Funkstörung
Encyclopedia
Funkstörung is Christian de Luca (born 11 May 1974) and Michael Fakesch (born 8 March 1975), a duo of IDM
musician
s (producers
) hailing from Rosenheim
, Germany
. They are known for rhythmically complex but melody driven music, similar to the late 1990s work of Autechre
, although their latest work incorporates elements of hip hop
as well as pop music
. They also do a lot of remix
work, their portfolio including top-level artists such as Jean Michel Jarre
, Wu-Tang Clan
and Björk
. Three of the seven Funkstörung albums are collection of remixes for other artists.
One strong point of Funkstörungs' releases has always been their cover art and design, often by The Designers Republic
. This attention to graphic design was taken to its logical conclusion when they released Isolated. Triple Media. in 2004, a 160-page artbook and a DVD with graphics and music videos related to Disconnected. Both de Luca and Fakesch have released solo albums, most of them on their own Musik aus Strom label.
on a techno party organised by Fakesch. Their diverse musical backgrounds (hip hop
and Heavy Metal
) notwithstanding, they initially produced straight minimalist techno under the name Musik Aus Strom (German for music made of electricity) and signed for a six-album deal to Unit Moebius' label Bunker Records/Acid Planet in 1994. Acid Planet was unable to release anything until 1996 due to monetary constraints, however, and de Luca and Fakesch adopted the name Funkstörung and used the moniker Musik Aus Strom for their own label, on which they released a few EPs
with a new, more melodic and rhythmically complex IDM
/Glitch
sound. After more EPs on the Compost and Chocolate Industries labels and a series of high profile remixes for Björk
mit Funkstörung on Fat Cat Records
and Wu-Tang Clan
, they finally signed to !K7 Records in 1999.
Their first album on !K7, Additional Productions
, was a collection of these remixes. Their first full-length album Appetite for Disctruction
followed the next year. On it, their style evolved further, including more collaborations with MC
s on the tracks "Grammy Winners" and "Sounds like a Breakrecord" as well as first experiments with guest singers. "Grammy Winners" was released as a single and video. Their next album Vice Versa
(2001) was yet another collection of remixes, this time including versions of songs by Jean Michel Jarre
, The Notwist
and Tocotronic
.
On their next album Disconnected, they added some distinctly pop-oriented
songs, featuring guest vocalists Louise Rhodes (of Lamb
), Sarah Jay (known for her work with Massive Attack
) and Enik
. Disconnected also served as the launch pad for their project Isolate. A series of photographs was made available on their website, and visitors were encouraged to alter them and send them back. The results, including both still graphics and videos to Disconnected tracks, were published as the book/DVD combination Isolated. Triple Media. in 2004. Their video Chopping Heads directed by Keep Adding
and Scott Pagano
was selected for the 2005 International Critic's Week at Cannes Film Festival.
In June 2005, Funkstörung released another album called The Return to the Acid Planet
to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their first release. Stylistically, it was very reminiscent of their Acid Planet work - indeed, most of the songs were from that time, and were touched up to modern production standards. The biggest change was replacing the standard straight acid house
beats with 808
-sounding breakbeat
s. The album was only released in a limited vinyl edition and in the iTunes Music Store.
In the beginning of August 2006, a statement was published on funkstorung.com, stating that the duo had officially broken up due to musical, personal and practical differences. Both Michael Fakesch and Christian de Luca will continue making music with their respective solo projects.
Intelligent dance music
Intelligent dance music is a term that describes an electronic music genre that emerged in the early 1990s. The genre is influenced by a wide range of musical styles particularly electronic dance music such as Detroit Techno...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
s (producers
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
) hailing from Rosenheim
Rosenheim
Rosenheim is a town in Bavaria at the confluence of the rivers Inn and Mangfall. It is seat of administration of the district of Rosenheim, but is not a part of it.-Geography:...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. They are known for rhythmically complex but melody driven music, similar to the late 1990s work of Autechre
Autechre
Autechre are an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both natives of Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are one of the most prominent acts signed to Warp Records, a label known for its pioneering electronic music and through which all Autechre albums...
