Die Ärzte were formed in 1982 by Jan Vetter (alias Farin Urlaub), Dirk Felsenheimer (alias Bela B.) and bassist Hans Runge (alias Sahnie). Bela and Farin had previously played together in the punk band Soilent Grün; after that band broke up they decided to form a band playing fun songs, in contrast to the mostly political bands of the punk scene at that time. While deriving from that punk scene, their early music was heavily influenced by pop and rock and roll, especially The Beatles, whom Farin heard a lot as a child due to his mother playing their records.
In the first two years they mostly played in clubs of their hometown of Berlin. Their first release was a contribution to the sampler "20 schäumende Stimmungshits" (roughly, "20 exuberant mood hits"), which contained a strong alcohol theme. In 1983 they won a rock contest in Berlin; with the prize money they recorded their debut EP "Uns gehts Prima" ("We're doing great"). Finally Columbia Records signed them, and they released their first LP "Debil" in 1984 and the second one ("Im Schatten der Ärzte") a year later.
After the second record they parted ways with Sahnie due to internal problems. On the third record he was replaced by producer Miccey Meuser; later Hagen Liebig, better known as The Incredible Hagen, played bass for them during live performances until their breakup.
In 1987 the German Federal Centre for Media Harmful to Young Persons put the songs Geschwisterliebe ("Sibling Love", a song about incest, from Die Ärzte), Claudia hat 'nen Schäferhund ("Claudia has a German Shepherd", about zoophilia, from "Debil") and Schlaflied ("Lullaby", about a monster coming and eating you after falling asleep, also from "Debil") on the German List of Media Harmful to Young People. This prohibited the band from performing the songs live and, more importantly, promoting the two albums, and shops from openly displaying the records in their shelves. After several trials against shops that still openly sold the records a lot of shops removed Die Ärzte completely from their stock. The result was a drop in record sales and big financial problems for the band. In response they released the compilation "Ab 18" ("Adults Only") with all their songs on the index and some other old and new tasteless songs, and the greatest hits album "Ist das alles?"("Is this everything?" but also can be translated as "Is this the end?"). The album and the new singles were fairly successful, partly because of growing media interest due to the previous censorship.
The following album "Das ist nicht die ganze Wahrheit" ("That is not the whole truth") was even more successful, climbing into the top 10 in the German album charts. They decided to go out on a high note in 1988, breaking up after doing one last tour and recording a live double album that became their first number one in the album charts.
Neither Farin's new band King Køng nor Bela's Depp Jones were really successful, so in 1993 they decided to do a reunion. As bass player they invited Rodrigo Gonzales, who was guitarist in Depp Jones and a friend of Bela. Their comeback single was Schrei nach Liebe ("Cry for Love"), their first ever political song, that they published as a statement against what was perceived as growing racism and right wing extremist violence in Germany at that time.
The album was more diverse than ever, with ballads, punk, rock and traditional German sounds. Both album and single became big hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The follow-up "Planet Punk" was also very successful.
In 1996 they wanted to make an EP just about hair, but they wrote too many songs for an EP and made the Album "Le Frisur" ("The Hairdo") instead. It was slightly less successful than its predecessors. Apart from their own tours they also supported Kiss in that year, a dream come true for Bela and Rod.
1998 was perhaps the most successful year of their career, the single "Männer sind Schweine" ("Men are Pigs") being their first Number 1 single in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and the album 13 also being Number 1 in Germany and Switzerland. After a lot of promotion and touring in that year they decided to take a break, deciding also to never play again "Männer sind Schweine" at a concert due to the too great success this song had. They did not like the upcoming unwanted and rather unoriginal remakes by other bands as e.g. "Frauen sind Schweine" ("Women are pigs") and also did not like to see their song played at mass tourist beach parties at places like Mallorca/Spain.
In 2000 they came back with another very successful album, "Runter mit den Spendierhosen, Unsichtbarer!", and two top 10 singles. As the third single from the album they released the 30-second-song "Yoko Ono", which, according to the Guinness Book of Records, is the shortest single ever released - another example of their sense of humour. On their tour in 2001 they sold the limited Album "5, 6, 7, 8 Bullenstaat" consisting of short punk songs that were written and recorded while recording the full length album published a year before, and some cover songs published in 1994 on a tour only EP.
After that they again took a break: Bela did some acting, Farin recorded his first solo album (Endlich Urlaub!). In late 2002 they did an MTV Unplugged in a school auditorium together with the school band. After that they made a new double album Geräusch that was released in 2003. On the next tour a Live DVD was recorded and published one year later.
On 2 November 2007, Die Ärzte released their latest album, Jazz ist anders ("Jazz is nothing like this", literally "Jazz is different").
