Zauberfinger 2 1981

Liese has got such a kissyneck, keep staring at it, ....[because she] found a newer way, watch her come-- she found a new of you, it was about time. You come by her tonight, she likes your style. She wants your anxieties, which are not hers, no longer. What's so great about being right, if you don't mean what you say? Don't mind public opinion if it ain't what you're feeling, insist on your opinion and never give up... it's hard work to walk the tiderope of doing what you think is best between compromise and integrity...

Now the second album from this crazy magic fingered and brilliant German band. Compositions are credited to the whole band, which comprises the amazing Hans Reffert on guitar, Wolfy Ziegler on bass, Rolf Schaude on perc, Liese Kraus as before on vocals and also saxes, Franzi Brandwein as guest musician, and additional composition by Steve Tomlin on track 4 (Kissyneck).

I didn't realize that Hans was actually one of the duo on Flute and Voice, the folky acoustic german band. What a surprise to see him do this stuff then! Later he was in Guru Guru and performed with Mani Neumaier.
Here as in the first we get the same odd but very enjoyable mixture of rock moves (note the funky intro to the first song which passes into a completely unique chord change in the chorus) with very progressive songwriting. Couldn't have been very popular commercially, could it? The writing is even more uncompromising, featuring recurrent tritones and dissonances; there is less of the classic rock chord changes to springboard from-- tragic that there wasn't a Zauberfinger 3, because they were at the peak of their abilities on this record.

Not since J F Murphy have I been so happy to feel I've discovered an amazing unknown artist that doesn't deserve to be so little known. These records are fantastic, and highly listenable.

The cover seems to be a homage to or a rip-off of the Rolling Stones' Some Girls, doesn't it?

As sample I produce for you the "Capt Beefheart meets James Brown" track-- pretty much a hollywood executive summary of the band's style in title.


Also "Das Knispel," an awesomely deranged song, check out those tritonal chords in the second part of the song.


And why did they disband after this? I'll let Liese take this one, since she spoke the intro words:
"It's hard work to walk the tiderope of doing what you think is best between compromise and integrity ... and make money and of course you have to live on it ... I'm tired of being buried in confusion, I'm sick of it."