INTRODUCTION TO THE CHRIS GARLAND ARCHIVE: BACKTRAX 1977 - 2008
HISTORY
1977: KRAFTWERK - TRANS EUROPE EXPRESS
1977: PRINCE FAR I - UNDER HEAVY MANNERS
1980: STARSHIP AFRICA - CREATION REBEL
1980: THE SLITS - ‘MAN NEXT DOOR’
1981: HUNGRY SO ANGRY / FURTHER THAN FUNK DREAM - MEDIUM MEDIUM
1982: MINISTRY - COLD LIFE / WORK FOR LOVE + EARLY 80S VIDEO 'THE REAL AL'!
1984/5: U-BAHNX - YOUNG HEARTS OF EUROPE/KISS OF DEATH/HOLD BACK THE TEARS
1987: THE TRASH GROOVE GIRLS
1987: WASCH! HOMO SUPERIOR / HOLY PLACES
1987 - 1988: M.E.L.T. RADIOACTIVITY / SEX O MATIC
1990: I.G.L.U. - JE T’AIME. BLACK OUT RECORDS / FORCE INC - FRANKFURT - ACHIM SZPANSKI
1996
1997: THE DISKOWALKÜREN
Vocals: Ilona Bolz-Garland
Words: Chris Garland, Ilona Bolz-Garland
Music: Chris Garland, Ralf Kappmeier
Produced by Ralf Kappmeier & Chris Garland.
THE DISKOWALKÜREN were brilliant! A MAGNIFICENT POWERFUL UNSTOPPABLE TEUTONIC SEX MACHINE! ‘DISKOWALKÜREN’ was developed as a vehicle for ILONA (BOLZ-GARLAND/ILONA B / HEIDI VON DÜSSELDORF). We brought in three other girls for backing vocals and for keyboards on live shows, one RUSSIAN, one POLISH, the other, like Ilona GERMAN. Working with the whole WALKÜREN project was a remarkable experience, that pretty much took over my life, Ilona and I wrote some wonderful inspired songs together and KAPPI (Ralf Kapmeier ) and myself produced some awe inspiring tracks! The track ‘WALKÜREN’ an absolutely incredible piece of dark sensual almost ‘occult’ dance music, seemed to take on a power all of its own, and even after what must be fifteen years this track continues to be one of the most played classic floor fillers in ‘GOTH DARK WAVE EBM CLUBS’ from MOSCOW to TOKYO. Indeed both the track and THE DISKOWALKÜREN themselves have achieved an almost ‘MYTHICAL ICONIC CULT STATUS’. And the many fans of Ilona, the group and the track WALKÜREN (‘TANZ IM FEUER’), will be I am sure delighted to find here, SOME STUNNING BRAND NEW NEVER BEFORE RELEASED TRAX FROM THE DISKOWALKÜREN. Also included are the truly stunning and magnificent SCHLAGERLAND, TANZMASCHINE, and RADIOINTERNATIONAL.
The DISKOWALKÜREN signed to PIAS in HAMBURG, in retrospect this was a mistake, as both SONY and EMI had also wanted them, but we felt that PIAS would ‘get’ what The DISKOWALKÜREN were about a lot better. This proved to be a great mistake, as PIAS it turned out, did not ‘get’ them at all! DISKOWALKÜREN, had originally been conceived as a vehicle for Ilona’s amazing vocal talents, and the concept was seen by both of us as a very ‘ELECTRO GOTH DARK WAVE EBM’ concept, Pias though proved to be way of the map as far as that sort of thing was concerned, nice enough people but the then head of the company in Germany was terrible straight and artless. However the track ‘WALKÜREN’ created a great deal of action, and indeed controversy, and again, years later is still a very happening track indeed.
1998: SYSTEM DE LA MODE
1999: FEDERAL REPUBLIC
2000: ZONK / ZONKFACTORY
2001: THE VIRTUAL ORCHESTRA
2002: DUFT
2002 - 2003: THE BLUE VOID - ACID POP CANDY
2005: P-KOMMANDO
2006: MINISTRY VIDEO
2006: THE POETS OF NOW
2008: MANIFESTO
So this has been a musical history spread over thirty years, it has I must say been quite journey for me , revisiting both good and not so good memories. I have obviously been selective about what is featured here, some things I would like to have included are not featured as I know longer have the tracks/masters or indeed know where they are. However perhaps other things will turn up and can be included at a later date. Looking back on me, in those days, hmmmm! I’m not sure! Certainly a very different person (one hopes) to the one I am today! And probably more convinced about myself than I should have been! Anyway, I hope this ‘ history lesson’ is interesting and entertaining, it certainly has been for me!