The original band name was Kapitän Sehnsucht (Captain Desire), “Bryllyant Berger & The Tronic Twins” was another fun named they used ..
The band intended to write and play heartjerking and melancholic Electro Pop songs, sung in german. They were already well known in Germany for strange performances such as soundtracking nightclub sex shows on the well known »Mile of sin«, Reeperbahn in Hamburg, which caused some problems for Holger, who was not yet 18.
And so it was strictly illegal, but well paid. Some producers showed interest. However, it was a difficult time - German New Wave had it's best days behind it, and singing in German had lost it's popularity. Despite this they went to the studio and produced some tracks with Joachim Witt, best known in Germany for individual and obstinate Pop. The results were unsatisfying, and the band remained unsigned. However, this was not the end of the story. Almost simultaneously to the production Witt did, they went to a studio in Hamburg and recorded a track in english. It was a spontaneous descision, largely for fun. Unpleasing results resulted in 3 separate recordings. These unplanned recordings again went largely unnoticed by the labels, with the exception of Mercury Records, who signed the band and released the material. The debut received some club notoreity but little chart interest. Boytronic finally received some publicity as a last minute replacement for Kim Wilde on Germany's equivalent of Top of the Pops. The performance was strange and a little embarassing for the band.
But the record was an instant hit. »You« went top ten in Germany and many European countries. The First Album »The Working Model« also did very well. So they decided to drop Kapitän Sehnsucht and go on with this. But with success comes trouble. Boytronic is and always has been a idealistic band who wants to create something good and unique and didn`t repeat themselves again and again. So this fact leaded to major problems with the record company. As they recognized that the band wouldnt turn into the expected moneymachine — they tried to force Boytronic in a different direction. In this period the work on the second album began and Peter left Boytronic before it was finished.
Holger then teamed up with at that time, highly recomended Bobby Orlando. Holger liked the work Bobby O. did on the Pet Shop Boys and the simplicity that mostly comes to the point. So he went to New York and recorded some tracks. One of them »Man in a uniform« later was released as a Single and did well in Skandinavia and Benelux. In 1985 The second Album »The Continental« went to the shops and as you can hear, this is the result of confusion and disruption. A true document and very authentic album — (by the way — we've rereleased it as »The Continental (replace)« in 2005 — so you can make yor own judgement). Peter and Holger got together again for the Single. »Late Night Satelite« and then Peter started work on his Ultrabass Project. He recorded two Albums. »Trance Beats« and »Planet Sys«. The last Boytronic single »Hurts« was released as a teaser for the 3rd Album »Godspell« in 1986. But unfortunately the Longplayer never saw the light of day. Some of the tracks where included in the »Kamerata« Album »Lovers and other Strangers«.
After a long lawsuit between the record company who claims the right to use the name Boytronic and Holger, who was really tired of all this, he decided to start a new project called Kamerata . His new Partner was Ralf Martens, with whom he did the »Hurts« Single already. The Band released one Album and three Singles. Then split up. Strangely enough, the second major Hit Single for Boytronic came out at that time. »Bryllyant«, originaly released as the flipside of the "You" 86 Remix, inspired some Belgian DJ to play it halfspeed. This version became a Clubmonster. Re-released as the slower Version, it went straight in the charts in Benelux and Great Britain and topped the Billboard Dance Charts. This also marks the end of the first Boytronic Period.
The second Boytronic band was casted by the record company and has in fact nothing to do with the original. The members were Hayo+Panarinfo , Bela Lagonda and Mark Wade as the Singer. They released two Albums ("Love for Sale", 1988 and " The Heart and the Machine" 1992) and multiple other singles between 1988 and 1995. They sounded different and suffered from the fact that they`re a "fake band". "Don`t let me down", which sounded like Modern Talking in Italo Disco La La La and made it to he charts in Germany. The last single of this Boytronic period was »Blue Velvet« in 1995.
Holger and Peter Sawatzki started to work again on a new project called »A Feather on the Breath of God«. They had just finished the recording of demos for a whole new album when Peter was diagnosed of cancer and passed away very rapidly. Holger decided to gave up singing and writing songs. He thought that this Band is cursed and went to a monastery in Thailand. He remains silent for one and a half year. When he came back to Germany, he didnt thought of doing music again. He was more interested in leading a normal life with a job and a partner...just like other people do. But after a while he started writing songs again and had the idea to relaunch Boytronic somehow.
On the same day, he seriously tried to figure out how to manage, he received a call from Hayo Panarinfo. One of the members of the second Edition Boytronic Band. Hayo had exactly the same Idea. So they met up and started working on »Autotunes« very soon. The record came out in May 2002 and brought Boytronic back to Life. With »Autotunes« also came two different MCD-versions of »Living without you« (the album version of the track was produced by Gareth Jones).
In the meantime both of them where very busy...Holger compiled and re-released sucessfull the first album — now called »The Working Model Reverse« — and works on a second project called »Beachhead« with Hans Johm from Leipzig. They've released the first e.p. »Drowning tonight« in September 2004. It contains 63 minutes of Music and the voices of both of them. `
Also on Boytronics own Label »Triggertrax«, a Double CD called »Maxi«, which is a Compilation of all 80`s twelve Inches and a few new Tracks. Hayo left the band in 2005 by mutual agreement — his label Major-Records demands more of his time and energy.
Holger decides to continue the work together with Hans Johm from Beachhead. He also involved Michael Maria Ziffels — a multi-instrumentalist and composer from Berlin — into the band. So they began to work on the new album "Dependence" immediately.
The trio lasted only for this album.
