Einstürzende Neubauten is an ever-changing musical entity, originally forme… Read Full Bio ↴Einstürzende Neubauten is an ever-changing musical entity, originally formed in Berlin, Germany, on the 1st April 1980. Neubauten were initially seen as part of the second wave of industrial bands, filling the space left when Throbbing Gristle terminated their mission. Neubauten's early output fit the term "industrial" well, as it (ab)used the sounds of machinery, metal-on-metal, construction-site equipment, and treated tape loops, creating harsh soundscapes and rhythmic textures reminiscent of krautrock. Their inclusion on the record label Some Bizarre, with acts like Foetus, Coil, and Test Dept., consolidated this position as new industrial pioneers.

However, Neubauten soon outgrew the confines of even the broad scope of industrial music. In their 25-plus years, they have produced a dozen studio albums, live records, a remix album and EP, scored theatre pieces, and more.

Lead vocalist Blixa Bargeld is perhaps the best-known member of the group, both for his work with Neubauten and as guitarist for Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. His fellow founding members Alexander Hacke and N.U. Unruh have likewise been active in various musical roles outside the group over the years.

Bassist Mark Chung was a member of the group from 1981 to 1994. He founded the publishing house Freibank Music Publishing to handle business affairs for Neubauten and other groups, and has continued in this role (concurrently serving as a senior vice-president of Sony Music International for nine years). Percussionist FM Einheit, was a member from 1981 to 1995, and has also been active as a solo artist and member of groups such as Gry.

Since 1997 the group has also included guitarist Jochen Arbeit and percussionist Rudi Moser.

Neubauten's most recent work has been available exclusively to subscribers to their online home, www.neubauten.org. Neubauten completed the third incarnation of their online project in November 2007 and were touring Europe in 2008 in support of their latest album Alles Wieder Offen.

Currently Einstürzende Neubauten is celebrating their 30th anniversary with a tour through Europe and the United States. In October/November 2010 the band is releasing Strategies Against Architecture IV, the fourth album in the archival compilation series by Neubauten which collates the band’s output from 2002-2010.

Headcleaner
Einstürzende Neubauten Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Silence!

General mobilization
All subjects to be deconditioned!
Headcleaner!

Fall into line!
Attention! unpredictable, forward march!

New wonders, new horrors
Tornado for the obligations to convention
For the convolutions
In the skull, cyclone
As headcleaner!
Wire brushes to the vermin trash!

Clotted thoughs, frozen now melt
With headcleaner!

Behind us the universe
With us inhumanity
Against universal humanity
Any means is right
And proper only the right to the mean average

On parade the psychiatric unit
Over-the-top ascetics up front
Pumped up
With headcleaner!

Next in line the wild rank and file
Just one thing in their heads:
Headcleaner!

One half of my dreams is shaved bald
Violence
Waiting
The first battering on the door
Or
The first one from official quarters
With questions
A matchstick caught in my throat
No phrase
Through my throat
Which would not
Start a blaze
Don't wait
Get a close shave escape
Those were the dreams.

A song, one, two, three:

'cos nothing has been done that can be done
And nothing has been sung that can be sung
And nothing has been said so go get out and play the game
It's easy

Nothing has been named that can't be named
And no one has been saved that should have been saved
And nothing you can do but forget(? ) yourself this time
It's easy

'cos nothing has been known that can't be known
And nothing has been seen that ain't been shown
Nowhere you can be and that isn't where you're meant to be
It's easy

'all you need is headcleaner!'

The right to attacks of controlled frenzy -
A scout patrol with cosmic iniquity
Takes it into captivity.
Discipline is soaked
In headcleaner!
Last wind machine before the battle!
This is where the storm unit sweeps out
With hurricane
Deep pore cleansing - never seen again!
Between grey cells and in all the furrows
Where hidden fungus always burrows
They eliminate
It is too late
Bombarded with salutes and mowed down
Straight with headcleaner!
Tabula rasa!
Tabula rasa!
Tabula rasa!
Headcleaner!

This here is in flames, that there has
Completely collapsed.

Heavy and thick ash rain.

Dissolved in smoke and fog.

It's getting light, not a new day
But an approaching fire; stay at a distance:
Darkness will return.

The sun is rising, gloomy eclipse of the sun.

Everything is coated with ash
Like snow.

We, however, who now know the danger and

Who are aware of it, even we cannot yet make
Up our minds...

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Einstürzende Neubauten's song Headcleaner paint a picture of a society undergoing a process of deconditioning and head cleaning. The opening lines call for silence and a general mobilization of all subjects to be deconditioned, introducing the theme of societal conformity and the need to break away from it. The song then goes on to describe the use of headcleaner: wire brushes that are used to scrub away the clotted thoughts and frozen ideas in our skulls, paving the way for "new wonders, new horrors" and a tornado of change. Behind us is the universe and in front of us is inhumanity, leading to the notion that any means is justified to fight against universal humanity.