, although their latest work incorporates elements of hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
as well as pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
. They also do a lot of remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
work, their portfolio including top-level artists such as Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel André Jarre is a French composer, performer and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient and New Age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.Jarre was raised in Lyon by his mother and...
, Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
and Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
. Three of the seven Funkstörung albums are collection of remixes for other artists.
One strong point of Funkstörungs' releases has always been their cover art and design, often by The Designers Republic
The Designers Republic
The Designers Republic was a graphic design studio, founded on 14 July 1986 by Ian Anderson, and based in Sheffield, England. It was known for its anti-establishment aesthetics, while simultaneously embracing brash consumerism and the uniform style of corporate brands, such as Orange and Coca-Cola...
. This attention to graphic design was taken to its logical conclusion when they released Isolated. Triple Media. in 2004, a 160-page artbook and a DVD with graphics and music videos related to Disconnected. Both de Luca and Fakesch have released solo albums, most of them on their own Musik aus Strom label.
Band biography
The duo reportedly first met in 1992, when de Luca DJedDisc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
on a techno party organised by Fakesch. Their diverse musical backgrounds (hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
and Heavy Metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
) notwithstanding, they initially produced straight minimalist techno under the name Musik Aus Strom (German for music made of electricity) and signed for a six-album deal to Unit Moebius' label Bunker Records/Acid Planet in 1994. Acid Planet was unable to release anything until 1996 due to monetary constraints, however, and de Luca and Fakesch adopted the name Funkstörung and used the moniker Musik Aus Strom for their own label, on which they released a few EPs
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
with a new, more melodic and rhythmically complex IDM
Intelligent dance music
Intelligent dance music is a term that describes an electronic music genre that emerged in the early 1990s. The genre is influenced by a wide range of musical styles particularly electronic dance music such as Detroit Techno...
/Glitch
Glitch (music)
Glitch is a term used to describe a genre of electronic music that emerged in the mid to late 1990s. The glitch aesthetic is characterized by a deliberate use of glitch based sonic artifacts that would normally be viewed as unwanted disturbances reducing the overall sound quality and are thus...
sound. After more EPs on the Compost and Chocolate Industries labels and a series of high profile remixes for Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
mit Funkstörung on Fat Cat Records
Fat Cat Records
Fat Cat Records is an independent label based in Brighton on England’s South Coast. Their output includes electronica, post rock, indie, downtempo, minimal techno, noise and punk-pop...
and Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
The Wu-Tang Clan is a hip-hop group from Staten Island that consists of RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and the late Ol' Dirty Bastard. They are frequently joined by fellow childhood friend Cappadonna, a quasi member of the group...
, they finally signed to !K7 Records in 1999.
Their first album on !K7, Additional Productions
Additional Productions
Additional Productions is the first album-length release of the German IDM group Funkstörung, and also the first on their current label, !K7 Records. It is not strictly an album, since it only contains remixes of other artists done by Funkstörung, but since there is seldom more than parts of the...
, was a collection of these remixes. Their first full-length album Appetite for Disctruction
Appetite for Disctruction
Appetite for Disctruction is the first regular album by the German IDM group Funkstörung. The name is a pun on the Guns N' Roses record Appetite for Destruction. The CD jewel case, designed by The Designers Republic, was printed with a silver pattern of the album title...
followed the next year. On it, their style evolved further, including more collaborations with MC
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
s on the tracks "Grammy Winners" and "Sounds like a Breakrecord" as well as first experiments with guest singers. "Grammy Winners" was released as a single and video. Their next album Vice Versa
Vice Versa (album)
Vice Versa is a collection of remixes done by the German IDM outfit Funkstörung and released on October 30, 2001. Also included are "Salt", a collaboration with rapper Beans, and "I Want Some Fun", a track taken from Jay Jay Johanson's Funkstörung-produced album Antenna...
