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.
Zwölf Städte
Einstürzende Neubauten Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wieder und wieder durchfliehen
Alles mal zwölf
Mal angenommen
Ergibt das
Angenommene Male und nicht ergeben
Zu spät, um makellos zu sein
Engeln harrend
Engeln, die aussehen wie sie sollen
Wie erdacht
Wie erfunden
Wie ich
Waren sowieso immer da
Bringen eigentlich auch nichts
Nur widerspiegelnd
Der zwölf Städte geifernd fernes Licht
zwölf Städte
Gebrochen gekrümmt
Zurückgeschleudert
Trifft es auf
Wen auch immer
Stolzierende Juwelen
Verkommene Fabelwesen
Wen auch immer
Zu spät, um makellos zu sein
zwölf Städte
Zwölf Städte
Dieses Einzellwesen entledigt sich
Entledigt den Mund der Ohren
Die Lippen hängend
Ja trauriger
Herpes gleich, Poren in dessen Winkel besetzend, lauschen:
Und doch Erbrochenes
Für aufgewühlte Innereien
Und aufgewühlte Innereien
Für erbrochenes verstehen
zwölf Städte
Zeile für Zeile verwässern sie Magensaft
Mit Ambrosia strecken sie Geifer
Was gesetzt ward schwarz auf weiss
Es horcht die parasitäre Vielfalt
Was aus dem Schlund
Unhaltbares naht
Hören zuerst, was sie nährt
Zeile für Zeile
zwölf Städte
Zu spät, um makellos zu sein
zwölf Städte
Zu spät, um makellos zu sein
zwölf Städte
The lyrics of Einstürzende Neubauten's song "Zwölf Städte" depict a journey through twelve cities, a repetitive and endless cycle of traversing, always multiplying everything by twelve, assuming and not arriving at anything, too late to be perfect. The singer encounters angels with eight-digit phone numbers, designed and imagined as they should be, like the singer himself, but ultimately useless, only reflecting the distant, salivating light of the twelve cities. The cities are described as broken, twisted, and thrown back, hitting whoever they come across, whether they be strolling jewels or perverted mythical creatures. The singer, an individual entity, is released from his mouth's ears, with his lips hanging sadly like herpes, and listens as the lines, one after another, dilute stomach acid and mix it with ambrosia, while the parasitic diversity listens first to what nourishes it, and the unsustainable approaches from its gullet.
Line by Line Meaning
Zwölf Städte durchfliehen
Travel through twelve cities
Wieder und wieder durchfliehen
Repeating the cycle of traveling through cities
Alles mal zwölf
Everything multiplied by twelve
Mal angenommen
Assuming
Ergibt das
Results in
Angenommene Male und nicht ergeben
Assumed multiples that don't add up
Zu spät, um makellos zu sein
Too late to be flawless
Engeln harrend
Awaiting angels
Engeln mit achtstelligen Rufnummern
Angels with eight-digit phone numbers
Engeln, die aussehen wie sie sollen
Angels that look as they should
Wie erdacht
As conceived
Wie erfunden
As invented
Wie ich
As I am
Waren sowieso immer da
Were always there anyway
Bringen eigentlich auch nichts
Actually don't bring anything
Nur widerspiegelnd
Only reflecting
Der zwölf Städte geifernd fernes Licht
Drooling over distant light of twelve cities
Gebrochen gekrümmt
Broken and curved
Zurückgeschleudert
Thrown back
Trifft es auf
Hits whoever
Stolzierende Juwelen
Sauntering jewels
Verkommene Fabelwesen
Decadent mythical creatures
Dieses Einzellwesen entledigt sich
This individual frees itself
Entledigt den Mund der Ohren
Freed from the mouth of the ears
Die Lippen hängend
Lips hanging
Ja trauriger
Yes, sadder
Herpes gleich, Poren in dessen Winkel besetzend, lauschen:
Like herpes, occupying pores in its corners, listening:
Und doch Erbrochenes
And yet vomit
Für aufgewühlte Innereien
For stirred up insides
Und aufgewühlte Innereien
And stirred up insides
Für erbrochenes verstehen
Understand vomit
Zeile für Zeile verwässern sie Magensaft
Line by line they dilute stomach acid
Mit Ambrosia strecken sie Geifer
Stretching drool with ambrosia
Was gesetzt ward schwarz auf weiss
What was written in black and white
Es horcht die parasitäre Vielfalt
The parasitic variety is listening
Was aus dem Schlund unhaltbares naht
What approaches from the abyss is unbearable
Hören zuerst, was sie nährt
Hearing first what nourishes them
Zwölf Städte
Twelve cities
Zu spät, um makellos zu sein
Too late to be flawless
Contributed by Victoria D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@bazzx7754
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@roycejaziel8958
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@markuscason7697
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@TVSchaedelfleisch
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@mrsmisanthropy2692
<3
@TVSchaedelfleisch
Das ist
@broken666machine
zu spät um makellos zu sein