Einstürzende Neubauten

Einstürzende Neubauten
Einstürzende Neubauten in 2008
Background information
OriginWest Berlin, West Germany
Genres
Years active1980–present
Labels
MembersBlixa Bargeld
N.U. Unruh
Jochen Arbeit
Rudolph Moser
Past membersBeate Bartel
Gudrun Gut
F.M. Einheit
Mark Chung
Roland Wolf
Alexander Hacke
Websiteneubauten.org

Einstürzende Neubauten (German pronunciation: [ˈaɪnˌʃtʏʁtsn̩də ˈnɔyˌbaʊtn̩], lit. 'Collapsing New Buildings') is a German experimental music group, formed in West Berlin in 1980. The band currently comprises founding members Blixa Bargeld (lead vocals, guitar, keyboard) and N.U. Unruh (custom-made instruments, percussion, vocals), plus Jochen Arbeit (guitar, vocals), and Rudolph Moser (custom-built instruments, percussion, vocals), who both joined the line-up in 1997.

One of their trademarks is the use of custom-built instruments, predominantly made out of scrap metal and building tools, and noises, in addition to standard musical instruments. Their early albums were unremittingly harsh, with Bargeld's vocals shouted and screamed above a din of banging and scraping metal percussion. Subsequent recordings found the group's sound growing somewhat more conventional, yet still containing many unorthodox elements.