(2001) was yet another collection of remixes, this time including versions of songs by Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel Jarre
Jean Michel André Jarre is a French composer, performer and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient and New Age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.Jarre was raised in Lyon by his mother and...
, The Notwist
The Notwist
The Notwist are a German indie rock band. Formed in 1989, the band moved through several musical incarnations despite maintaining a relatively stable lineup...
and Tocotronic
Tocotronic
Tocotronic is a German rock band founded in 1993 . Similar to Blumfeld or Die Sterne they are considered a part of the Hamburger Schule movement...
.
On their next album Disconnected, they added some distinctly pop-oriented
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
songs, featuring guest vocalists Louise Rhodes (of Lamb
Lamb (band)
Lamb is an electronic music duo from Manchester, England, whose music is influenced by trip hop and drum and bass. The duo consists of producer Andy Barlow, who also produces under the pseudonym Hipoptimist, and singer-songwriter Lou Rhodes...
), Sarah Jay (known for her work with Massive Attack
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
) and Enik
Enik
Enik is a songwriter, singer and musician from Munich, Germany.He released his first EP "Without a bark" in 2003 and was the songwriter and singer for four songs on Funkstörung's album Disconnected , most notably the title track.In 2006, his album "The Seasons in Between" was released on Labels...
. Disconnected also served as the launch pad for their project Isolate. A series of photographs was made available on their website, and visitors were encouraged to alter them and send them back. The results, including both still graphics and videos to Disconnected tracks, were published as the book/DVD combination Isolated. Triple Media. in 2004. Their video Chopping Heads directed by Keep Adding
Keep Adding
Keep Adding is an artist group formed in the year 2001.Keep Adding creates environments that address space, context, and site. These spaces are not simply the cube of a gallery or an abandoned house – they are the sites of complete sensory experiences...
and Scott Pagano
Scott Pagano
Scott Pagano is a Los Angeles-based video artist, filmmaker, and motion graphics designer and is recognized for his distinctive style of moving images constructed by re-mixing images of architecture, daily life, and intricate CG graphics...
was selected for the 2005 International Critic's Week at Cannes Film Festival.
In June 2005, Funkstörung released another album called The Return to the Acid Planet
The Return to the Acid Planet
The Return to the Acid Planet is an album released by German IDM artists Funkstörung in 2005. It commemorates the duo's 10th anniversary as recording artists, and consists of new versions of unreleased early tracks as well as some new tracks in the same style. Even though it sounds very much like...
to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their first release. Stylistically, it was very reminiscent of their Acid Planet work - indeed, most of the songs were from that time, and were touched up to modern production standards. The biggest change was replacing the standard straight acid house
Acid house
Acid house is a sub-genre of house music that emphasizes a repetitive, hypnotic and trance-like style, often with samples or spoken lines rather than sung lyrics. Acid house's core electronic squelch sounds were developed around the mid-1980s, particularly by DJs from Chicago who experimented with...
beats with 808
Roland TR-808
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer was one of the first programmable drum machines . Introduced by the Roland Corporation in early 1980, it was originally manufactured for use as a tool for studio musicians to create demos. Like earlier Roland drum machines, it does not sound very much like a real...
-sounding breakbeat
Breakbeat
In 1992, a new style called "jungalistic hardcore" emerged, and for many ravers it was too funky to dance to. Josh Lawford of Ravescene prophesied that the breakbeat was "the death-knell of rave" because the ever changing drumbeat patterns of breakbeat music didn't allow for the same zoned out,...
s. The album was only released in a limited vinyl edition and in the iTunes Music Store.
In the beginning of August 2006, a statement was published on funkstorung.com, stating that the duo had officially broken up due to musical, personal and practical differences. Both Michael Fakesch and Christian de Luca will continue making music with their respective solo projects.
