Alec Empire

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Alec Empire live 2007

Alec Empire (born May 2, 1972 in West Berlin , actually Alexander Wilke-Steinhof) is a German music producer , composer and DJ . He is the front man of the group Atari Teenage Riot and founder of the labels Digital Hardcore Recordings and Eat Your Heart Out Records.

biography

Alec Empire was born in West Berlin and grew up in Berlin-Reinickendorf .

He sees his musical roots in the noise and punk scene of the late 1970s, although he has played a key role in the emerging techno scene in Berlin and Frankfurt since 1990. There are over 100 releases that Alec Empire has worked on either as a musician, producer or remixer.

Since 1991 he has released new albums in different styles at irregular intervals , from digital hardcore like Atari Teenage Riot to ambient albums like Low on Ice to almost jazzy sound experiments like in his Les Étoiles Des Filles Mortes , published in 1996 on the Mille Plateaux label where fellow campaigners and musicians refer to the philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari . In 1994 he moved to London, England, where his label is headquartered.

In addition to his work at Atari Teenage Riot, Alec Empire published numerous solo works in the 1990s under changing pseudonyms , of which ECP, Jaguar, Nintendo Teenage Robots, and Richard Benson are among the most famous projects. Since 1998 he has also worked with the Japanese noise musician Masami Akita ( Merzbow ), Björk , The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion , Slayer , Rammstein , Nine Inch Nails , Dave Grohl from Nirvana and the Foo Fighters , Thurston Moore from Sonic Youth , Mogwai , Dan The Automator, Prince Paul and RL Burnside together.

Alec Empire live (2005-2006 Throbbing Gristle New Year's Eve party)

When he signed a deal with Grand Royal, the label of the Beastie Boys in the USA, about the distribution rights for the North American area, the album he produced by the band Atari Teenage Riot Burn Berlin Burn sold so often that it achieved gold status . In 1998 Alec Empire moved to the major Elektra Records , produced the follow-up 60 Second Wipe Out and managed to surpass this success.

In the same year he released the double album Nintendo Teenage Robots , which he only recorded with the Nintendo Gameboy . Since then, this album has been regarded as the initial spark of the 8-bit and chiptune genre, which countless electroclash and nu rave musicians will refer to in the years to come .

In winter 2000 he was part of the Christoph Schlingensief show for MTV 2000 with ATR , produced by Avanti Media Film Produktion. At that time he wrote the song Rage with Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine for Atari Teenage Riot .

In 2001 he released the solo album Intelligence and Sacrifice , on which guests like Dave Grohl and Atari teenage riot musician Nic Endo play. For the tours for the album he put together a special band consisting of the drummer Gabe Serbian from the American band The Locust , Charlie Clouser from Nine Inch Nails, Nic Endo and the Japanese Masami Akita. The album premiered at the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan in front of 20,000 visitors. In 2002 he won the British Kerrang! -Awards.

A bootleg video that Alec Empire with the video artist Philipp virus to an unauthorized Elvis Presley - Remix created, was in the Museum of Modern Art in New York added. The British newspaper New Musical Express chose the piece of music as "Album of the Week".

In 2004 and 2005, Alec Empire toured a lot and recorded the album Futurist , which developed a different style than the previous albums.

At the end of 2005 he remixed the song Amerika by the Rammstein group, which was released exclusively for the British and American markets.

In 2006 he wrote the song Make 'Em Bleed for the anti-violence television commercial of world boxing champion Nikolai Valuev . In March 2006 he re-recorded the classic " Black Monk Time " (for the documentary film Monks - The Transatlantic Feedback about the group) with the singer of the cult band The Monks . In the original, the song was one of the first pieces of music to call against the Vietnam War in the 1960s. In the current version, the title criticizes the situation in Iraq after the American invasion. The piece was released on the double CD Silver Monk Time .

In 2006 Alec Empire moved back to Berlin and founded the music production company The Hellish Vortex GmbH . The headquarters of his publishing house Digital Hardcore Music Publishing and their labels will remain in London. The idea for the new label Eat Your Heart Out Records was born in Berlin. The first single Robot LOVE was released in June 2007. Alec Empire presented his new band exclusively at the two festivals Fusion and Melt .

This was followed by a collaboration with Greenpeace on the Black Smoke campaign , which draws attention to the problems caused by global warming. He also began to produce new pieces with the British pop star Patrick Wolf at Hellish Vortex Studios in Berlin for Universal Records.

On January 24th, the album The Golden Foretaste of Heaven was released in Germany. The press reacted very positively and called the production the “Sound of New Berlin”. Sonic Seducer put it on the front page, as well as on Synthesizer Magazine and Stadtkind . Musikexpress hailed the album as "the first major release of the electro-rock year 2008!". First there was the single On Fire as a lavishly packaged and limited EP and the much discussed music video with Natalia Avelon in the lead role. While the uncensored version of the video premiered a few weeks earlier in a cinema in Tokyo and Los Angeles, the label and artist decided to show a slightly weaker version to the general public. Video director Philipp Virus shot it a few months earlier in Berlin. He was best known for his video clips for Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth.

