From 1972 to 1973, Hagen enrolled in the crash-course performance program at The Central Studio for Light Music in East Berlin. Upon graduation, she joined the band Automobil (picture), which released a well-received album in Germany, including her first hit "Du hast den Farbfilm vergessen" in 1974.
After a concert for a West German labour union in 1976 her stepfather, Wolf Biermann, was forbidden to return to the GDR. Because of their protests against it her mother, Eva-Maria Hagen and Nina were thrown out of GDR in 1977, and followed Biermann to his hometown Hamburg.
Nina subsequently met West-Berlin photographer Jim Rakete (who also produced some bands he shot the cover-photos for - like "Nena" some years later). He brought Nina together with the politically left-wing band "Lokomotive Kreuzberg" (later known as "Spliff"): thus the "Nina Hagen Band" was born.
In 1978 The Nina Hagen Band released their self-titled debut album, which included titles like "TV-Glotzer" (a cover of "White Punks on Dope" by The Tubes) and "Auf'm Bahnhof Zoo".
According to reviewer Fritz Rumler, she thrusts herself into the music, aggressively, directly, furiously, roars in the most beautiful operatic alto, then, through shrieks and squeals, precipitates herself into luminous soprano heights... she parodies, satirises, and howls on stage like a dervish.
Nina Hagen's eccentricity led to big disputes in the band and during a subsequent European tour Hagen decided to leave the band, though she was still under contract to produce a second album in 1979. This LP, Unbehagen (in addition to the obvious pun on her name, in German this also means 'discomfort' or 'unease'), was eventually produced with the band recording their tracks in Berlin and Hagen recording the vocals in Los Angeles, California. It included the single "African Reggae"/"Wir leben immer... noch" (a cover of Lene Lovich's "Lucky Number"). The headless Nina Hagen Band soon developed a successful independent musical career as Spliff.
Meanwhile, Hagen's public persona was steadily creating an increasing media uproar and she became infamous for an appearance on an Austrian talk show called Club 2, in which she performed an explicit simulation of masturbation. She also acted with Dutch sex-drugs-and-rock-'n'-roll legend Herman Brood in the movie Cha Cha, along with Lene Lovich and various Dutch bands.
An European tour with a new band in 1980 was cancelled, she had a love affair with a 16 year old punk from Amsterdam called Noddy (www.noddyriot.co.uk) and sang a RHCP rapduet with him at the OneWorldPoetry festival at the MilkyWay and lived with him in New York and in the Bahamas.
In 1982 her first solo album NunSexMonkRock, a dissonant mix of punk, funk and opera, was a minor hit, and led to a world tour with the No Problem Orchestra.
In 1983 came the album Angstlos and a minor European tour. By this time, Hagen's public appearances were becoming even stranger; over the years they frequently included discussions of God, UFOs, her social and political beliefs, animal rights / vivisection and claims of alien sightings. The English version of Angstlos, 'Fearless', generated two major club hits in America , "Zarah" and the disco/punk/opera classic, "New York New York".
1985's 'Nina Hagen In Ekstasy' fared less well, but it did generate club hits with "Universal Radio" and a cover of "Spirit In The Sky", and it also featured her hardcore punk take on Frank Sinatra's "My Way", which had been one of her signature live tunes in previous years. Her contract with CBS over, she released the Punk Wedding EP independently in 1987, a celebration of her marriage to an 18-year old punk. It followed an independent 1986 one-off single with Lene Lovich, the anthemic "Don't Kill The Animals".
In 1989 Hagen released the album Nina Hagen which was backed up by another German tour. Now living in Paris with her daughter Cosma Shiva, in 1991 she toured Europe in support of her new album Street.
In 1992 Hagen became the host of a TV show on RTLplus. The following year she released Revolution Ballroom and two years later the German-language album Freud Euch appeared, recorded in English as Beehappy in 1996. Also in 1996, Hagen collaborated with electronic music composer Christopher Franke on "Alchemy of Love", the theme song for the Tenchi Universe movie Tenchi Muyo! in Love.