The lyrics go on to describe various groups who are in line for the headcleaner treatment, including the over-the-top ascetics and the wild rank and file. The song ends on a note of uncertainty, with images of flames, ash, and darkness interspersed with a sense of hope that even those who are aware of the danger cannot yet make up their minds about what to do. The use of military language ("fall into line", "forward march", "storm unit", "salutes") adds to the sense of urgency and the idea that a significant societal upheaval is underway.

Line by Line Meaning

Silence!
Attention, the call for silence!

General mobilization All subjects to be deconditioned! Headcleaner!
All are gathered, ready to deprogram the conditioning of the mind. Prepare for a clean sweep!

Fall into line! Attention! unpredictable, forward march!
Get ready to march forward, but be unpredictable and stay alert!

New wonders, new horrors Tornado for the obligations to convention For the convolutions In the skull, cyclone As headcleaner! Wire brushes to the vermin trash!
With headcleaner comes new revelations and fears, as old conventions are torn away like a tornado ripping through a city. The mind is a cyclone, and headcleaner acts as a wire brush to remove the vermin trash.

Clotted thoughs, frozen now melt With headcleaner!
Remove the clotted thoughts with headcleaner and witness them melt away.

Behind us the universe With us inhumanity Against universal humanity Any means is right And proper only the right to the mean average
The universe is behind us, and we are focusing on inhumanity at the expense of universal humanity. Any means is fair game, as long as it's in line with the average.

On parade the psychiatric unit Over-the-top ascetics up front Pumped up With headcleaner!
Psychiatric patients are on parade, with over-the-top asceticism leading the way. They are hyped up with headcleaner!

Next in line the wild rank and file Just one thing in their heads: Headcleaner!
The wild soldiers are next in line, focused on just one thing: headcleaner!

One half of my dreams is shaved bald Violence Waiting The first battering on the door Or The first one from official quarters With questions A matchstick caught in my throat No phrase Through my throat Which would not Start a blaze Don't wait Get a close shave escape Those were the dreams.
In my dream, one half of me is shaved bald, while violence is lurking, waiting for the first battering on the door or interrogation. A matchstick catches in my throat, and I can't say anything without causing a blaze. Get out while you can!

'cos nothing has been done that can be done And nothing has been sung that can be sung And nothing has been said so go get out and play the game It's easy
Everything that can be done has been done, everything that can be sung has been sung, and nothing new has been said. So go out and play the game, it's easy.

Nothing has been named that can't be named And no one has been saved that should have been saved And nothing you can do but forget(? ) yourself this time It's easy
Everything that can be named has been named, no one has been saved who should have been, and all you can do now is forget yourself. It's easy.

'cos nothing has been known that can't be known And nothing has been seen that ain't been shown Nowhere you can be and that isn't where you're meant to be It's easy 'all you need is headcleaner!'
Everything that can be known has been known, nothing has been seen that hasn't already been shown, and you can't be anywhere you're not meant to be. It's easy: all you need is headcleaner to stay focused!

The right to attacks of controlled frenzy - A scout patrol with cosmic iniquity Takes it into captivity. Discipline is soaked In headcleaner! Last wind machine before the battle! This is where the storm unit sweeps out With hurricane Deep pore cleansing - never seen again! Between grey cells and in all the furrows Where hidden fungus always burrows They eliminate It is too late Bombarded with salutes and mowed down Straight with headcleaner! Tabula rasa! Tabula rasa! Tabula rasa! Headcleaner!
The right to attack with controlled frenzy is exercised by a scout patrol with cosmic iniquity. Discipline is enforced with headcleaner, the last wind machine before the battle. The storm unit sweeps in with a hurricane for deep pore cleansing, never to be seen again. They eliminate the hidden fungus between the grey cells and furrows, and it's too late for anything but bombardment and mowing down straight with headcleaner! Tabula rasa! Tabula rasa! Tabula rasa! Headcleaner!

This here is in flames, that there has Completely collapsed. Heavy and thick ash rain. Dissolved in smoke and fog. It's getting light, not a new day But an approaching fire; stay at a distance: Darkness will return. The sun is rising, gloomy eclipse of the sun. Everything is coated with ash Like snow. We, however, who now know the danger and Who are aware of it, even we cannot yet make Up our minds...
Things are in chaos, with flames and ash raining down thickly. It's getting lighter, but it's not a new day, as darkness will return. We now know the danger but are uncertain about what to do in the face of it.

Lyrics © THE ROYALTY NETWORK INC.
Written by: ALEXANDER HACKE, ANDREW CHUDY, BLIXA BARGELD, F.M. STRAUSS, MARK CHUNG

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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