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Thursday 12 May 2016

When Casios cry - Der Peter ist tot

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Da Da Da fand ich immer scheisse.

I never really liked Da Da Da, Trio's official hit. I never liked anything that was verging on 'Schlager', the cosy German shit musik niche that Stefan Remmler loved to flirt with and, after 85, built his whole career on: Turaluraluralu, Herz ist Trumpf, Alles hat ein Ende nur die Wurst hat zwei.. bullshit. Neue Deutsche Welle Light. Neue Deutsche Fröhlichkeit.


What I loved was the first album and a couple of live gigs that I only discovered 5 years ago via Youtube. Only the third edition of the first record, now with Da Da Da as single included, was successful. Like Helge Schneider, the Kaiser of German Dada Jazz, needed a vehicle to break into the mainstream [Katzeklo], Trio became famous over night and nothing was the same again.


With success came pressure and with pressure came dependency. The story of Trio post 1983 is a sad story, with Peter Behrens [Drums] and Kralle Krawinkel [Guitar/dead] trying to keep up with co-songwriter and singer Stephan Remmler's commercial pop sensibilities.

 

But in 1981/82 Trio was shit-hot. Remmler's cocky buzz-cutted & suited new wave persona paired with Behrens' and Krawinkel's raw and cool simplicity made them the only real and futuristic German post-punk band. Songs like Los Paul and Ja Ja Ja were pure first generation punk rock with clever German lyrics, urgent and dynamic, dirty and quick sketches of modern urban life, always questioning authority and the general musical forms of the time. 





Like Falco, Trio mixed German and English lyrics, cleverly playing with stereotypes and expectations, transcending the classic form of punk/pop and creating something fresh and unique. This was serious not-to-be-taken-seriously stuff.

Broken Hearts For You And Me

Es ist Zeit für etwas Flottes
Stimmung gute Laune

Die Damen in den Innenkreis
die Herren in den Außenkreis

in Gegenrichtung
Marsch Fox

And the monkey wrapped his tail around the flag pole
to show his arse hole
to the one two three

Broken hearts for you and me

I guess we agree
the party ‘s over now it’s plain to see

Broken hearts for you and me

Why should we stay
you know it’s better if we go our own ways

Broken hearts for you and me

We tried our best
too little future though and too much past

Broken hearts for you and me

Don’t you cry
kiss me good bye

Broken hearts for you and me

We made so many mistakes
we know it better now but it’s too late

Broken hearts for you and me

Why should we stay
you know it’s better if we go our own ways

Broken hearts for you and me

Don’t you cry ie ie ie
just kiss me good bye ie ie ie
you know why ie ie ie there are

Broken hearts for you and me

Don’t you cry ie ie ie
just kiss me good bye ie ie ie
you know why ie ie ie there are

Broken hearts

Later, the aftermath: The inevitable band split because of royalties disputes, Remmler's shallow commercial success with ironic couplets, the slow descent into sad alcoholism, running out of money.. never mind the bollocks, here's the Trio. Unlike John Lydon, Remmler's message wasn't sustainable, probably because he never really had one. What Remmler had was vision, and that somehow saved him.

RIP Peter, Dada Clown und Stehschlagzeuger. Traurig ist das.