In 1998, Hagen became the host of a weekly science fiction show on the British Sci-Fi-Channel, in addition to embarking on another tour of Germany. In 1999, she released the devotional album Om Namah Shivay, which was distributed exclusively online. She also sang "Witness" on KMFDM's Adios.
Nina has a strong interest in various religions, but that is mainly driven by her urge to build a better world and her own colorful freedom within it.
In 2000, her song Schön ist die Welt became the official song of Expo 2000. The album The Return of the Mother was released in February 2001, accompanied by another German tour.
Hagen dubbed the voice of Sally in the German release of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and she also did some voice work in Hot Dogs by Michael Schoemann.
Hagen has been featured on many songs by other bands, for instance Oomph!'s song Fieber, a cover of Rammstein's "Seemann" with Apocalyptica and in 2008 appeared readily on psy-trance act S.U.N. Project's X Black Album, most notably on the fully vocal track We're In Space. She also sang the song "Garota de Berlim" with Brazilian singer Supla in her early years.
Her two children are Cosma Shiva and Otis.
URLs:
BEST archive for Nina Hagen pictures and stuff (regrettably just in German), incl. very old GDR pics like a beautiful one at the age of 18 and one shot by the "Stasi" (together with her stepfather Wolf Biermann - wiki)
Alptraum
Nina Hagen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wenn die Nächte lang und kalt sind?
Träumst du von mir,
In sehnsuchtsvollem schwarzen Dunst?
Aber ich, ich, ich, ich, ich,
Ich bin ein Alptraum
Ich komm, ich komm im Morgengraun
Ich jage dich und du entkommst mir nicht,
Ich mach dich Nachts zum Attentäter,
Zum Verräter,
Ich jage dir den Schweiß von der glatten Stirn
Bis tief ins Gehirn
Na, vermisst du mich,
Wenn die Knospen platzen?
Träumst du von mir,
Wenn ich als Hexe über die Mauer fetze?
Na, vermisst du mich,
Wenn die Sintflut kommt,
Soll ich dir denn gar nicht helfen,
Wenn dich keiner,
Aber auch keiner in die Arche hievt?
Hab doch keine Angst,
Es war doch alles nur ein Traum
(Träume sind Schäume)
Bei hellem klaren Tageslicht
Hat das doch alles kein Gewicht
(Träume sind Schäume)
Nur in der tiefen schwarzen Nacht,
Da wirst du von der Angst gepackt
Aber ich, ich, ich, ich, ich,
Ich bin dein Alptraum
Ich mach dich Nachts zum Zitteraal
Vibrierend in der Höllenqual
Ich spieß dein' Kopf auf eine Latte
Und dann frisst ihn ne fette Ratte
Und als dicker fetter Clown
Komm ich dir auf die fresse hauen
Ich töte dich eintaustendmal
Ich töte dich dreitausendmal
Ich töte dich sechstausendmal
Ich töte dich neuntausendmal
Ich töte dich zehntausendmal
Ich töte dich millionenfach
Ich töte dich billionenfach
Ich töte dich trillionenfach
Ich jage dich und du entkommst mir nicht
Ich mach dich Nachts zum Attentäter,
Zum Verräter,
Ich jage dir den Schweiß von der glatten Stirn
Bis tief ins Gehirn
The Nina Hagen Band's Alptraum is a haunting and disturbing song that explores the depths of fear and anxiety. The lyrics describe the singer as an "Alptraum" or nightmare, who will pursue and torment the listener relentlessly. The song starts with a question, "Do you miss me when the nights are long and cold?", and continues with the nightmare telling the listener that even though they may dream of her, she will appear in the morning and destroy them. She is a predator, hunting her prey until they are helpless, and then turning them into an accomplice or betrayer. The nightmare is all-encompassing, as she will even be there when the apocalypse comes, though she questions if she should help or not.
