Weltklang (musical duo)

Weltklang is a German electronic music project founded by Austrian musician Thomas Voburka in West Berlin in 1980, using a fictional East German band biography. After a hiatus, Voburka reformed the project as a duo with René Steuns in 2004.

Beginnings in West Berlin (1980)
In 1979, Thomas Voburka (born 1956 in Vienna) founded the West Berlin-based electronic music label Exil-System which also released material of P1/E, a band he played in together with Alexander Hacke. In 1983, Voburka had a minor appearance in the movie A Woman in Flames.

Fictional East German band biography
According to Voburka, Weltklang was formed in the East German town of Schwerin in 1980, when Voburka released the Minimal wave track VEB Heimat on his label Exil-System. Weltklang was an East German musical instrument brand manufactured in Markneukirchen. The first half of the song title VEB Heimat refers to Volkseigener Betrieb, a state owned workplace or establishment in the German Democratic Republic, the second word Heimat is part of the repetitive vocal line "Heimat bist du großer Söhne" ("Thou art home to great sons"), a quote from the National anthem of Austria.

Voburka wrote a letter to West German music magazine Sounds pretending that his label had recorded two technology students from Schwerin, which the magazine did not fact check. A positive review in Spex magazine was written by a critic who knew that the story was fabricated. It said that the track recorded by East German underground musicians had been smuggled from East Berlin.

According to Voburka, the idea of a fictional East-German punk band was born after a day trip to East Berlin.

In 2018 "VEB Heimat" was chosen by JD Twitch for his German post-punk compilation "Kreaturen der Nacht" ("Creatures of the Night"), released on Strut Records and distributed by !K7 Music. In a taz newspaper review, Weltklang were described as the only East German band ("einzige Ostband") represented on the compilation.

Duo (2004–present)
On the occasion of Weltklang's 25th anniversary, in 2004 Voburka decided to reform the project, together with London-based programmer, producer and engineer René Steuns from Cologne. They decided to maintain the fictional band biography Voburka had created and performed as a band from the former GDR at Remember Of The Past festival in Waregem, Belgium. Most of their promotional activities were done through Myspace.

They have produced various remixes for artists such as Aeronautica, Alter Ego, Asmodeus X, Fall Of Saigon, Kinder Aus Asbest, Mono 45UPM, P1/e, Plastic Japanese Toys, Soldout and Sonnenbrandt as well as the "Liebesgrüsse aus Ost-Berlin" compilation album.

In 2009 the remixes were bundled on the 2x12" "Weltklang - Remixes", released on Exil System. In 2019 the album "Klášter" and the 12" "Vorwaerts" were released on Exil-System. Due to the 40th anniversary in 2020, the single sided 4" "Freundschaft" was released on vinylograph. In 2021 the 12" "Rueckwaerts" and the 2x12" "Vorwaerts/Rueckwaerts" were released on Exil-System.

The 6 Tracks of the 2022 Weltklang album "Weltraum", released on Exil-System, were mainly recorded by Voburka between 1972-1976 and edited by him in 2021. Instruments used on this record are the Arp Odyssey, Moog Sonic Six and the Roland Space Echo.

VEB Heimat (1980)
Weltklang's first release, the 7” single “VEB Heimat/Hoffnung / Sehnsucht ??” was brought out in 1980. Inspired by the fast rise of Neue Deutsche Welle and by the Punk subculture's DIY attitude Voburka's main principle was to remove all dispensable ornamentation and polish from his music, and to use the simplest and most minimalist structures. On "VEB Heimat" for instance he made sole use of a simple Roland SH09 Synthesizer line, a stripped down monophonic analogue synthesizer from Roland Corporation's classic SH-series. The song was based upon a minimalist, filtered bass sequence. In addition to this sparse backing, the track featured a furious and repetitive vocal line by Voburka.

Not very successful at first, the unique and futuristic sounding “VEB Heimat” managed to equal an international cult status over the following years, particularly within the Minimal wave and Minimal Electro music scene.

Weltklang has since then often been referred to by artists such as DJ Hell or Optimo (Espacio). In 2003,"VEB Heimat" made it into the top 3 of DJs Hell's charts of the year. Ever since its original release in 1980 “Veb Heimat” has been re-released on numerous occasions, primarily for compilation albums. Apart from its integration in compilation albums such as 80's Minimal Electronics (Volume 1), Return Of Flexi-Pop 3 (Tribute To Flexi-Pop 13) and Call Of The Banshee (1994), in 2003 "VEB Heimat" was also used as opening track for DJ Hell's successful "New Deutsch" compilation which was released on International DeeJay Gigolo Records.

Discography
Selected Releases:

Tracks Appear On:

Unofficial Releases: