HAUSHALTSWAREN/ANLIEGER FREI-S/T SPLIT, LP/CDR, 1981/2001, GERMANY

Following my post of D. Flemmer's excellent tape on Datenverarbeitung and preceding a host of further Datenverarbeitung tapes yet to come, here's a truly whacked out album from this label's arsenal, originally issued as a split LP, with both outfits featuring co-label owner Stiev, who's the source for said forthcoming Datenverarbeitung titles as well. Both of these related Neue Deutsche Welle units trafficed in penetratingly bent and hermetic post-Ralph Records outlandishness; Anlieger Frei's sometimes akin to Der Plan at their most squashed and insular (think: Zuruck In Die Atmossphare), Haushaltswaren's slightly more tightly honed approach nudging the proceedings closer to Wirtschaftswunder territory. Stiev has graciously translated the text included in the CDR reissue into English for the benefit of Mutant Sounds fans, which follows here:

Greetings from a survivor..
Rereleasing a not so very important record after 20 years? Why? Well, there are some reasons. 20 years ago (oh my god is it that long?) me and my friends had a lot of fun when recording this album. That's what it was all about, having fun and being more or less creative at the same time. As Stefan Werner form 5te Gangart-label contacted me, I was aware, that Anlieger Frei
(translated: Residents only), my band (would be called project today, tha certainly fits it well) would not be able to fill a whole album anyone could enjoy. But there was my friend Dieter, who had his band Splitter, but who was full of more mindless ideas, so he agreed in recording on side of the record with me. We found the name when sitting at the bar of the M8, a tiny pub amidst the city of Bonn. Dieter was playing with a box of matches and the print on it 'Haushaltswaren' (translated
Household supplys) suddenly was recognized by the both of us. That was it. Of yourse the name turned into a bit of a concept (see the photo and some of the titles).

Anlieger Frei came to life after Cliff and me had been playing together in other bands and were hanging around together anyway. That name was thought to be concept as well, it hinted to our adoration for the old farts from San Fransisco. Sadly enough our ability to play was not as big as that of the Residents (but maybe they just have better weed in California…), so the music turned out to be different.

The whole album was recorder on a Teac 4-track at my home. I was in school than and still lived with my parents and so it happened – specially when we were singing – that my Mom stood with a red face and tears of laughter in her eyes in the door of my room. We used everything as an instruments that we layed our fingers on, backing tins, bottles, guitars, bass, MS-20 and the unbeatable DR-Rhythm-beatbox. After a few month we had enough material Dieter, Stefan W. and me took a drive throught he snowstorm to somewhere near Limburg where Tom Dokupil had his Schokostudio' in the basement of his parents house. There everything was mixed and and eventually some effects were added by Tom and his electronic helpers. Mainly Dieter was very much in to production quality, so we had to listen over and over to the songs. Finally even Dieter
was happy, a mastertape was made and the stuff was send to the record plant. Some time later we had a whitelabel (this was used as the source for the CDr, because the mastertape got lost somewhere) and the first 500 were printed. Despites of expectations it turned out to sell quite well so there was a second printing of 250 pieces. It even sold to Japan! I always imaging how earnest little yellow men take out the record with heavy nodding, put it on and listen with respectfull
silence).

After the record everything went astray in the following years. Cliff and me had a couple of gigs as Anlieger Frei and had another group with Lutz B. – who were actually rehearsing – in the former cowshed of his parents, which made me create the name 'The Fearless Cowyard Cowards in Clinch with their owm Ideas'. Some of this stuff was release on the 'Bonner Rache' and 'Bonner Blutrache' tapes on the Datenverarbeitung label. Dieter turned back to his dreams of popstardom and more or less to his university studies. He never believed in 'Haushaltswaren' as you can see from the title 'Einweg-Platte. Kein Pfand – keine Rückgabe' (Oneway record, no deposit – no return') tp be found on the album cover, but I'm sure in retrospect he liked it.

So here is a second and third reason for rereleasing this concoction: Cliff is dead for some years now, he never managed to realize when the fun was ending with drugs and gave us the Sid Vicious – This Rerelease is dedicated to him, we had so much fun, I miss you! Dieter disappeared form my sight sometime, he was last seen in Cologne and I have been told he had turned to heavier music with young man wearing tights. Dieter, if you read this, please contact!
Bonn, November 2001
Stiev A.

The funny musicians are called:

Dieter Duck
Cliff Stiff and
Stiev A.

A list of who made what noise can't be made as everyone played everything at one point. The singing (more or less) is by all three as well.

A comment to some tracks:

Nervös (Nervous) is from drinving with the metro one morning with a girl who had no ticket. Hearing her say 'I'm so nervous' all the time must have crawled into my mind somehow

'Ode an mein Haar' (Ode to my hairdo) was the sole politically meant song on the album. Cliff and me had skinhead hairdos but where against the then rising Nazi-skins

'Spion' (secret agent) has turned out to be a historical document after the end of the cold war and the fall of the wall. These voices, somewhere at the edge of the radio scale, reading numbers for hours are gone now.

'Laufen mit Yrrch' (Walking with Yrrch) was partially recorded when walking with my friend Jörg. I had a tiny dicating maching and left it recording during the walk to the metro-station. Jörg from time to tim beat stuff with his walking stick (he was an a Oscar-Wilde-Dandy thing at that time). Later Jörg took the hairdryer into the bathtube… I miss him too

Alas, what can I say to the Haushalstwaren tracks, they go from simple fiddling around over adolescent mockery to dark obsessions and and in a great punksong. As I heard this all again after many years, I even had to laugh sometimes…

Get it Here