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
Frank'n'stein
Die Ärzte Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Obwohl ich alle Mittel hab
Was bin ich für ein mieser Frank'n'stein
Ja, mein Vorfahr' dreht sich um in seinem Grahahahahab
Was soll ich tun (was soll er tun)
Ich weiß doch wie es geht (was soll er tun)
Nochmal von vorn (was soll er tun)
Es steht doch alles in den Büchern
Und ich habe Mittel wie niemals zuvor (Vor)
Wär' ich doch Astronaut geworden
Ja, dann käm' ich mir nicht so bescheuert vohohohohor
Was soll ich tun (was soll er tun)
Das war jetzt viel zu viel (was soll er tun)
Als Sahnie Nummer 3 (was soll er tun)
Sofort zu Asche zerfiel
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ich glaub es ist jetzt Zeit zum aufhören
Denn auch Monster Nummer Vier klappte nicht
Ich baute eine Frau zum Zeitvertreib
Doch sie stieß mich Weg den sie war wählerihihihihisch
Was soll ich tun (was soll er tun)
Sie war wie's mir gefällt (was soll er tun)
Doch ich vergaß (was soll er tun?)
Ihr Gehirn war von 'nem Fotomodell
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an, bricht an
The song "Frank'n'stein" by Die Ärzte is about the struggles of a modern-day Frankenstein. The lyrics describe the singer's frustration and disappointment as each of his attempts to create a new monster fail, despite having all the necessary resources and materials at his disposal. He realizes that his obsession with creating life has turned him into a miserable version of his famous ancestor, and even imagines his ancestor turning in his grave at his failure.
The character of Frankenstein has long been a symbol of the dangers of science and the pursuit of knowledge at any cost. The lyrics of this song highlight the potential pitfalls of modern technology and the risks of becoming too obsessed with scientific progress. The theme of loneliness and isolation is also prevalent, as the singer's attempts to build a companion are ultimately futile.
Overall, "Frank'n'stein" is a catchy and humorous take on a classic horror story, but with a modern twist. It speaks to the anxieties and fears around the intersection of science and society, while also poking fun at the cliches of monster movies.
Line by Line Meaning
Das Ding ging wieder in die Hose
Despite having all the necessary means, the experiment failed once again
Obwohl ich alle Mittel hab
Despite having all the necessary means
Was bin ich für ein mieser Frank'n'stein
The singer questions their own skills as a scientist, comparing themselves to Frankenstein
Ja, mein Vorfahr' dreht sich um in seinem Grahahahahab
The artist imagines their ancestor turning in their grave due to the failure of the experiment
Was soll ich tun (was soll er tun)
The artist questions what they should do next
Ich weiß doch wie es geht (was soll er tun)
Despite the failures, the singer is confident in their knowledge of how to create new life
Nochmal von vorn (was soll er tun)
The singer is determined to try again and start from the beginning
Es ist noch nicht zu spät
The artist is optimistic that there is still time to succeed
Es steht doch alles in den Büchern
The artist believes that all the necessary knowledge is obtainable from books
Und ich habe Mittel wie niemals zuvor (Vor)
The artist has access to more resources than ever before
Wär' ich doch Astronaut geworden
The singer regrets not pursuing a different path in life, such as becoming an astronaut
Ja, dann käm' ich mir nicht so bescheuert vohohohohor
The artist feels foolish for their failures in creating life, imagining a more prestigious alternative career
Das war jetzt viel zu viel (was soll er tun)
The singer realizes they went too far in their experiments
Als Sahnie Nummer 3 (was soll er tun)
The singer mourns the loss of their third creation, Sahnie
Sofort zu Asche zerfiel
Sahnie's body was destroyed, leaving nothing but ash
Ich glaub es ist jetzt Zeit zum aufhören
The artist realizes it's time to stop their experiments
Denn auch Monster Nummer Vier klappte nicht
The fourth creation also failed
Ich baute eine Frau zum Zeitvertreib
The singer created a female creature out of boredom
Doch sie stieß mich Weg den sie war wählerihihihihisch
The female creature rejected the singer, as she had high standards and expectations
Sie war wie's mir gefällt (was soll er tun)
Although the creature met the artist's preferences, it still did not work out
Doch ich vergaß (was soll er tun?)
The artist overlooked an important detail
Ihr Gehirn war von 'nem Fotomodell
The female creature's brain came from a model, perhaps explaining her high standards and rejection of the artist
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an
The singer prepares to face another day, hopefully with renewed purpose
Ohoho ein neuer Tag bricht an, bricht an
Repeating the previous line for emphasis
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Dirk Felsenheimer
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind