Kirlian Camera (band)

This page is about the band named Kirlian Camera. For other meanings of Kirlian Camera, see Kirlian Camera (disambiguation)

Kirlian Camera

Kirlian Camera is an Italian group playing mostly electronic darkwave music.

History

The group was founded in 1980 by Angelo Bergamini, and was a pioneering act of the Italian synthpop scene, eventually being the first Italian group to be signed to Virgin Records.

Between 1982 and 1984, Bergamini also played in the Italian spacesynth/italodisco group Hipnosis, which earned a platinum record for album sales in Germany, and had a top-10 hit throughout Europe with their single "Pulstar".

During the eighties, Kirlian Camera's sound became progressively darker, moving away from the synth pop sound dominating their earlier releases. In 1993, they signed to the German label Discordia. 1995 saw them collaborate with labelmates Dive on Obsession EP.

While the group's lineup has constantly changed over the years with many members joining and leaving, it has been relatively stable since 1999, with songwriter Angelo Bergamini being joined by full-time singer Elena Fossi.

Discography

Albums

• Kirlian Camera (1981, mini album)
• It Doesn't Matter Now (1983)
• Eclipse (Das Schwarze Denkmal)(1988)
• Todesengel The Fall of Life (1991)
• Schmerz (1992)
• Erinnerung (1994)
• Solaris - The Last Corridor (1995)
• Pictures From Eternity (1996)
• The Desert Inside (1997, mini album)
• The Ice Curtain (1997, 2CD compilation)
• Unidentified Light (1998)
• Kalte Container (1999 - contains remixes. A limited edition version includes printed biography)
• Still Air (2000)
• Absentee (2001)
• Uno (2001) (compilation of 'Dawn' demotape and 'Kirlian Camera' mini album)
• Invisible Front 2005 (2004)
• Coroner's Sun (2006)
• Shadow Mission HELD V (2009)

Singles and EPs

• Passing Masks (1982 - released under name 'Kirlian Camera & Simone Buja)
• Communicate (1983)
• Edges (1984)
• Blue Room (1985)
• Ocean (1986)
• Human Ocean (1986 - single split with The Human League)
• Heldenplatz (1987)
• Austria (1988)
• Schmerz (1992, EP)
• Split (1993 single split with Andromeda Complex)
• Eklipse Zwei (1994, EP)
• Obsession (1995 EP split with Dive)
• Your Face In The Sun (1996)
• Drifitng (1998)
• The Burning Sea (1999)
• Les Pritempts Des Larmes (2000)

Controversy

On 26 April 1999, Kirlian Camera was drawn into the then-current sensationalism over Goth culture when they were off-handedly mentioned by social scientist Alfred Schobert in der Spiegel, in an interview printed as a sidebar to a 4-page newspaper feature on the Columbine High School shootings. Schobert contended that the group (along with Death in June and Boyd Rice) was an example of a "neo-fascist element" in contemporary goth and EBM music, and accused them of performing a Hitler salute onstage. While the group issued a communique in their next CD rejecting any affinity with neo-nazi or racist groups[1], they were not allowed to respond in der Spiegel, and as a result show cancellations and protests by Anti-Fascist Action continued to dog them through 2002.

References

• http://www.kirliancamera.com/ - official web site
• The "der Spiegel" sidebar, reprinted at Boyd Rice's website

External links

Kirlian Camera discography at MusicBrainz