Discography
| Title | Format | Label | Catalog number | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Godzilla vs. Metalhead | Single | Acid Planet | 15 | 1995 | vinyl only |
| Untitled | Mini-album | Acid Planet | 11 | 1996 | |
| Untitled | Mini-album | Acid Planet | 12 | 1996 | |
| Untitled | Mini-album | Acid Planet | 13 | 1996 | |
| Untitled | Mini-album | Acid Planet | 14 | 1996 | |
| Elektromotor | Mini-album | Acid Planet | 18 | 1996 | |
| Untitled | Mini-album | Bunker Records | 024 | 1996 | |
| Untitled | EP | Musik Aus Strom | 1.08 | 1996 | vinyl only, also known as Oszillator EP and Musik Aus Strom EP |
| break.art | EP | Musik Aus Strom | 2.09 | 1996 | vinyl only |
| Artificial garbage | EP | Interr-fered Communications | HM1205 | 1997 | vinyl only |
| Funkentstört | EP | Compost | 031-1 | 1997 | vinyl only |
| Sonderdienste | EP | Compost | 045-1 | 1997 | vinyl only |
| post.art | EP | Chocolate Industries | 002 | 1998 | |
| björkmitfunkstörung | EP | Fat Cat records | 005 | 1998 | Remixes of the Björk Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk... track All Is Full of Love All Is Full of Love "All Is Full of Love" is a song by Björk, released as the fifth and final single from her album Homogenic. The version of the song used in the video is actually the original version of the song, while the version on Homogenic is a remix by Howie B... |
| Additional Productions Additional Productions Additional Productions is the first album-length release of the German IDM group Funkstörung, and also the first on their current label, !K7 Records. It is not strictly an album, since it only contains remixes of other artists done by Funkstörung, but since there is seldom more than parts of the... |
Album | !K7 Records | !K7028 | 1999 | A collection of remixes |
| Appetite for Disctruction Appetite for Disctruction Appetite for Disctruction is the first regular album by the German IDM group Funkstörung. The name is a pun on the Guns N' Roses record Appetite for Destruction. The CD jewel case, designed by The Designers Republic, was printed with a silver pattern of the album title... |
Album | !K7 Records | !K7087 | 2000 | |
| Multiple Grammy Winners | EP | !K7 Records | !K7087EP | 2000 | Remixes of the "Appetite for Disctruction" track Grammy Winners |
| Vice Versa Vice Versa (album) Vice Versa is a collection of remixes done by the German IDM outfit Funkstörung and released on October 30, 2001. Also included are "Salt", a collaboration with rapper Beans, and "I Want Some Fun", a track taken from Jay Jay Johanson's Funkstörung-produced album Antenna... |
Album | !K7 Records | !K7108 | 2001 | Another collection of remixes |
| Disconnected/Fat Camp Feva | EP | !K7 Records | !K7162EP | 2004 | Two "Disconnected" album tracks, and a remix of each |
| Disconnected | Album | !K7 Records | !K7162 | 2004 | |
| Moon Addicted/Chopping Heads | EP | !K7 Records | !K7171EP | 2004 | Two "Disconnected" album tracks and two unreleased tracks |
| Isolated. Triple Media. | Book/DVD | !K7 / Die Gestalten Verlag | !K7162 Book*+*DVD | 2004 | Compilation of Disconnected Audio CD, a video DVD of work for the album, and a book, ISBN 3899551079. Was titled "Most beautiful sleeve of 2004" by The Guardian The Guardian The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format... . |
| The Return to the Acid Planet The Return to the Acid Planet The Return to the Acid Planet is an album released by German IDM artists Funkstörung in 2005. It commemorates the duo's 10th anniversary as recording artists, and consists of new versions of unreleased early tracks as well as some new tracks in the same style. Even though it sounds very much like... |
Album | !K7 Records | !K7186LP | 2005 | Only available on vinyl and through electronic distribution |
| Appendix | Album | !K7 Records | !K7210CD | 2006 | Another Remix collection |
External links
- funkstorung.com - official website
- Appendix - Appendix website