In 2009 Holger Wobker and Hayo Panarinfo joined forces again, and went to studio to record the new Boytronic album. The release is scheduled for autumn 2009. No album came...
2017: The 2nd incarnation of Boytronic feat, Hayo Panarinfo (Lewerentz) and Bela Lagonda (Alberto Ingo Hauss) teamed up with Scarlet Soho vocalist James Knights to record the album "Jewel".
This line-up lasted only for this album, but more exciting news was on the horizon,
The original vocalist Holger Wobker had to go to court to get the bandname Boytronic back (which he founded together with Sawatzki). The record company had claimed it belonged to them.
Wobker rightfully won. He was so pleased with his replacement from the "Jewel" album James Knights,
that he asked to join him for the next chapter of Boytronic.
2019: Boytronic released "The Robot Treatment". The name came to life that Holgers voice had became a bit rusty over the years. So they joked around and said that it needed "The Robot Treatment"!
They played live in Berlin and other places to promote the album and play old favourites.
A remixed version of the album The Robot Treatment was released in 2020 including 5 bonus tracks on the digital release.
Photographs
Boytronic Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Reflections of my own
I see the change of life to come
These images are gone
I'm looking at my photographs
Emotions fill the air
The day we started hopefully soon ended in this pain
And all that lasts are photographs
Reflections of the past
The years have changed but still remains
The beating of the heart
I'm looking at my photographs
Some faces growing old
The eyes once light up the nights
But now the nights are cold
And some of them were Jury
We are the ones with naked skin
But still you see the photographs in secret magazines
And all that lasts are photographs
Reflections of the past
The years have changed but still remains
The beating of the heart
And all my secret photographs
And secret picture books
Are made for me and other men
To catch some greedy looks
I looking at my favourite one
So genre and so warm
The smell all ready lost it's life before myself was
Born
And all that lasts are photographs
Reflections of the past
The years have changed but still remains
The beating of the heart
And all that lasts are photographs
Reflections of the past
The years have changed but still remains
The beating of the heart
The beating of the heart
The beating of the heart
The beating of the heart
The lyrics of Boytronic's "Photographs" capture the poignant realization that photographs are all that remain of memories and relationships that fade away with time. The first stanza sets the melancholic tone by reflecting on the inevitable changes that time will bring, and how photographs can serve as a reminder of what once was. The second stanza dives deeper into the emotional weight of the photographs, as they bring back memories of pain and lost hope. The third stanza explores the idea that photographs can be a form of escapism, with the images frozen in time, and how the people in the photographs themselves have aged and changed over time. The final stanza reveals the more sinister side of photographs, alluding to the idea that some may use them for illicit purposes, and that even the most cherished photographs will eventually lose their value and meaning.
At its core, the song is a reflection on the impermanence of life and the importance of holding onto memories. The idea that "all that lasts are photographs" suggests that even the strongest emotions and connections will fade away with time, and that photographs serve as a lifeline to the past. The fact that some of the photographs mentioned in the song are erotic adds an interesting layer to the lyrics, as it suggests that photographs can be both a source of joy and pain, and that even the most intimate moments can be reduced to a simple image.
Overall, Boytronic's "Photographs" is a powerful and nuanced exploration of the role that photographs play in our lives, both as a source of comfort and a reminder of our own mortality.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm looking at my photographs
I am reminiscing on past memories captured in photographs.
Reflections of my own
These pictures show my own past experiences and how I've grown and changed over time.
I see the change of life to come
By looking at these images, I can see the future changes that will come and how they may affect me.
These images are gone
These memories are now in the past and can never be recreated, but live on in the form of photographs.
Emotions fill the air
As I look at these photographs, a range of emotions come over me as I remember the events captured in them.
The day we started hopefully soon ended in this pain
The hopeful beginning of a past event captured in a photograph ended in pain, causing mixed emotions as I remember it.
And all that lasts are photographs
The only things that remain of these past memories are the photographs that captured them.
Reflections of the past
These photographs reflect upon the past experiences and memories that can never be relived.
The years have changed but still remains
Although time has passed and things have changed, these memories still exist in the form of photographs.
The beating of the heart
This line represents the continued existence of the soul and spirit in spite of the changes over time.
Some faces growing old
As time has passed, the faces of those captured in photographs have aged and changed.
The eyes once light up the nights
The energy and joy once captured in the eyes of those photographed has faded with time.
But now the nights are cold
This line represents the loneliness and sense of loss that can come with reflecting on past memories.
And some of them were Jury
Some of the people photographed were nude models.
We are the ones with naked skin
This line refers to the nudity of the models captured in the photographs and the voyeuristic nature of looking at these types of images.
But still you see the photographs in secret magazines
These images have ended up in secret magazines, adding another layer of complexity and shame to the memories captured in those photographs.
And all my secret photographs
This line refers to hidden, personal photographs that were not meant to be shared publicly.
And secret picture books
These personal photographs may have been compiled into a secret picture book for personal viewing only.
Are made for me and other men
The personal nature of these photographs and picture books are meant for the photographer and possibly other men only.
To catch some greedy looks
This line represents the possessive nature of private photographs, and the desire for them to be kept secret and viewed only by the photographer and those who are allowed access to them.
I'm looking at my favourite one
This line references the photographer's favorite photograph, which may hold significant sentimental value or emotional weight.
So genre and so warm
This line describes the sentimentality and emotional connection the photographer has with their favorite photograph.
The smell all ready lost it's life before myself was born
This line suggests the photograph is old, and the scent or essence of the time it represents has been lost to the passage of time.
Contributed by Anna F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.