After a European tour in the first months of 2008, he wrote the soundtrack for the film 224466 by Tadanobu Asano , the directorial debut of the Japanese actor, whom many have met through the films Ichi The Killer or Zatōichi .

Alec Empire at the Nocturnal Culture Night Festival 2016

In collaboration with Monitor Pop, a three-hour double DVD was released on July 25, 2008 with 17 years of film and video material from Alec Empire's career. According to the label, the recordings from May 1, 1999, when the band was arrested during a riot during a peace demonstration in Berlin, as well as Alec Empire's concerts in Japan and all the music videos on it, are included. In this context, Empire's collaboration with film director John Hillcoat for two music clips should also be mentioned. Hillcoat is known for his Nick-Cave videos and his feature film The Proposition .

In 2008 Alec Empire wrote the score for the movie Chaostage - We Are Punks! (Director: Tarek Ehlail ). For the film, he continued to remix the song Bullenschweine by the punk band Slime and the Sing-a-long hit We Are Punks as the main theme of the film. The film is considered controversial since there were riots at the premieres by punks who could no longer buy tickets due to the crowds.

Since October 2008 he and his journalist friends have been publishing articles almost every day on their own weblog Eat Your Heart Out .

In 2009 Empire with director Richard Wilhelmer and actor Robert Stadlober presented the animated film The Golden Foretaste of Heaven at the Berlinale in the Tresor Club .

In the spring of 2009, the single Vultures, produced and written by Alec Empire for Patrick Wolf, entered the UK charts. This was followed by the album The Bachelor , which the two of them produced for the most part in Berlin at Hellish Vortex Studios. The album is considered by the British press as the contender for newcomer album of the year. Both artists have announced further collaborations in various interviews.

Empire also made a name for itself when it launched the Past - Present - Future Tour , which took place on May 1st (for the anniversary of the arrest by the police, as Empire's band Atari Teenage Riot in 1999 at a demonstration against the NATO bombing of Kosovo a truck in Berlin and there were riots) began in London with a sold out concert. For the first time in 9 years he announced Atari Teenage Riot songs for the live program.

This prompted Nine-Inch-Nails front man Trent Reznor to react quickly: He invited Alec Empire on his farewell tour through Europe as special support.

Alec Empire worked on remixes for the band IAMX , and collaborated with Saul Williams / Kanye-West -DJ CX Kidtronik.

Since 2010 Alec Empire has been traveling around the world again with his group Atari Teenage Riot .

Discography

With Atari Teenage Riot

→ see Atari Teenage Riot / discography

Solo albums

Alec Empire (2013)
  • 1992: SuEcide Pt.1 & Pt.2
  • 1994: Limited Editions 1990-94 (Mille Plateaux / Geist Records UK)
  • 1994: Generation Star Wars (Mille Plateaux / Geist Records UK)
  • 1995: Low On Ice (Mille Plateaux Records)
  • 1996: Hypermodern Jazz 2000.5 (Mille Plateaux / Geist Records UK)
  • 1996: The Destroyer (Digital Hardcore Recordings)
  • 1996: Les Etoiles Des Filles Mortes (Mille Plateaux / Geist Records UK)
  • 1996: Berlin Sky (Analogue Records USA)
  • 1997: Squeeze The Trigger (DHR UK)
  • 1998: Miss Black America (SS UK)
  • 1999: Alec Empire vs. Elvis Presley Bootleg (El Turco Loco)
  • 2001: Intelligence & Sacrifice (Beat Ink. Japan)
  • 2002: Intelligence & Sacrifice (Digital Hardcore Recordings / Zomba Records)
  • 2003: Alec Empire & Merzbow live at CBGBs New York (Digital Hardcore Recordings)
  • 2003: The CD2 Sessions Live in London (Digital Hardcore Recordings)
  • 2005: Futurist (Digital Hardcore Recordings / Beat Ink Japan)
  • 2007: The Golden Foretaste of Heaven (Eat Your Heart Out Records / Beat Ink Japan)
  • 2008: The Golden Foretaste of Heaven (Eat Your Heart Out Records / Rough Trade )
  • 2009: Shivers (Eat Your Heart Out Records / Rough Trade)
  • 2017: Volt - Original Soundtrack (Dependent Records)

Remixes (selection)

