Katzenjammer Kabarett
Encyclopedia
Katzenjammer Kabarett is a four-piece dark cabaret
band from Paris
, France
. Aesthetically inspired by German
Weimar-era
cabaret
s and burlesque
shows, the band also chose a name of German origin that literally translates to "cat's wail cabaret" with Katzenjammer also generally meaning "discordant sound" and being used as a synonym for a hangover
. Other stylistic influences range from Dada
ism, Futurism
and Symbolism
to Postmodernism
.
which was freely distributed on their website. It was followed by their likewise self-titled debut album in 2006.
Hence the band received critical acclaim and performed on several festivals, including the Wave-Gotik-Treffen 2006 in Leipzig
, the Amphi Festival
2007 in Cologne
and the Summer Darkness
festival 2009 in Utrecht
. They also performed as a supporting act for the American dark cabaret band The Dresden Dolls
, to whom they are often compared. In January 2009 they released their second studio album Grand Guignol & Variétés.
, deathrock
, synthpunk
, gothic rock
, New Wave music
, electronic music
, classical music
and German "Lied
er" (Romantic-era
art song
s). Referring to themselves as "death rock cabaret", "multireferential post-punk" and "baroque krautpop", the band also cites early New and Dark Wave bands like Bauhaus
, Christian Death
and Siouxsie and the Banshees as influences.
Dark Cabaret
Dark cabaret may be a simple description of the theme and mood of a cabaret performance, but more recently has come to define a particular musical genre which draws on the aesthetics of the decadent, risqué German Weimar-era cabarets, burlesque and vaudeville shows with the stylings of post-1970s...
band from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Aesthetically inspired by German
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...
Weimar-era
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
s and burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
shows, the band also chose a name of German origin that literally translates to "cat's wail cabaret" with Katzenjammer also generally meaning "discordant sound" and being used as a synonym for a hangover
Hangover
A hangover describes the sum of unpleasant physiological effects following heavy consumption of alcoholic beverages. The most commonly reported characteristics of a hangover include headache, nausea, sensitivity to light and noise, lethargy, dysphoria, diarrhea and thirst, typically after the...
. Other stylistic influences range from Dada
Dada
Dada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
ism, Futurism
Futurism
Futurism was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy in the early 20th century.Futurism or futurist may refer to:* Afrofuturism, an African-American and African diaspora subculture* Cubo-Futurism* Ego-Futurism...
and Symbolism
Symbolism (arts)
Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century art movement of French, Russian and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts. In literature, the style had its beginnings with the publication Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire...
to Postmodernism
Postmodernism
Postmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
.
History
The band was founded in 2004 by singer Mary Komplikated, guitarist Herr Katz, keyboardist Klischee and bass player Mr Guillotine. In 2005 they released a self-titled EPExtended 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...
which was freely distributed on their website. It was followed by their likewise self-titled debut album in 2006.
Hence the band received critical acclaim and performed on several festivals, including the Wave-Gotik-Treffen 2006 in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, the Amphi Festival
Amphi Festival
The Amphi Festival is a music festival that has been taking place since 2005 featuring a wide-ranging program for a heterogeneous audience, albeit primarily fans of alternative, electronic music, and dark music...
2007 in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
and the Summer Darkness
Summer Darkness
Summer Darkness is the biggest alternative music festival in The Netherlands which is being held annually since 2003 around the second weekend in August in the city of Utrecht...
festival 2009 in Utrecht
Utrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
. They also performed as a supporting act for the American dark cabaret band The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls are an American musical duo from Boston, Massachusetts. Formed in 2000, the group consists of Amanda Palmer and Brian Viglione...
, to whom they are often compared. In January 2009 they released their second studio album Grand Guignol & Variétés.
Style
The band's musical style is a mixture of different genres including post-punkPost-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
, deathrock
Deathrock
Deathrock is a term used to identify a sub-genre of punk rock incorporating horror elements and spooky atmospherics, that emerged on the West Coast of the United States in 1979.-Characteristics:...
, synthpunk
Synthpunk
Synthpunk is a music genre combining elements of electronic music and punk rock. The term was coined by Damian Ramsey in 1999 as an attempt to retroactively identify a small sub-genre of punk music from 1977 to 1984 that involved musicians playing synthesizers in place of electric...
, gothic rock
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
, New Wave music
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
, electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
, classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
and German "Lied
Lied
is a German word literally meaning "song", usually used to describe romantic songs setting German poems of reasonably high literary aspirations, especially during the nineteenth century, beginning with Carl Loewe, Heinrich Marschner, and Franz Schubert and culminating with Hugo Wolf...
er" (Romantic-era
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
art song
Art song
An art song is a vocal music composition, usually written for one voice with piano or orchestral accompaniment. By extension, the term "art song" is used to refer to the genre of such songs....
s). Referring to themselves as "death rock cabaret", "multireferential post-punk" and "baroque krautpop", the band also cites early New and Dark Wave bands like Bauhaus
Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
, Christian Death
Christian Death
Christian Death is an American deathrock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1979. The band was founded and fronted by Rozz Williams. Christian Death is most notable for their first album Only Theatre of Pain....
and Siouxsie and the Banshees as influences.
Albums
- Katzenjammer Kabarett (2006)
- Grand Guignol & Variétés (2009)
Compilations
- "Gemini Girly Song" on New Dark Age Vol. 2 (2004)
- "Eve at the Mansion" on Pagan Love Songs (2004)
- "Lies Suck Not" on Gothic compilation #29 (2005)
- "Gemini Girly Song" on A Dark CabaretA Dark Cabaret-Track listing:#The Dresden Dolls – "Coin-Operated Boy" – 4:46#Revue Noir – "Sometimes, Sunshine" – 3:54#Jill Tracy – "Evil Night Together" – 4:33#Katzenjammer Kabarett – "Gemini Girly Song" – 4:28...
(2005)