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All Music Guide:
Stephan Eicher (born August 17, 1960) is a European sensation. This Swiss native had a monumental career throughout the '80s and '90s, exploring his vocal strengths with electronic music. But as a teenager in Western Europe, he was fond of the punk rock spirit popular in the late '70s. At age 17, he and younger brother Martin founded a punk-techno act called Grauzone. The single "Eisbar" went on to sell nearly 500,000 copies across Germany and Switzerland. During this time, he also befriended the girl group Liliput and had a chance meeting with future manager Martin Hess. Eicher's solo career was born.
His first album, Chansons Bleues, was issued in late 1983 and was obviously influenced by New Order. A year later, he put his musical palate to the test by singing in German, French, and English on his second album, I Tell This Night. Countless shows around Europe pushed Eicher into the limelight. He changed up his signature electronic sound for a third album, 1986's Silence. With this particular record, Eicher played with other musicians for a more abrasive sound. My Place took things further. Eicher's fascination and respect for novelist Philippe Djian was now a part of his work and would continue to be a part of his musical direction for the rest of his career.
By the '90s, Eicher had four albums behind him and was an international success. Engelberg, named for a Swiss ski resort, appeared in 1991, and singles "Hemmige" and "Dejeuner en Paix" pushed the album to sell nearly two million copies worldwide. 1993 saw the release of another album, Carcassonne. Named in honor of a city in southern France, Carcassonne again included songs referring to the works of Djian. In 1994, he played over 100 shows across Europe and Africa, and recorded his first live album, Non Ci Badar, Guarda E Passa, later that year. Two years following, 1000 Vies was released. Louanges was issued in 1999.
Wikipedia:
Stephan Eicher (Born 17 August 1960 in Münchenbuchsee, Canton of Bern) is a Swiss singer.
His songs are sung in a variety of languages, including French, German, English, Italian, Swiss-German, and Romanche and sometimes he even uses different languages in the same piece.
His success started in German-speaking countries in the 1980s when as part of the band Grauzone he had a hit single "Eisbär". With hit songs such as "Combien de Temps" and "Oh Ironie", his popularity spread Europe-wide with various albums, tours, and chart success in France and Switzerland.
Life [edit]
Stephan Eicher was born in the rural municipality of Münchenbuchsee not far from Bern.
He was musically trained at the academy of art in Zurich, where he and others also learned how to use the computer for composing music.
He released his first single "Eisbär" together with his brother Martin on the album Grauzone in 1980. He became interested in French songs by Jacques Dutronc, Georges Brassens, and Serge Gainsbourg, and these influences resulted in him creating the album Les Chansons Bleues. This album is also inspired by the American singers he listened to during his youth, such as Patti Smith, Johnny Cash, and Bob Dylan.
His two following albums began to establish his reputation. The album I Tell This Night and the single "Two People in a Room" were released in 1985. It peaked on the Swiss Charts at number ten and stayed twelve weeks. Two years later, the album Silence reached number three and was in the Swiss Top 10 for fourteen weeks. