After ten concerts, four singles and an album the group split up at the end of 1982. GT and Marco Repetto formed together with the former Glueams guitarist Martin Pavlinec and the drummer Dominique Uldry, the band „Missing Link“, later „Eigernordwand“. GT supplemented the futurism oriented performance group „Red Catholic Orthodox Jewish Chorus “ around performance artist Edy Marconi, in which occasionally Marco Repetto also played. Later the group changed their name to „I Suonatori“. Stephan Eicher started a successful solo career. 1988 published Martin Eicher his solo-EP „Spellbound Lovers“. Marco Repetto started in 1989 a new career as Techno and Ambient DJ, musician and producer (a.o. mittageisen v2). The band is most famous for their 1981 hit "Eisbär" ("Polar Bear"), which was later covered by the French band Nouvelle Vague. The single went to #12 in Germany and #6 in Austria.
After leaving the group, Stephan Eicher embarked on a solo career in France.
Schlachtet!
Grauzone Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
die Welt wird lustig.
Die Bösen werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird gut.
Die Narren werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird weise.
Die Alten werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird jung.
Ich steh' hier, und du stehst dort,
und zwischen uns gibt's kein Wort.
Die Kranken werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird gesund.
Die Hässlichen werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird schön.
Die Dummern werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird gescheit.
Die Traurigen werden geschlachtet,
die Welt wird lustig.
Ich steh' hier, und du stehst dort,
und zwischen uns gibt's kein Wort.
The lyrics of Grauzone's song Schlachtet! paint a bleak picture of a world where those who are deemed undesirable or troublesome are eliminated through slaughter. The song presents a series of paradoxes where the killing of certain groups of people leads to a positive outcome for the world. For instance, the slaughter of the sad leads to a cheerful world, the slaughter of the old leads to a youthful world, and the slaughter of the wicked leads to a good world. The song suggests that the people who are killed are disposable or exchangeable, as reflected in lines like "the sad ones are slaughtered, and the world becomes cheerful."
However, the song's repetitive chorus "Ich steh' hier, und du stehst dort, und zwischen uns gibt's kein Wort" (I'm standing here, and you're standing there, and there's no word between us) shifts the focus of the lyrics from societal issues to personal ones. There is a sense of loneliness and isolation that seems to be at the core of the song. The lyrics suggest that even though people are being killed left and right, there is no real connection between the living. The isolation and separation between individuals in the world the song presents is just as devastating as the slaughter.
Overall, Schlachtet! can be seen as a critique of a society that places a higher value on conformity and uniformity than on individuality and diversity. The lyrics also suggest a lack of empathy on the part of those in power towards those who do not fit into their idealized vision of the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Die Traurigen werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird lustig.
The sad people will be slaughtered, and the world will become joyful.
Die Bösen werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird gut.
The bad people will be slaughtered, and the world will become good.
Die Narren werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird weise.
The fools will be slaughtered, and the world will become wise.
Die Alten werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird jung.
The old people will be slaughtered, and the world will become young.
Ich steh' hier, und du stehst dort, und zwischen uns gibt's kein Wort.
I am standing here, and you are standing there, and there's no word between us.
Die Kranken werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird gesund.
The sick people will be slaughtered, and the world will become healthy.
Die Hässlichen werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird schön.
The ugly people will be slaughtered, and the world will become beautiful.
Die Dummern werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird gescheit.
The stupid people will be slaughtered, and the world will become smart.
Die Traurigen werden geschlachtet, die Welt wird lustig.
The sad people will be slaughtered, and the world will become joyful.
Ich steh' hier, und du stehst dort, und zwischen uns gibt's kein Wort.
I am standing here, and you are standing there, and there's no word between us.
Contributed by Cameron W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.