Japanische Kampfhörspiele

Hailing from Krefeld, Germany this band with the weird name everyone wants an explanation for makes a one for themselves in the underground. Especially their cover CD Deutschland von vorne brought them into the spotlight, utilizing originals one wouldn’t get in mind at first. Now JAPANISCHE KAMPFHÖRSPIELE are famous giving more interviews as they play gigs. Time to shed some light on the unscheduled plans of the planless…

Dajana: Right now an announcement goes round that your singer Paule will soon leave the band. Why? How to go on? Would you also recruit a female front growler?
Christ: Yeah, of course, why not? But no applies for that so far. Right now we’re checking out some guys that have sent in application videos. I tell ya, there are some crazy guys in between. A jury will later choose the best aspirant.
Paul got a job at a bank and isn’t tolerable any longer, as one would say. He said. As for us he could have stayed with the band till the end. But since Paul is our biggest fans, also during his growl job, and will be, we let him go with a heavy heart.

Dajana: For the fact you even haven’t planned to release any music and don’t plan anything at all, your carrier goes very according to plan, doesn’t it?
Christ: Because, that’s the trick! Evolution was successful with the same principle. Just let it go – at the end nothing is 100% well, but that’s the thrilling fact at the entire story. Although, sometimes I see us quite collusive … What was the question?

Dajana: To what extend your active life as a rock star (backed by a label, with cool album releases, merchandise and live gigs) has changed, transformed and twisted your daily life? Do you sign autographs at Aldi?
Christ: To our luck – NO! As avowed sociophobic I couldn’t handle such situation at all. Anyway, to go to Aldi is already a heavy task for me.
I see us as cabaret artists, songwriters with e-guitars, something like that, ya know. Drugs? No thank you.

Dajana: Wow, just found you described at Wikipedia. You are proud of? Is that a sign of success?
Christ: No. Everybody can write and add what he/she wants and like as one can do on the entire internet. It’s even allowed to upload self-financed shitty music. A reason, why bands play less gigs since they can be present/available at any time, thank internet. And this unrequested.
Nevertheless, such entry makes us proud though. It proves that people are interested in us and in what we are doing at the other end of the wire. It’s like a good trip for us. Without drugs.

Dajana: It looks like you do more interviews than gigs. You already must have fuzzes in your mouth from all these yaks. Or sore fingertips respectively. If I’m right, you didn’t miss any of the German mags so far… (what of course makes it difficult to me to ask unasked questions)
Christ: Bastardized Records does much action.

Dajana: What happened to yours and Klaus’ graphic-design studies? What does the rest of the band when the lights goes out (… to go to sleep probably :P … hehe.. What I want to know is, with what you bring home the bacon)?
Christ: Klaus actually tries is luck as graphic designer. Sort of square for my taste, but ok. What I do? Don’t ask. Robert is an electrician, Bony sells CD’s and Bajo is fork-lift.
Dajana: Bajo is a fork-lift??? Must be downright handy for your shows. The perfect roadie…
Dajana: Btw… as of you, now I’m really curious…

Bert: Which bands nowadays enthusiast you or have even influences on your music?
Christ: I don’t tell ya.

Bert: On your album Deutschland von vorne you have covered bands such as EA80 and Goldene Zitronen that are known for being extremely political and/or very critical, even about the own scene. Is JAPANISCHE KAMPFHÖRSPIELE a politically active and socio-critical band, or are the single members?
Christ: That beats me. We do what we do in jest and fun. We don’t wanna proselytize anyone. We even don’t want your money. Except overhead-participations…

Dajana: Apropos covers… Are there genres and artists far away of your surroundings you would like to recycle? What about a JAKA-Zappa album?
Christ: Haha. Begin with finding musicians who would like to play such stuff without acting foolish at that. On Deutschland von vorne we more assaulted weaker ones.

Bert: how do you notice the German underground scene? Is there any? If so, is there a company and interchange to find or more rivalry?
Christ: I think there is still much rivalry to find. We are a bit aside of all this since none takes our un-grimness serious. We in fact always resolve to get more aggressive but that somehow doesn’t suits the lads we are. If we would sound the way we are, you could take our music for a 70’s porno.

Bert: How important is humor in the music generally and in JAKA especially?
Christ: Humor is very important, not only in the music biz. But it shouldn’t be any kind of humor. A joke might backfire. But it won’t cause an apocalypse. And at the end you can make a best-of-album.

Bert: Does foreign countries show interest in JAPANISCHE KAMPFHÖRSPIELE.
Christ: Yes, they do, but not more than the inland does.

Dajana: You have already released the one and the other split CD. What for? You need to share your own existential orientation musically? It is the split partner itself? What does it give to? I mean, you hardly have anything to do with your partners. Wouldn’t it be much more… um… interesting to barricade with your partner in a studio, composing a couple of songs together? Could be bloody funny… Whom you’d choose for such project?
Christ: We do splits to bridge time. Splits are comparatively produced very fast, coz you have less songs. Some ideas you urgently need to come up with and cannot wait till the next album. Split partners we pull at a lottery. Except Das Krill, with them we absolutely wanted to work. Most of all I adore Nekrobo Krill for his Laisser-faire.

Dajana: Ok, give an outlook for the rest of the year 2006. What we can expect?
Christ: If we make it – the next studio album. Maybe we get our DVD together. But definitely sure is the next split with Poostew, and a little later a split with Bathtubeshitter. Latter one is the second part of the first one. You have to get both of them!
Dajana: Ok, great *rubs hands and squints at Flo*

Dajana: After all these interviews, is there anything you always wanted to tell but none asked? If so… your last words :)
Christ: How we got this band name?
Dajana: Hahahaha… erm… oh, by the way, there is something I urgently wants to know: how you got this damn fucking band name in mind? *lol* Ok… stupid joke…

Dajana: Thank you very much for taking time and making effort in answering our questions. Cheers!
Christ: No prob. Was fun. Nice questions, finally.