Laibach are best known for their cover versions of pop songs which have been rerendered in such a way as to reveal formerly hidden or unnoticed messages, often commenting on political totalitarianism or rock stardom’s own forms of dictatorship. This was done most successfully on Opus Dei, especially on their cover of One Vision. Named Geburt Einer Nation after D. W. Griffith’s classic film The Birth of a Nation, Queen’s lyrics are sung in German to a strident military beat. All of a sudden lines like “one flesh, one blood, one true religion” start sounding suspiciously familiar...
However the bulk of Laibach’s output is their own work. Their own early experiments with totalitarian ambiguity led to their being outlawed in then-Communist Yugoslavia; their name was made illegal so the band resorted to using their black-cross emblem on posters instead. To this day their work deals with similar ideas but frequently Laibach reference their own legendary status and tongue-in-cheekily play with the kinds of in-jokes a band accrues in over 25 years of work.
Laibach’s musical style has varied a lot over the years. They began as avant-garde industrial musicians, producing what could best be described as ambient noise but soon discovered the joys of the martial rhythm. Having produced a couple of albums of heavy martial industrial music, they began to expand sonically. Following the collapse of Yugoslavia their difficult but rewarding album Kapital included hip-hop influences among many others and NATO borrowed from techno while keeping the bombastic atmosphere. The next offering Jesus Christ Superstars came after quite a hiatus and it may have shocked a lot of people with its balls-out metal guitar riffs. The 2003 album WAT returns to a more electronic sound; working with techno producer umek has produced a slightly odd album of electro beats.
Volk was released on October 20, 2006, preceded by the single Anglia. The album contains 14 songs composed and produced together with Silence, inspired by national anthems.
2008 Laibach released new album, titled Kunst der Fuge. This album is the laibachian interpretation of Johann Sebastian Bach's work The Art of Fugue (Die Kunst der Fuge). The majority of the material has been created already in 2006 and premierly performed the same year on June the 1st at Bachfest festival in Leipzig.
VOLKSWAGNER is the title of a musical project which was realized in collaboration between Laibach and the RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra (2009). Laibach also cooperated with the composer and conductor Izidor Leitinger on this project, and it was decided that together they would compose a work which will in a specific manner interpret some of Wagner's better known musical motifs and combine them into a unified symphonic electronic suite.
From a formal point of view, the collaborating artists have decided to seek in Wagner the rudiments of modernism, which first through Mahler, Bruckner, and Debussy, and subsequently through Schöenberg, Berg, and Webern, developed into the core of the jazz music of the sonic experimentalists, such as Miles Davis and Sun Ra, and to upgrade them with the ambient electronic spectrum that has been developing over the last three decades. In addition, the suite will address the history of the 20th century – modernism crossbred with pop art.
4.4. 2012 a movie titeled Iron Sky was released. Laibach in collaboration with Ben Watkins as a co-writer and producer of the score provided soundtrack for Moon Nazi Invasion in Iron Sky.
Official Laibach website: www.laibach.org
Leben
Laibach Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
geben wir das Beste
all unser Koennen, unser Streben
und denken nicht an Feste
Und die Kraft bekommen alle
wir bekommen nur das Beste
wenn jedermann auch alles gibt
Leben heisst Leben!
Leben heisst Leben
wenn wir alle die Kraft spueren
Leben heisst Leben
wenn wir alle den Schmerz fuehlen
Leben heisst Leben
heisst die Mengen erleben
Leben heisst Leben
heisst das Land erleben
Wann immer wir Kraft geben
geben wir das Beste
all unser Koennen, unser Streben
und denken nicht an Feste
von jedem wird alles gegeben
und jeder kann auf jeden zaehlen
Leben heisst Leben!
Welch ein Glueck das es vorbei ist
wir dachten nichts wird anders
jeder Augenblick der Zukunft
ist ein Gedanke an vorher
weil wir alle Kraft vergaben
wir gaben alles Beste
und jedermann jetzt nichts mehr hat
und der Tod nun aller harrt
Leben heisst Leben!
The lyrics to Laibach's song "Leben" reflect on the concept and importance of life. The song speaks of the power of giving one's all and striving for the best in everything we do. When we give our best, we receive the strength to keep going, and everyone benefits from this power. It's a song about unity and mutual support, where each individual is responsible for giving everything they've got, and in turn, they can rely on others to do the same. The song is about experiencing life's trials and tribulations, the joys and pain, and how all of these experiences make life worth living.
The song "Leben" by Laibach is a powerful expression of the importance of life, and how we can all work together to make it better. The lyrics are evocative and profound, and they call on listeners to give their all and strive for the best. The song is an anthem for unity and mutual support, and it reminds us that we all have a responsibility to help others and make the most of the time we have on this earth.
Line by Line Meaning
Wann immer wir Kraft geben
Every time we give strength
geben wir das Beste
We give our best
all unser Koennen, unser Streben
All our abilities and efforts
und denken nicht an Feste
And don't think about festivities
Und die Kraft bekommen alle
And everyone receives strength
wir bekommen nur das Beste
We only receive the best
wenn jedermann auch alles gibt
When everyone also gives everything
dann wird auch jeder alles kriegen
Then everyone will also receive everything
Leben heisst Leben!
Life means living!
Leben heisst Leben
Life means living
wenn wir alle die Kraft spueren
When we all feel the strength
Leben heisst Leben
Life means living
wenn wir alle den Schmerz fuehlen
When we all feel the pain
Leben heisst Leben
Life means living
heisst die Mengen erleben
Means experiencing the masses
Leben heisst Leben
Life means living
heisst das Land erleben
Means experiencing the country
Wann immer wir Kraft geben
Every time we give strength
geben wir das Beste
We give our best
all unser Koennen, unser Streben
All our abilities and efforts
und denken nicht an Feste
And don't think about festivities
von jedem wird alles gegeben
Everything is given by everyone
und jeder kann auf jeden zaehlen
And everyone can count on everyone
Leben heisst Leben!
Life means living!
Welch ein Glueck das es vorbei ist
What luck that it is over
wir dachten nichts wird anders
We thought nothing would change
jeder Augenblick der Zukunft
Every moment of the future
ist ein Gedanke an vorher
Is a thought of the past
weil wir alle Kraft vergaben
Because we all gave up our strength
wir gaben alles Beste
We gave our very best
und jedermann jetzt nichts mehr hat
And now everyone has nothing
und der Tod nun aller harrt
And death now awaits everyone
Leben heisst Leben!
Life means living!
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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