Big Balls and the Great White Idiot
Encyclopedia
Big Balls and the Great White Idiot was one of the first and best known German
punk rock
bands. They were founded in Hamburg
in 1975 by Peter Grund (drums,vocals, text), "Baron Adolf Kaiser" (vocals),Wolfgang Lorenz (guitar) and the Grund brothers, Alfred (bass, vocals) and Atli (guitar).
The charismatic head of the band was the drummer and songwriter Peter.
"Baron Adolf" provoked the audience by wearing a Nazi
uniform and a black moustache as an expression of anarchy
. Performances on stage were highly aggressive; the band was known to shout at the audience to go home. Punk News magazine called the sound "mean and ugly."
The first album was released in 1977 by Teldec
, named Big Balls. Among the 17 songs were a cover version of the Sex Pistols
' "Anarchy in the U.K.
", in this case "Anarchy in Germany," and another of Velvet Underground. In 1978 the second album Foolish Guys followed. The next two albums, Artikel 1 and Creepy Shades, were released by their own label Balls Records, the latter bringing a change in sound away from punk.
The decline of punk rock did not affect the close ties between the band and their fans, but the 1980s saw the "Balls" (with French guitarist Hervé Rozoum) more often in theaters contributing their music to various stageplays.
Their latest album was from 1999 called "In Search for Love" and were scheduled to tour Japan 2000/2001. However, two of the band members (Atli and Wolle) where arrested on the coast of France travelling on ship carrying several tons of banana milkshake and went to holydays.
Nevertheless,the band is alive and kicking.They still run their own recording studio,label and publishing co.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
bands. They were founded in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
in 1975 by Peter Grund (drums,vocals, text), "Baron Adolf Kaiser" (vocals),Wolfgang Lorenz (guitar) and the Grund brothers, Alfred (bass, vocals) and Atli (guitar).
The charismatic head of the band was the drummer and songwriter Peter.
"Baron Adolf" provoked the audience by wearing a Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
uniform and a black moustache as an expression of anarchy
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
. Performances on stage were highly aggressive; the band was known to shout at the audience to go home. Punk News magazine called the sound "mean and ugly."
The first album was released in 1977 by Teldec
Teldec
The Teldec is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group.-History:...
, named Big Balls. Among the 17 songs were a cover version of the Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
' "Anarchy in the U.K.
Anarchy in the U.K.
"Anarchy in the U.K." was covered by American thrash metal band Megadeth for their third album So Far, So Good... So What!, released in 1988.Notoriously, the song has incorrect lyrics...
", in this case "Anarchy in Germany," and another of Velvet Underground. In 1978 the second album Foolish Guys followed. The next two albums, Artikel 1 and Creepy Shades, were released by their own label Balls Records, the latter bringing a change in sound away from punk.
The decline of punk rock did not affect the close ties between the band and their fans, but the 1980s saw the "Balls" (with French guitarist Hervé Rozoum) more often in theaters contributing their music to various stageplays.
Their latest album was from 1999 called "In Search for Love" and were scheduled to tour Japan 2000/2001. However, two of the band members (Atli and Wolle) where arrested on the coast of France travelling on ship carrying several tons of banana milkshake and went to holydays.
Nevertheless,the band is alive and kicking.They still run their own recording studio,label and publishing co.