The lyrics go on to reassure the listener that it was all just a dream, but the fear remains, especially at night. The nightmare is described as a monster that will turn the listener into a trembling fish, skewer their head on a stake, have it eaten by a rat, and then come back as a clown to beat them down. The images are grotesque and unsettling, befitting the theme of the song. The final lines of the song repeat the refrain of the nightmare's pursuit, intensifying the fear and terror.
Overall, Alptraum is a deeply unsettling song that captures the fear and anxiety that can plague a person even in their dreams. It is a powerful exploration of the darker aspects of the human psyche, and the imagery and intensity of the lyrics make it a truly memorable piece of music.
Line by Line Meaning
Na, vermisst du mich,
Wenn die Nächte lang und kalt sind?
Do you miss me
When the nights are long and cold?
Träumst du von mir,
In sehnsuchtsvollem schwarzen Dunst?
Do you dream of me,
In longing black mist?
Aber ich, ich, ich, ich, ich,
Ich bin ein Alptraum
Ich komm, ich komm im Morgengraun
Um dich vernichtend anzuschau'n
Ich jage dich und du entkommst mir nicht,
Ich mach dich Nachts zum Attentäter,
Zum Verräter,
Ich jage dir den Schweiß von der glatten Stirn
Bis tief ins Gehirn
But I, I, I, I, I,
I am a nightmare
I come, I come in the dawn
To look at you to destruction
I chase you and you can't escape
I make you an assassin at night,
A traitor,
I chase the sweat from your smooth forehead
Deep into your brain
Na, vermisst du mich,
Wenn die Knospen platzen?
Do you miss me
When the buds burst?
Träumst du von mir,
Wenn ich als Hexe über die Mauer fetze?
Do you dream of me,
When I, as a witch, fly over the wall?
Na, vermisst du mich,
Wenn die Sintflut kommt,
Soll ich dir denn gar nicht helfen,
Wenn dich keiner,
Aber auch keiner in die Arche hievt?
Do you miss me
When the flood comes,
Should I not help you,
If nobody,
But nobody takes you to the ark?
Hab doch keine Angst,
Es war doch alles nur ein Traum
(Träume sind Schäume)
Bei hellem klaren Tageslicht
Hat das doch alles kein Gewicht
(Träume sind Schäume)
Nur in der tiefen schwarzen Nacht,
Da wirst du von der Angst gepackt
Don't be afraid,
It was all just a dream
(Dreams are bubbles)
In bright clear daylight,
All of that has no weight
(Dreams are bubbles)
Only in the deep dark night,
You get caught up in fear
Aber ich, ich, ich, ich, ich,
Ich bin dein Alptraum
Ich mach dich Nachts zum Zitteraal
Vibrierend in der Höllenqual
Ich spieß dein' Kopf auf eine Latte
Und dann frisst ihn ne fette Ratte
Und als dicker fetter Clown
Komm ich dir auf die fresse hauen
But I, I, I, I, I,
I am your nightmare
I make you a tremor at night
Vibrating in hellish agony
I impale your head on a pole
And then a fat rat eats it
And as a fat clown
I come to hit you in the face
Ich töte dich eintaustendmal
Ich töte dich dreitausendmal
Ich töte dich sechstausendmal
Ich töte dich neuntausendmal
Ich töte dich zehntausendmal
Ich töte dich millionenfach
Ich töte dich billionenfach
Ich töte dich trillionenfach
I kill you a thousand times
I kill you three thousand times
I kill you six thousand times
I kill you nine thousand times
I kill you ten thousand times
I kill you millions of times
I kill you billions of times
I kill you trillions of times
Ich jage dich und du entkommst mir nicht
Ich mach dich Nachts zum Attentäter,
Zum Verräter,
Ich jage dir den Schweiß von der glatten Stirn
Bis tief ins Gehirn
I chase you and you can't escape
I make you an assassin at night,
A traitor,
I chase the sweat from your smooth forehead
Deep into your brain
Contributed by Lily C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@harrydrury4734
MAN , MAN , MAN !
