Zwitschermaschine ‎– "Alles Geld Der Welt Kostet Geld (1983-86)" - (Moloko+ ‎– PLUS 018) 1998

Any person or persons, who say that they aren't Artists, or in this case "Ich Bin Kein Artist",you just know that they certainly are.
Zwitschermaschine,and their 'Poet' chums are evidence of that.They may not be artists,but they sure as fuck wannabe.
Art Punk is the shoebox that Cultural taste manufacturers shoe horn this kind of educated post-punk into.It has that unwelcome stain of Intellectual sterility proudly displayed among the eighties production values.The cringing perfection that Martin Hannett bust an 'art'ery to create his legacy with.The gated snare drum had even infiltrated the areas in the Soviet Bloc that levis feared to tread.
It figures that if you convinced the East German authorities that you were actually an 'Artist' then you could probably get away with a dodgier direction. Not that Zwitschermaschine ever had a record out on any of the few official labels in the DDR.They were confined to self-releasing DIY cassettes from 1983 to around 1986-ish.Some of which were collated on this career overview,fleshed out with some tracks by band member and 'Poet',of course Sascha Anderson.
Yep, "Ich bin kien Artist" alright.

Tracklist:

1 Die Funktionäre Sind Im Widerstand (I) 1:04
2 Alles Oder Nichts ... (I) 0:44
3 Ich Hab Deine Schwarzen Gedanken... 2:51
4 Die Welt Ist So... 4:12
5 Das Chaos In Meinem Chaos (Gedicht) 0:48
6 Am Montag Geht Die Sonne Auf... 4:30
7 Auf Dem Bonzenstrich... 3:15
8 Alles Oder Nichts... (II) 0:50
9 Sie Kommt An Mein Grab (Gedicht) 1:10
10 Fluid & Firm... 7:47
11 Der König Meiner Kindheit 3:40
12 Wenn Nichts Mehr Zu Sagen Ist (Gedicht) 0:53
13 Ich Bin Kein Artist... 5:15
14 Raben, Raben, Raben 0:42
15 Das Ist Eine Der Fahnen... 9:40
16 Dezember '81 (Gedicht) 0:48
17 Jeder Satellit Hat Einen Killersatelliten 1:43
18 Go Over The Border 3:23
19 Die Funktionäre Sind Im Widerstand (II) 2:10
20 Alles Oder Nichts... (III) 0:50

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Perestroika Combo ‎– "Himmlischer Frieden" (Self-Release ‎– XVIII) 1989

Back in the good ol' DDR,The marvellously named Perestroika Combo,appeared on cassette tape around the time the East German regime was in its death throes.Hence they wore their politics on their sleeve,naming themselves after the Soviet policy of Perestroika,or Restructuring,which was official state policy;so in a way they were colluding with an oppresive state,which is another way of looking at it?

So,as the members of the group came face to face with 'Freedom', which meant unemployment,poverty,and prejudice for yer average East German, they revelled in their new status as legal musicians and entrepreneurs;I assume they sold their cassettes?

So,we have, Voda Tudor on keyboards; Andree Krause on guitar & vocals; Steffanie Lingsminat on bass vocals; Frank Neubert on drum & Holgar Kaack on guitar/vocals.Considerably more members than are pictured on the photocopied insert.

I wonder if any of them suffered the common maladie of most former-East German citizens;that of 'Trabant Nostalgia Syndrome'....I just made that up....but, the Trabant,the peoples car of the DDR, became a symbol of a weird kind of nostalgia for the old country and its institutions.Like some kind of mass Stockholm Syndrome,where one misses the security of your oppressors,and the familiarity with the benefits of the nanny State.Many wanted to climb over the wall and go back in.Most were happy just to visit relatives and shop in the supermarkets with the 100 marks welcome gift provided by the West German government, then go back to their gauranteed Job,subsidised housing transport,and the freedom 'from' choice that a communist state provides. Who in their right mind wants to choose from hundreds of different types of shampoo when you only need one?

The music of the Perestroika Combo would not have gone down well with the authorities however.Dischordant and unmusicianly as it is.Obviously influenced by the music broadcst on late night Western Radio,but with that dark edge that came very naturally to those in the East.Full of Glasnost,but the opposite of Perestroika;more to do with de-structuring rather than re-structuring.Which is how we like it, isn't it kiddies?

Tracklist:

A1 Komplikation 3 4:22
A2 Himmlischer Frieden 7:34
A3 Mournful Cry 5:30
A4 Do It 5:12
A5 Langer Weg 6:31
B1 Aufbruch Part 1 17:07
B2 Aufbruch Part 2 (Incl. Happy Future) 6:36

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