In August 2011 the band announced that they are working on a new album which is set to be released in 2012 with a tour called "Das Ende ist noch nicht vorbei" ("The end is not over yet") following in the summer 2012.
The official homepage for Die Ärzte is www.bademeister.com
EINSCHLAG
Die Ärzte Lyrics
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Und schon lag sie da
Und schon war nichts mehr, wie es vorher war
Ich weiß nicht wirklich wie und warum es geschah
Plötzlich lag sie bewegungslos da
War es der Alkohol oder war ich nur gereizt?
Warum hielt sie nicht einfach ihren Mund?
Das war der Grund (das war der Grund)
War das der Grund? (War das der Grund?)
Ein Schlag nur
Und schon lag sie da (sie da)
Und nichts ist mehr so, wie es vorher war (war)
Mein Anwalt sagt, er holt mich hier raus
Doch will ich das?
Wie halte ich das aus?
Sie lebt nicht mehr
Ich lebe weiter, was mach' ich daraus?
Nur ein Schlag, wie halte ich das aus?
Ich halte ihren letzten Blick für immer in mir fest
Weil ich ihn nie mehr vergessen will (vergessen will)
Vielleicht gibt es da irgendetwas, das mir die Hoffnung lässt
Doch sie bleibt still, für immer still
Ein Schlag nur
Das ist alles was geschah (geschah)
Und jetzt ist sie einfach nicht mehr da
Sie ist nicht mehr da
Sie ist nicht mehr da
Gar nichts ist mehr da, da, da, da
The lyrics to Die Ärzte's "EINSCHLAG" describe the aftermath of a physical altercation where the singer struck someone, presumably a woman, and now they are facing the consequences of their actions. The song is filled with regret, confusion, and a sense of hopelessness as the singer struggles to come to terms with what they have done. The first verse sets the scene of the incident, with the singer wondering what led them to hit the person and if it was the alcohol or their own temper that caused them to lash out. The chorus, with its repetition of "ein Schlag nur" (just one blow), emphasizes the suddenness and horror of the situation, with everything changing in an instant. The second verse sees the singer grappling with the aftermath of the incident, with their lawyer telling them they can get out of it, but the singer wondering if that is what they want. The final line, "sie ist nicht mehr da" (she is not here anymore), is a haunting reflection on the fact that the consequences of their actions are irreversible.
The lyrics are powerful in their simplicity, conveying a sense of numbness and shock in the wake of a violent act. The repetition of certain phrases, like "ein Schlag nur" and "sie ist nicht mehr da," underscores the idea that the incident has irrevocably altered the course of the singer's life. The use of a female pronoun for the victim and the singer's ambiguity about what led them to hit her raises questions about gendered violence and the societal factors that contribute to it.
Line by Line Meaning
Ein Schlag nur
One punch only
Und schon lag sie da
And she was lying there already
Und schon war nichts mehr, wie es vorher war
And nothing was the same as before
Ich weiß nicht wirklich wie und warum es geschah
I don't really know how and why it happened
Plötzlich lag sie bewegungslos da
Suddenly, she was lying there motionless
War es der Alkohol oder war ich nur gereizt?
Was it the alcohol or was I just irritated?
Warum hielt sie nicht einfach ihren Mund?
Why didn't she just keep her mouth shut?
Ich hatte keine Chance gegen meine Wut
I had no chance against my anger
Das war der Grund (das war der Grund)
That was the reason (that was the reason)
War das der Grund? (War das der Grund?)
Was that the reason? (Was that the reason?)
Mein Anwalt sagt, er holt mich hier raus
My lawyer says he'll get me out of here
Doch will ich das?
But do I want that?
Wie halte ich das aus?
How can I handle this?
Sie lebt nicht mehr
She's not alive anymore
Ich lebe weiter, was mach' ich daraus?
I'm still alive, but what do I do now?
Nur ein Schlag, wie halte ich das aus?
Just one punch, how can I handle this?
Ich halte ihren letzten Blick für immer in mir fest
I keep her last look forever inside of me
Weil ich ihn nie mehr vergessen will (vergessen will)
Because I don't want to forget it ever (forget it ever)
Vielleicht gibt es da irgendetwas, das mir die Hoffnung lässt
Maybe there is something that gives me hope
Doch sie bleibt still, für immer still
But she remains quiet, forever quiet
Ein Schlag nur
One punch only
Und schon lag sie da (sie da)
And she was lying there already
Und nichts ist mehr so, wie es vorher war (war)
And nothing is the same as before
Sie ist nicht mehr da
She's not here anymore
Sie ist nicht mehr da
She's not here anymore
Gar nichts ist mehr da, da, da, da
Nothing is here anymore, da, da, da, da
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Bela B. Felsenheimer
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind