Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Puhdys ‎- "Wilder Frieden" [1999]

Artist: Puhdys
Title: Wilder Frieden
Genre: Hard Rock, NDH
Country: Germany
Release date: 1999

Track List: 
  1. Wilder Frieden
  2. Ich bin der liebe Gott
  3. Dieser Tag gehört Dir
  4. Wut will nicht sterben
  5. Normales Glück
  6. Du hast schuld
  7. Nie getraut
  8. Eine Frage der Ansicht
  9. Hipp Hipp Hurra
  10. Gigolo
  11. Höhenflug
  12. Wie ein Strom
  13. Schieß mich ab
  14. Auf in's neue Jahrtausend
  15. Leise weht der Wind
Puhdys are one of the oldest rock bands from Eastern Germany (officially formed in 1969, but the band already existed in some form as early as 1965, albeit with a different line-up), and probably the most famous. Their name comes from an abbreviation made out of the names of their 4 founding members (Peter, Udo, Harry & Dieter). Like most other rock bands from the Eastern Bloc, they initially were a cover band, since there was a huge demand for covers in the situation when most rock albums from Western Bloc were impossible (or at least not easy) to purchase. They didn't abandon the practice of making cover albums later on, although they've released numerous albums of their own material as well.

Puhdys also were the first East German rock band to perform in Belgium and Netherlands (1974) and in West Germany (1976). They also have vistited the USSR numerous times during the 1970s, and at least two of their LPs were officially released on vinyl by Melodiya (in 1973 and 1977). Their sound has significantly evolved through the time: while their 1970s stuff was mostly influenced by the contemporary British hard rock acts (Deep Purple, Uriah Heep) and earlier American rock'n'roll (Elvis Presley etc.), they turned to more synthpop-influenced sound in mid-1980s.

This particular album, especially its first few tracks, is significantly heavier than their early works, and shows strong influence of the late-1990s Neue Deutsche Härte scene (particularly Rammstein), even if calling it an "industrial metal album" would be a too big stretch. Puhdys had a great influence on Rammstein in their early days, so Till Lindemann and Richard Kruspe decided to return the favour by collaborating with Puhdys on the track "Wut will nicht sterben". The rest 3/4 of this album is less heavy and closer to the earlier classic/hard rock works by Puhdys, but it's still very good and would be of interest for any fan of NDH (and German rock in general).

All albums by Puhdys, including this one, can be found in FLAC on this forum. I personally would recommend their first two albums as well: even if it's the kind of classic rock I'm generally not very interested in, these albums sound better than many albums of their more famous British and American contemporaries, and there are great tracks such as "Steine" that definitely shouldn't be missed.

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