DDR von unten (sometimes called eNDe or DDR von unten/eNDe; English: GDR from below) was a split LP by two East German punk bands, Zwitschermaschine and Schleim-Keim. The album was smuggled from the GDR to West Berlin. Released in 1983 by the independent label Aggressive Rockproduktionen, it is considered the first punk album in the GDR, but was only officially released in the West. For years it was the only release of its kind. The production of the album kept the Ministry for State Security busy for several years, with the band Schleim-Keim almost exclusively targeted for repression. Two unofficial collaborators (IM) were involved in its creation, including the then highly regarded alternative writer Sascha Anderson.
History of its creation Dimitri Hegemann, from the West Berlin city magazine tip, met the band Rosa Extra at an East Berlin party in 1982. He was surprised to discover a counterculture in the GDR and this inspired him to produce records in the West. Hegemann visited Karl-Ulrich Walterbach from Aggressive Rockproduktionen and successfully convinced him of the idea. As Hegemann had an entry permit to East Berlin, he was able to follow the process of creating the album. However, since Rosa Extra could not complete the project independently and required assistance, they approached Sascha Anderson. As a freelance writer, he had many connections in intellectual and artistic circles critical of the GDR regime. His own band, Zwitschermaschine, eventually became the second group to participate in the album, which was now planned as a split release. Sascha Anderson wrote an essay reflecting the zeitgeist of the GDR underground and his group. The essay was later published in the inlay. Sören "Egon" Naumann, the driver and technician familiar with recording techniques, was included in the plan and agreed to produce the songs. They decided to hire another band as well, and contacts were made with Dieter "Otze" Ehrlich from Schleim-Keim. In contrast to Zwitschermaschine and Rosa Extra, this angry and aggressive band would complement the more artistic style of the two bands.
In early 1983, Anderson discovered a home studio in Hermsdorf near Dresden where the songs could be recorded. The studio was set up by Andeck Baumgärtel, a blues musician with the group Mustang, on the ground floor of his home, and was equipped with a drum kit from the Czech brand Amati. However, the studio technology was not optimal or up to date. In particular, the mixing console from Vermona was faulty and the plastic microphones used to record the drums often failed. The RFT vocal microphone was the only up-to-date equipment used for the recordings. The recordings were made using magnetic tapes from ORWO on Tesla tape machines over a weekend in January 1983.
The initial recording session featured Rosa Extra, who brought a genuine Casio synthesiser - a rarity in the GDR at the time. The entire rehearsal was recorded and archived for later use. The following day, Schleim-Keim, who had a traditional punk line-up (guitar, bass, drums), played. They performed a fast and straightforward punk style that focused primarily on intensity. Dieter Ehrlich played the drums and provided vocals, Klaus played the guitar, and Andreas Deubach played bass. Zwitschermaschine were the final act to perform. The band consisted of Sascha Anderson, Cornelia Schleime, and Michael Rom on vocals, Lothar Fiedler on guitar, Matthias Zeidler on bass, and Wolfgang Grossmann on drums. Volker Palma played violin and trombone.
After the recordings were finished, the Ministry for State Security (MfS) visited Günther Spalda from Rosa Extra. This was not a coincidence, as the had learned about the record's production through unofficial collaborators (IMs) Sascha Anderson and Sören Naumann. The MfS threatened the group with five to ten years in prison if they did not surrender the tape with their recordings. The group, which included freelance writers Bert Papenfuß-Gorek and Stefan Döring, was trying to be classified by the state at the time. In the GDR, the only way to be recognised as a professional musician, make recordings, and give official performances was to be classified by a committee of SED officials, music journalists, musicologists, and prominent musicians. After lengthy consultation, the members decided to hand over the master tape to the MfS. The band was later categorised under the name Hard Pop.
These recent developments resulted in Schleim-Keim being allocated an entire LP side instead of just half. To ensure anonymity, Schleim-Keim opted to use an alias for the recordings. It was proposed to keep the "SK" as an abbreviation, so that, after "" (English: salt-potato), they agreed on calling themselves "" (English: sow-guys).
The two remaining master tapes were given to Günther Fischer, a renowned composer for whom Anderson had written lyrics. Fischer transferred the recordings from the ORWO tapes to higher-quality magnetic tapes, as the quality was considered outdated in West Germany. Thanks to Anderson's connections with diplomats from West Berlin, the recordings eventually made it to the other side of the Wall. In West Berlin, Ralf Kerbach, a former member of Zwitschermaschine and now a citizen of the FRG, received the tape. It is still unclear whether Kerbach added another guitar track to the recordings of his former band. Karl-Ulrich Walterbach subsequently received the recordings and took care of their release.
Release +Track list A-side (Zwitschermaschine) B-side (Sau-Kerle) Jeder Satellit hat einen Killersatelliten Alles oder nichts und noch viel mehr Geh über’n Fluß Willst du mein Killersatellit sein? Geh über die Grenze Alles ist rot Scheiß Norm Untergrund ist Strategie Spione im Café Ende Haushaltsgeräte Frankreich
The album was originally released in 1983 as an LP with the serial number AG 0019. The initial order quantity ranged from 1,500 to 4,000 copies, depending on the source.
