Fehlfarben

Fehlfarben is a Neue Deutsche Welle (NDW), or German New Wave band. Formed in 1979 following a trip to England and consisting of several members of the punk band Mittagspause, founding members Peter Hein, Thomas Schwebel, Uwe Bauer, Frank Fenstermacher, Michael Kemner and Markus Oehlen initially moved away from punk to experiment with ska, a style which they had heard on their trip to England. They independently released their debut single, the double-sided 'Abenteuer und Freiheit/Grosse Liebe' in 1979 and began a series of live shows in 1980, quickly moving away from their new ska sound and back to more traditional punk. In 1980, the band were signed by EMI and released their debut album 'Monarchie und Alltag'. Fans were against the band signing to a major record label, as this was not considered to be the way of punk, and this is perhaps why the album was not recognised initially, but has instead grown in popularity over the years. It is now recognised as a seminal album in German rock and is the band's most commercially successful release. Fehlfarben released a second album, '33 Tage in Ketten', in 1981 which reached the top 40 in the German Albums Chart, and then in 1982, EMI reissued the single 'Ein Jahr (Es Geht Voran)' from their debut album, and this became the band's one stand-out hit. It reached the top 20 two years after the album's initial release at what was the height of the NDW. The single did not have the typical Fehlfarben sound, but was more of a tongue-in-cheek disco/funk track. A third studio album, 'Glut und Asche', was released in 1983 and from this point the band suffered constant changes in line-up. As a result, their cohesion as a group was lost. Several of the initial band members left and new members joined. It was not until 1991 that the original line-up reformed and recorded two more albums 'Die Platte des Himmlischen Frieden' (1991) and an album of songs previously recorded in the 1980s, but not released until 1995, 'Popmusik und Hundezucht' on the WFA label.

The band made a further comeback 2002 with 'Knietief im Dispo' at what was a time of resurgence of punk in Germany. They released five further albums '26 ½' (2006), 'Handbuch für die Welt' (2007), 'Glücksmaschinen' (2010), 'Xenophonie' (2012) and 'Über... Menschen' (2015). None of these replicated the earlier success of 'Monarchie und Alltag', which was finally certified gold for sales in 2000.