract the attention of the critics.
Among various concerts - also with other bands such as Liliput, The Vyllies and Propaganda
- mittageisen became one of the most shaped Swiss New Wave
band, especially with the release of the first album in March 1983. They earned extraordinarily positive reviews and their album became ‘record of the week’ on Swiss Radio and the songs were played often on various radio stations especially in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands.
After the departure of Markus Sch (guitar) and the completion with Manuela H (synthesizer) mittageisen published in January 1985 the 12" single "automaten", with a for that time new electro sound. As Bruno W said in an interview the band wasn't satisfied with the first studio-version of "automaten" and he travelled to Cologne to mix the final-version in collaboration with Detlev Kühne (Die Hornissen) and Tom Dokoupil (The Wirtschaftswunder
) at their studio. The 12" single found the way into the legendary John Peel
show on BBC1 and became an 'indie disco' hit.
After last recording sessions in 1986 the band split up. Mastermind Bruno W published some years later under the name "mittageisen v2" the single "geld – arbeit / money – work", which was published in two editions with different versions. On the second edition he worked together with Marco Repetto, a member of the famous NDW-band Grauzone
, Techno
and Ambient
DJ, musician and producer.
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
Dark Wave band of the early 1980s.
The name refers to "Mittageisen
Mittageisen
"Mittageisen" is a single by the English band Siouxsie and the Banshees. Originally appearing on the band's 1978 debut album The Scream as "Metal Postcard ", the track was re-recorded in 1979 with this time the lyrics sung in German....
", a single by Siouxsie and the Banshees that makes use of a John Heartfield
John Heartfield
John Heartfield is the anglicized name of the German photomontage artist Helmut Herzfeld...
photomontage
Photomontage
Photomontage is the process and result of making a composite photograph by cutting and joining a number of other photographs. The composite picture was sometimes photographed so that the final image is converted back into a seamless photographic print. A similar method, although one that does not...
on the cover. This picture was originally published on the frontpage of the "Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung
Arbeiter-Illustrierte-Zeitung or AIZ was a weekly German illustrated magazine published between 1924 and 1938 in Berlin and later in Prague...
/ Workers Illustrated Journal", published on 19 December 1935. Heartfield
John Heartfield
John Heartfield is the anglicized name of the German photomontage artist Helmut Herzfeld...
(1891–1968) was an early member of the Club Dada
Dada
Dada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
, which started 1916 as Cabaret Voltaire
Cabaret Voltaire (Zürich)
Cabaret Voltaire was the name of a nightclub in Zurich, Switzerland. It was founded by Hugo Ball, with his companion Emmy Hennings on February 5, 1916 as a cabaret for artistic and political purposes. Other founding members were Marcel Janco, Richard Huelsenbeck, Tristan Tzara, and Jean Arp...
in Zürich. The picture with the title 'Hurrah, die Butter ist Alle! / Hurray, the butter is finished!' shows a family who eats various pieces of metal. The trigger for it was the following sentence of a Göring
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
-speech: "Iron made a nation always strong, butter and lard made only the people fat."
History
The group was initiated in 1981 by Bruno W (synthesizer, rhythm, voice/lyrics), after several PunkPunk 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...
-activities (a.o. production of the first Swiss-Punk LP). The other initial members Daniel S (guitar) and Markus Sch (guitar, voice) played up to this time in local punk bands. A view months later Ursula S completed mittageisen as bass-player and the band recorded a demo-tape with six songs, which were partly published on the first album in 1983. Ursula S left the group shortly before the recording-sessions for their first album in the autumn 1982.
As a typical post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
band mittageisen developed their own individual music style and became thereby
"one of the earliest DarkwaveDarkwaveDark Wave or darkwave is a music genre that began in the late 1970s, coinciding with the popularity of New Wave and post-punk. Building on those basic principles, dark wave added dark, introspective lyrics and an undertone of sorrow for some bands...
/electro GothGoth subcultureThe goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in England during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify...
bands. These tracks were mostly recorded from '82 to '85 (seven of them in '82 when Depeche ModeDepeche ModeDepeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
still couldn't get enough), mixing the emerging Gothic sounds of the Banshees, BauhausBauhaus (band)Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
and The CureThe CureThe Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
with the sparse electro of KraftwerkKraftwerkKraftwerk is an influential electronic music band from Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was formed by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider in 1970, and was fronted by them until Schneider's departure in 2008...
. In general, it's slow, dark and morose with droning guitars and vocals, under-pinned by a sharp electro beat. In other ones, they are one of the archetypal darkwave bands who were releasing albums when the Sisters (of Mercy) were only working on their early EPs. There is, however, a very simple and obvious reason why this band do not occupy the same privileged position as the classic Goth bands - they didn't sing in English. Most of the tracks are in German, with one, 'persistance de la mémoire', in French. It's the kind of music you hear as the soundtrack for oppressive, dark German sci-fi films. The sound does not stay the same all the way through, 'automaten', which is here in two versions, is a fairly upbeat, electro piece. Others are more sound-scapey; droning pieces that evoke factory work. This CD is more than an historical oddity, it is a must for fans of early Sisters stuff, or the Cure's dark period which culminated in the oppressive 'Pornography'".
Beside the music the sociocritical, expressive lyrics written by Bruno W, supplemented the music arrestingly and attract the attention of the critics.
Among various concerts - also with other bands such as Liliput, The Vyllies and Propaganda
Propaganda (band)
Propaganda is a German synthpop group, formed in 1982. They were one of the initial roster of acts signed to Trevor Horn's ZTT label, between 1984 and 1986, during which they released the critically acclaimed album A Secret Wish....
- mittageisen became one of the most shaped Swiss New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
band, especially with the release of the first album in March 1983. They earned extraordinarily positive reviews and their album became ‘record of the week’ on Swiss Radio and the songs were played often on various radio stations especially in Germany, Austria and the Netherlands.
After the departure of Markus Sch (guitar) and the completion with Manuela H (synthesizer) mittageisen published in January 1985 the 12" single "automaten", with a for that time new electro sound. As Bruno W said in an interview the band wasn't satisfied with the first studio-version of "automaten" and he travelled to Cologne to mix the final-version in collaboration with Detlev Kühne (Die Hornissen) and Tom Dokoupil (The Wirtschaftswunder
The Wirtschaftswunder
The Wirtschaftswunder was a German band consisting of musicians Angelo Galizia , Tom Dokoupil , Mark Pfurtschneller and Jürgen Beuth...
) at their studio. The 12" single found the way into the legendary John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
show on BBC1 and became an 'indie disco' hit.
After last recording sessions in 1986 the band split up. Mastermind Bruno W published some years later under the name "mittageisen v2" the single "geld – arbeit / money – work", which was published in two editions with different versions. On the second edition he worked together with Marco Repetto, a member of the famous NDW-band Grauzone
Grauzone
Grauzone was a band from Berne, Switzerland active in the early 80s.-History:At the end of 1979 Marco Repetto and GT left the punk band Glueams, to form together with Martin Eicher a new band called Grauzone. Martin had already supported Glueams on their single mental...
, Techno
Techno
Techno is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan in the United States during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988...
and Ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
DJ, musician and producer.
Albums
- 1983 – Mittageisen
- 1994 – Alles ist anders … nichts hat sich geändert
- 2008–1981-1986 remastered (2CD)