The LP was titled DDR von unten (GDR from below), sometimes abbreviated as eNDe, which appears on both the front and back cover. While some speculated that the lettering eNDe was meant to evoke the abbreviation ND for Neues Deutschland, the SED party newspaper, some band members deny this. Instead, the release was intended to signify the end of Zwitschermaschine. It is certain that Sascha Anderson had been using the acrostic in various poems since 1982. He confirmed this version in his biography.
The record was never officially released in the GDR. Only a few copies managed to make it into the country. Sascha Anderson was able to smuggle three copies in by hiding them in the train's toilet. It is believed that Dieter Ehrlich obtained his copy from Anderson. Anderson had allegedly promised Ehrlich money for the production in advance but failed to deliver, leading Ehrlich to break into Anderson's house and steal 120 West Marks as well as the record. When Ehrlich was arrested, his mother hid the record from the MfS. The recording circulated in the GDR on a cassette tape, featuring Zwitschermaschine on the A-side and Schleim-Keim on the B-side.
Re-release +Comparison of the two Schleim-Keim releases Original release 1983 Version by Höhnie-Records 2000 Alles ist rot Scheiß Norm Untergrund ist Strategie Spione im Café Ende Haushaltsgeräte Frankreich Sieh dort Norm Untergrund & Anarchie Faustrecht Spione im Café Ende Karnickel
The complete record has never been re-released, so there is no CD version available. However, Sascha Anderson did use some of the recordings for another split release with his group Fabrik titled "Alles Geld der Welt kostet Geld" (1998) in CD format. Additionally, the Schleime composition "geh übern fluß" was included in the compilation for the book Spannung. Leistung. Widerstand. Magnetbanduntergrund DDR 1979–1990."Doppel-CD-Kompilation" In
The songs on the Schleim-Keim side were released in different versions on the group's later recordings. Frankreich was re-recorded as Faustrecht and Haushaltsgeräte became Karnickel. Only the two titles Ende and Alles ist rot were exclusively reserved for DDR von unten. As part of the re-release of Schleim-Keim's recordings on Höhnie Records, their tracks were added as a limited EP to the vinyl version of the album Nichts Gewonnen Nichts Verloren Vol. 1 - Die Stotterheim-Tapes 1984–87 (2000). The order of the tracks was rearranged and relabeled with their current song names.
Cover design The front cover is part of Kerbach's Totenreklame-Zyklus a series of images he used for the poetry collection totenreklame, eine Reise by Sascha Anderson. Although the picture, like the other illustrations in this cycle, was created during a 7,000-kilometre journey through the GDR, it was not published in the collection of poems. The cover depicts an anthropomorphic animal figure striking a bulky, rectangular object with a key-shaped object. The chosen background is a household accounts page in grey with a diagonally arranged white field. The text "DDR von unten" is written below with the subtitle "Schallplatte mit 2 Gruppen und Textbeilage". Below the picture is "eNDe". Cornelia Schleime illustrated the reverse side, featuring a drawing of a woman's upper body and head, as well as several unrecognisable objects arranged on a shelf. Schleime's drawing style is influenced by Kerbach's style. The background and signature eNDe remain unchanged. On page 2, there is an essay by Anderson titled "Von einem Beteiligten", where he pens his thoughts on the band's history in lowercase. Additionally, there is a statement by Karl-Ulrich Walterbach regarding the confiscation of the first Slime LP due to the songs "Deutschland muß sterben" and "Bullenschweine". Pages 1 and 4 feature handwritten song lyrics from both groups on scraps of torn-out writing pad pages.
Music style and lyrics
At the time of recording, Zwitschermaschine was already disbanding. Following Ralf Kerbach's departure, Sascha Anderson took over leadership of the group, so the pieces seemed to be a solo effort by him. Four out of the five lyrics were written by the artist. Only the arrangement borrowed from the original line-up of Kerbach, Schleime, and Rom. The song Alles oder nichts originated from a band session in the summer of 1982 at the Theater der Jungen Generation Dresden, with Kerbach on guitar. Geh über die Grenze and Jeder Satellit hat einen Killersatelliten were already published in 1982 in poem form in Sascha Anderson's collection of the same name, with illustrations by Ralf Kerbach. Musically, the pieces feature a strong disharmony, with rapid alternation between calm and aggressive passages. Volker Palma's trombone and violin parts are sparse and, like the rest of the music, largely lack a fixed rhythm. Borrowings from jazz lend the music a sound typical of art-punk. The lyrics are performed by the three singers as spoken word. In terms of style, the music is reminiscent of post-industrial bands like Einstürzende Neubauten, punk and no-wave artists such as Patti Smith and Lydia Lunch, and Krautrock bands like Can. The Stranglers also served as an inspiration.
Sascha Anderson, on the other hand, described the collaboration as "equal" in a later interview. The lyrical texts deal with themes such as borders (Geh über die Grenze, Geh über'n Fluß) and consumption (Alles oder nichts und noch viel mehr). The satellite motif appears twice.