HOW IN THE HELL , DID THIS SONG NOT HIT THE U.S ?
IT IS TIMELESS !
CANT BELIEVE IT CAME OUT IN 79 ?
OH WELL !
ITS NEW TO ME !
THEY DONT PUT ROCK OUT LIKE THIS ANYMORE .
IM FEELING LIKE MC DONALDS , ....
IM LOVING IT !
@TheFelinolibre
Oye, ¿me echas de menos?
cuando las noches son largas y frías?
¿Sueñas conmigo?
en una neblina negra de nostalgia?
Pero yo, yo, yo, yo, yo
Soy tu pesadilla
Vengo, vengo al amanecer para darte una mirada marchita
Voy tras de ti y no escaparás de mí
Por la noche te conviertes en un asesino, un traidor
Conduzco el sudor de tu suave frente profundamente hacia tu cerebro
Oye, ¿me echas de menos?
cuando los brotes están estallando?
¿Sueñas conmigo?
cuando explota a brujas sobre la pared?
Oye, ¿me echas de menos cuando llegue el diluvio?
¿Cuando todo esté terminado?
¿No debería ayudarte cuando nadie
¿Pero nadie te va a meter en el arca?
No tengas miedo, todo fue sólo un sueño
(los sueños son meras sombras)
Por la clara y brillante luz del día, nada de esto hace ninguna diferencia
(los sueños son meras sombras)
Sólo en la oscuridad profunda de la noche te agarran por el miedo
Pero yo, yo, yo, yo, yo
Soy tu pesadilla
Por la noche te conviertes en una anguila temblorosa que tiembla en los tormentos del infierno
Empalo tu cabeza en un poste donde es mordida por una rata gorda
Y en la forma de un payaso gordo de higo
Vengo y te doy uno justo en las chuletas
Te mato mil veces
Te mato tres mil veces
Te mato seis mil veces
Te mato nueve mil veces
Te mato diez mil veces
Te mato un millón de veces
Te mato mil millones de veces
Te mato un billón de veces
Voy tras de ti y no escaparás de mí
Por la noche te conviertes en un asesino, un traidor
Conduzco el sudor de tu suave frente profundamente hacia tu cerebro
@harrydrury4734
STUDING YOUR WORK , MUSIC , PESONALITY ,
IM LIKING WHAT AN INTERESTING PERSON .
EVEN THOUGH , ... THE LANGUAGE BARRIER,
YOU WERE BIG !
AND AHEAD OF YOUR TIME .
NOW , I THOUGHT THE BANDS THAT CAME FROM GERMANY , ...
WERE GOOD , ... LIKE SCORPIONS , .... AND LATER , THAT BAND CALLED NINA ?
HMMMMM ? .... I WONDER HOW THEY CAME UP WITH THAT NAME ? .... HMMM !
ANYWAY , .... I THINK YOUR WAY BETTER THAN THE BAND NINA .
IM REALLY GETTING INTO THIS CULT OF PERSONALLITY !
TRULLY , ... ONE OF A KIND .
@kristianharten1107
Solche Frauen sucht man in Deutschland heute leider vergebens. ❤
@sergiomartinezcano2353
Das waren noch gute Zeiten,vermisse sie sehr. Jahrgang 1963.❤
@herculepoirot6979
The entire original LP named "Unbehagen" is fantastic. I have kept it since it came out and still enjoy it ;-)
@gileslangley941
I bought it in Germany in 79
@percapita1239
I got rid of my first one but later bought it again, it´s somewhere here among all of my junk, now i just need a vinyl player as well.
@Jpeg13759
"Nina Hagen Band" and "Unbehagen" are good...
@bettinascheschonka2164
And I LOVE AGATHA!
@peterfedun-sk3jt
I have it and it’s a fantastic album.
@kerstinsrb2694
...ich hatte damals mit 15 schon nen guten exzentrischen Musikgeschmack. Das hat sich bis Heute mit fast 55 Jahren NICHT geändert.
@carldacosta3184
Still awesome after 45 years!