Merkel's punk pick for leaving ceremony raises eyebrows

[muriel_volestrangler]

Angela Merkel has left Germans wondering how well they really know the chancellor who has governed them for 16 years, after picking a song by the punk rocker Nina Hagen as the soundtrack for her military leaving ceremony.
...
First recorded in 1974 in a conventional schlager style, the song was a hit in the East German pop charts before Hagen emigrated to the other side of the iron curtain, where she immersed herself in London subcultures and became West Germany’s pre-eminent punk figure of the 1980s.
...
The song, whose lyrics were written by Kurt Demmler, is an angry lament that admonishes Hagen’s boyfriend Michael for having only taken a black and white film on their holiday to Hiddensee island. As a result, she wails, “no one will believe how beautiful it was here”.

Though not censored by the state, the song was understood by its admirers at the time as a covert criticism of the socialist republic and its grey and drab everyday, where colour films were a rare commodity.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/29/angela-merkel-punk-pick-for-leaving-ceremony-raises-eyebrows

The possible meaning is appropriate for her own journey, but she's never seemed like a closet punk ...

[johnp3907]

1. Hagen is about as Punk as Phyllis Diller.

[Iggo]

2. I know. That's cute.

[maxsolomon]

3. In the hazy mists of time, microgenre distinctions blur together.

Hagen is what, Cabaret Punk?

[chowder66]

9. She's more in a sub-category of Punk

More like Art Rock, Experimental Rock or Post Krautrock.

[tenderfoot]

5. But a lot more punk than Avril Lavigne

[chowder66]

10. Absolutely. I believe Lavigne is considered "Skater Punk".

[Celerity]

15. Lavigne was more like commercial mall rat poppy punk, here is an old school real skate punk band

Stäläg 13 - In Control EP

Label: Upstart Records (2) – UP 005, Upstart Records (2) – NO° 5
Format:
Vinyl, 12", EP, 33 ⅓ RPM
Country: US
Released: 1984
Genre: Rock
Style: Hardcore, Punk

[chowder66]

17. There are a lot of bands or artists that are deemed

some sort of punk that isn't really punk at all. I thoroughly agree with your assessment.

[Celerity]

18. another great old skate punk band (very experimental too, they mixed funk in as well)

Big Boys - Lullabies Help The Brain Grow (1983) FULL ALBUM

a ripper

Label: Moment Productions – MOM-BB-002
Format:
Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: 1983
Genre: Rock
Style: Alternative Rock, Punk

[chowder66]

19. I didn't really know much about skate punk

There was hardcore punk and punk when I was growing up in the midwest. I leaned mostly toward punk but there were some hardcore bands I liked.
I learned a little more about Skate Punk living in L.A but not much admittedly. I think my tastes were solidified in one way and changing in others.

[Celerity]

20. Great Midwest band: The Replacements - Dope Smoking Moron/Skip It - Live 1981, Minneapolis

Studio version

[chowder66]

21. Yep. Grew up on them, the Suburbs and the Embarrassment among others.

[Celerity]

22. From Chicago: Articles of Faith - Angry Man, from the Give Thanks LP, produced by Bob Mould

from Hüsker Dü



This song is very early emo/post-punk (AoF were mostly hardcore punk, I will toss in a song (one of their best IMHO) from their first EP too)

Real emo, like Rites of Spring, not the garbage from the 2010's.

Articles of Faith - Bad Attitude

Label: Version Sound – dub 001
Format:
Vinyl, 7", EP, 45 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1982
Genre: Rock
Style: Hardcore, Punk

[Bernardo de La Paz]

8. She's a chameleon, but yeah, she can do punk

[chowder66]

11. + eleventy.

[hunter]

16. This looks punk to many people...

I guess you had to be there to know punk.

And in East Germany it may have been about as close as you could get.

[Celerity]

4. Nina Hagen vs. Angela Merkel (ENGLISH SUBTITLES) Nina freaks out. Rampage.

[ornotna]

7. This alone was worth clicking on the OP

I will go now.


I will come back in 5 minutes.

[Celerity]

12. Nina Hagen and Don Rickles (she shows her early opera training in her singing too)

[DFW]

14. Karl Rucker!!!

Now there is a name I haven't heard in decades.

I was once early for a flight from Paris to Düsseldorf in the 1980s, and Nina Hagen and her band showed up for the flight. I got to talking with Karl Rucker, the bassist. He was an American who was part of Hagen's band at the time. As I used to play bass way back when, we had an automatic affinity, and we had a great time hanging around Orly waiting for the plane to board. Nina had herself painted to the point where I don't know what weighed more, her wardrobe or her makeup. She was busy being Nina Hagen, but Karl was just one cool natural dude. He said to definitely look him up if I was in town where the Hagen band was playing. I intended to, but our schedules never coincided.

He has played bass for a great number of artists in the USA, and for all I know, he still does.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

6. Her music after leaving East Germany was hard edged rock, but was punky sometimes

She is very talented and capable of singing multiple genres from punk through Big Band through India spirituals through to opera.

And she is a bit crazy too, but in a caring fun non-nasty way.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Du_hast_den_Farbfilm_vergessen

With Leipzig Big Band

[SKKY]

13. I'm always suspect of a country and its musical tastes that will still...

...host sell-out concerts by "The Hoff". Just saying...

[IcyPeas]

23. kind of punk disco