A mechanical beat creaks harshly across West Berlin. Dark underground smoke rises from the chimneys as a few rough guitar riffs echo through the streets between the concrete slabs. It’s 1981 and »every day« is ground hog day. Then with a sudden leap from the clouds, three ghosts fall from the sky: They have »nothing on their minds«, but are »passionately« engaged in »swimming against the tide«. One of them is Kiddy Citny, and he creates the sound of his time with »1981 – West-Berlin«. Halfway between isolation and rebellion, his words capture the mood of a generation that calls itself the »Brilliant Dilettantes«: A cryptic anarchism in which everyone is somehow »sick«. The musical movement of the 80s, which included bands like Einstürzende Neubauten, is reflected here. It’s raw, unadorned music with an underlying desire for freedom running through the rather spoken than sung lyrics.
»1981 – West-Berlin« is a snapshot of a time marked by political tension, and as a result it works as well in 2024 as it did in the early 80s. Some may also remember the underground hit »Pas Attendre«, which went down in the annals of both music and film history thanks to Wim Wenders’ prestigious use of it in »Wings of Desire« (1987).
