Wolfgang Müller

Subkultur Westberlin 1979–1989
Freizeit (Leisure Time)
VOLUME 203

Rambling Through West Berlin’s Wild Punk Era

The late seventies saw diverse subcultures animated by the punk impulse spring up throughout West Berlin. Super 8 cinemas, bands, and mini-labels were founded, fanzines copied, illegal bars and punk clubs like Risiko became meeting places for “anti-Berliners”: punks, alternative, industrial, and electronic fans, political anarchists, queers, and artists with or without work.

Wolfgang Müller co-founded the group Die Tödliche Doris and was himself involved in many of these events. Here, he offers a piece of contemporary history from an insider’s perspective: knowledgeable, witty, irreverent—a furiously told story of West Berlin subculture from 1979 to 1989. Among many others, we encounter: Gudrun Gut, Die Einstürzenden Neubauten and Iggy Pop in a phone booth, Christiane F., the eventual founder of the Loveparade Dr. Motte, and Ratten-Jenny, who attacked Martin Kippenberger in 1978. And then there are also the locales: flea markets or illegal culture venues like the Kuckuck. Subjective and witty, Wolfgang Müller fills the gaps in our understanding of this era.

Wolfgang Müller (b. 1957) is an artist, musician, and writer based in Berlin. His edited volume Geniale Dilletanten (1982), published by Merve, didn’t only become legendary for the typos in the title. He made numerous exhibitions, audio plays, and records, and authored books including Hormone des Mannes (1995), Neue Nord-Welt (2005), Neues von der Elfenfront (2007), and Valeska Gert. Ästhetik der Präsenzen (2010).