  • 1993: Space Cube (Remix: Jungle Fever) / Riot Beats
  • 1994: Air Liquide (Remix: Abuse Your Illusions Pt.1)
  • 1996: Schorsch Cameroon (Remix: Die Menschen aus Kiel) / L'age d'or
  • 1996: Stereo Total (Remix: Dactylo Rock)
  • 1996: Think About Mutation / Ooomph (Remix: Motor Razor)
  • 1996: Bindmittel - (Remix: Unification) / WEA Records
  • 1996: Cibo Matto (Remix: Know Your Chicken) / Blanco y Negro Records
  • 1996: Nicolette (Remix: Beautiful Day) / Mercury Records / Talkin Loud Rec.
  • 1997: Einstürzende Neubauten (Remix: The Garden) / Mute Records
  • 1997: Schweisser (Remix: Friss Scheiße) / Intercord Tonträger GmbH
  • 1997: Violent Onsen Geisha & DMBQ (Remix: Mood of Mods Generation) / ZK Records Japan
  • 1997: Audio Active (Remix: My Way) / On-U Sound Records
  • 1997: Björk (Remix: Bachelorette) / One Little Indian Records
  • 1997: Björk (Remix: Joga) / Mother Records
  • 1997: Bottom 12 - (Remix: Dance or be shot)
  • 1997: Buffalo Daughter (Remix: Dr Moog) / Grand Royal Records
  • 1997: Mad Capsule Markets (Remix: Crash Pow) / Viktor Entertainment Japan
  • 1997: Nicolette (Remix: No Government) / Talkin Loud Records
  • 1998: Mark Stewart (Remix: Consumed) / Mute Records
  • 1998: Mogwai (Remix: Like Herod) / Eye Q Records UK, Jet Set Records
  • 1998: Shonen Knife - (Remix: Keep On Rockin) / MCA Victor Japan
  • 1998: Techno Animal vs. Reality (Remix: Atomic Buddha) / City Slang , Labels
  • 1998: Thurston Moore (Remix: Root) / Lo Recordings
  • 1999: Björk (Remix: Joga) / Columbia Records
  • 1999: Collision Course (El-P, Company Flow) (Remix: Trapped in 3D) / PIAS UK
  • 2000: Godzilla 2000 Soundtrack (Remix: March of Godzilla) / Nippon Columbia
  • 2000: Guitar Wolf - (Remix: Jet Virus) / KiOon Records Japan
  • 2002: Primal Scream (Remix: Miss Lucifer) / Columbia Records, Sony
  • 2003: Chris Vrenna (Remix: Skool Daze) / Waxploitation Records USA
  • 2003: Brainbombs (Remix: It's a Burning Hell) / Load Records USA
  • 2004: Panic DHH (Remix: Reach) / Gonzo Circus Records
  • 2004: Rammstein (Remix: Amerika) / Universal Music
  • 2005: Coil (Remix: Tribute To Coil) / Fulldozer Records Russia
  • 2005: Rammstein (Remix: Mann gegen Mann) / Universal Island Records
  • 2006: Most Precious Blood (Remix: Oxygen Dept) / Halo 8 Records USA
  • 2007: Emigrate (Remix: New York City) / Motor, Edel Records
  • 2009: Patrick Wolf (Remix: Hard Times) / Bloody Chamber Music, Universal
  • 2009: Chaostage - We Are Punks! (Soundtrack) (compilation and two songs)
  • 2010: IAMX (Remix: Terrified) / Metropolis
  • 2011: FOE (Remix: Genie in A Coke Can) / Universal
  • 2012: Salem (Remix: Better Off Alone) / IAMSOUND
  • 2012: Army of The Universe (Remix: Ravens Over My Rave) / Dim Mak
  • 2013: Gary Numan (Remix: For The Rest of My Life) / Machine Music Ltd
  • 2014: Klaxons (Remix: Show Me A Miracle)
  • 2016: Triggerfinger  Ft. Methodman  (Remix: The One)
  • 2017: Army Of The Universe (Remix: 1999)

DVDs

  • 2002: Death Favors The Enemy (Digital Hardcore Recordings)
  • 2008: Atari Teenage Riot / Alec Empire - Video Works 1992–2008 (Digital Hardcore Recordings / Monitorpop Entertainment - also as a limited edition)

Further

  • 1999: Nintendo Teenage Robots - We Punk Einheit (DHR Limited)

Filmography

Films and TV appearances

Web links

Commons : Alec Empire  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ "Alec Empire: Hitting the table is 90s", interview on de-bug.de (accessed on September 10, 2013)
  2. ↑ Timo Feldhaus: "The Non-Rebel", zuender.zeit.de (accessed on September 10, 2013)
  3. ↑ Alec Empire vs. J Mascis ( Memento of the original from January 31, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , SPEX # 308, June 2007 (accessed September 10, 2013) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.spex.de
personal data
SURNAME Empire, Alec
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Wilke-Steinhof, Alexander (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German musician
DATE OF BIRTH May 2, 1972
PLACE OF BIRTH Berlin , Germany