Neonman

BIOGRAPHY

Neonman is both, a Live band and a DJ-Team (Neonman Sound Control). With drummer Crazy Dan they create a fierce electronic punk rock show on stage, whereas the DJ-Set dives deeper into the electronic water. Neonman are Bastian Asdonk and Benjamin Osborn.

Bastian played guitar in several rockbands before het got into Hip Hop in the late Eighties. He released an album with his Band R.I.D. and than started producing housemusic. Ben has been part of London´s electronic music scene since the early nineties. He deejayed in and around Londons Techno parties between 1993–99 and was always to be found in Fat Cat Records hanging with Alex Knight. As a DJ Ben can play across the board from deep house, banging techno to back room dub sets. Bastian and Ben met in Berlin in the year 2000 and decided that all cool music at that time sucked - so they started Neonman.
Neonman took same time to eventually find their final (?) statement. The attitude has changed as well as the musical style, gone are the days of DIY performances with just 3 songs, without rehearsal in a blood stained wedding dress in front of bass hungry ravers with songs like ‘Future is Pussy’. The band has been performing for over 3 years with live instruments, which has had a major impact on the albums sound. The sound is dance music but played with live drums, gitarre and bass: This has lead to the confusing fact that you can still find Neonman performing in glitzy nightclubs as well as in rotten basement rock clubs.

They are often described as a mutation of The Clash and modern house beats, but it was never Neonmans intention to just crash styles, but more importantly to join the euphoria of dance music with the attitude of rock’n’roll.



Over a year after their debut, Gift of the Gab, Neonman present their second full length release, Knights Of Error

The never-ending search for more and more sophisticated ways of having fun, the struggle to remain a decent person and the threat of terror, war and an alleged culture clash fuelled by conservative media are all expressed on this album. But this is certainly no whiney protest record; nor is it filled with self-important political pomposity. Knights Of Error is like a collection of short stories; telling tales of people trying to navigate themselves through the impenetrable forest of urban life and relationships. Often those people fail and they struggle but there is also some hope expressed on this album such as the almost spiritual song entitled Boat Of Glory.

Sticking to their favourite themes, the more dance floor oriented songs on the album deal with concepts of nightlife, the social microcosm of ‘the scene’ and warped states of mind. But there is also a new tone, a more personal and political atmosphere with the rock oriented songs, something Neonman has never done before. It’s a change from the topsyturvy hedonism of the nightlife to more realistic, human themes such as serious relationships, holding down an honest job and global politics. Moving away from the electro influenced sound of their earlier releases, Neonman recorded Knights Of Error completely live in Kreuzberg, Berlin. The album’s producer, Cornelius Rapp, has worked with artists such as Peaches, Mocky, Gonzales and Planning to rock. Although drum machines and sequencers have been replaced by live instrumentation, tracks such as Nightclubbing and Too Quick, Too Much are bona fide club tracks which fans of earlier Neonman releases will enjoy. The structure and feeling of dance music is used as a foundation and combined with a live sound that is heavily influenced by Ska, Dub & Reggae. More rock-oriented tracks such as Quinine & Juniper or Straight ‘n’ Narrow (a track loosely based on Döblin’s novel Berlin Alexanderplatz) deal with more complex aspects of modern life and the impersonal way we live in the modern world today.


’Neonman deliver the soundtrack to parties, where people - in no particular order - make out, snort lines and puke.’
IQ Style / Germany

’(...) Furthermore the duo has splitted from any kind of genre-conventions and created easy danceable music, that combines the best of Dance Music and Rock'n'Roll. (...) A brave, but fully accomplished experiment!’
Zillo Magazin / Germany

’Neonman is that act out of the Pale Music Rooster, that will forever hush people accusing the Berlin scene of electroclash monotony or even dilettantism.’
GAMEFACE Magazin / Germany

’Neonman are so damn hip, it hurts and sound like your older brother's good sorted record collection.’
Berliner Nacht Infobooklet / Germany




THE RELEASES


Pale 029 - Knights of Error

Pale 016 - SKT 01 - Gift Of The Gab Remixes

Pale 014 - Gift Of The Gab

FOR ANY REQUESTS CONTACT:

Headquarter Germany
Pale Music Int.
Boeckhstrasse 14
10967 Berlin
Germany

Headquarter United Kingdom
Studio 7
c/o Pale Music Int.
96 Debeauvoir Road
London
N1 4EN
United Kingdom

Contact: promo@pale-music.com
Licensing: steve@pale-music.com