Jens Friebe (born 1975 in Lüdenscheid) is a German musician and music journ… Read Full Bio ↴Jens Friebe (born 1975 in Lüdenscheid) is a German musician and music journalist.

He studied musicology, English language and literature, and philosophy. After playing for several years with rather unknown bands such as "Parka" and "Bum Khun Cha Youth," a solo appearance in Hamburg in 2003 lead to contact with Alfred Hilsberg, who helped him release his debut album "Vorher Nachher Bilder" (literally: pictures of before and after). The album came out in March 2004 on Hilsberg's Label ZickZack Records. One song appeared in advance on a ZickZack label compilation.

The album CD (including the single "Gespenster" (Ghosts)) was well received by critics (including critics from the publications "Spex," "Zeit" und "Konkret"), and was frequently referred to as the "best German pop album of 2004". In particular, the ambiguous German lyrics were highly praised.

The record was mentioned as having its roots in the "Hamburger Schule" (Hamburg school), mainly due to the producers of the album: Armin von Milch and Tobias Levin who in the past had worked for such Hamburg-based indie bands as "Tocotronic," "Kante" and "To Rococo Rot." Apart from the independent pop and classic singer-songwriter influences, critics also pinpointed synthpop, Neue Deutsche Welle and euro-disco as references for Friebe's style. Friebe himself said in an interview to have been influenced in part by German "fun punk" bands like Die Ärzte and Die Goldenen Zitronen, as well as by the German experimental pop duo Foyer Des Arts.

Jens Friebe's live performances are either acoustic sets (just him and a guitar) or with a band. He currently lives in Berlin and writes for the German music magazin "Intro."

Rauch ohne Feuer
Jens Friebe Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Bin ich nachts in einem Hotel
Auf die Welt gekommen?
Leuchtreklame flimmerte in einer fremden Schrift

Du hast mir ja am Telefon
Gar nichts abgenommen
Ich, ich sagte Zucker zu dir
Und du hörtest Gift

Doch es ist nur die Paranoia
Baby, es ist nur Rauch
Es ist nur Rauch ohne Feuer
Aber jetzt riech ich es auch

Stromausfall - Bei ihnen etwa auch?
- Ja, bei mir geht gar nichts
Und Sirenen von weit entfernt
Immer näher her

Sagtest du: Ich hab was gehört?
Sagtest du: Da war nichts?
Sagtest du: wenn jetzt nichts passiert
Sehen wir uns nie mehr?

Doch es ist nur die Paranoia
Baby, es ist nur Rauch

Es ist nur Rauch ohne Feuer
Aber jetzt riech ich es auch

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Rauch ohne Feuer" by Jens Friebe talk about a paranoid state of mind. The first verse describes the singer being in a hotel at night and feeling like he is newly born into the world. He sees a flickering neon sign that he can't understand because it's written in a foreign script. The second verse talks about a phone call where the other person didn't believe anything the singer was saying. When the singer said "zucker" (sugar), the other person heard "gift" (poison). The chorus mentions that it's just paranoia and smoke without fire, though now the singer can smell the smoke too. The third verse describes a power outage and the sound of distant sirens that grow closer. The other person on the phone fears they may never see each other again unless something happens. The chorus repeats, and the song ends on a mysterious and unsettling note.

The song appears to be about the feeling of being disconnected from reality and not knowing what's true. The neon sign and foreign script represent the singer's inability to understand the world around him. The miscommunication on the phone call shows that others don't understand him either. The power outage and sirens are ambiguous, as they could be real or just imagined. The repetition of "it's just paranoia" could be a coping mechanism or a self-deception.

Line by Line Meaning

Bin ich nachts in einem Hotel
Am I born into this world in the middle of the night, in a hotel?

Auf die Welt gekommen?
Is this the beginning of my existence?

Leuchtreklame flimmerte in einer fremden Schrift
Neon lights flickered in an unfamiliar language

Du hast mir ja am Telefon
You didn't believe me on the phone

Gar nichts abgenommen
You didn't take anything I said seriously

Ich, ich sagte Zucker zu dir
I said 'sugar' to you

Und du hörtest Gift
But you heard 'poison'

Doch es ist nur die Paranoia
But it's just paranoia

Baby, es ist nur Rauch
It's just smoke, baby

Es ist nur Rauch ohne Feuer
There's only smoke, without any fire

Aber jetzt riech ich es auch
But now I smell it too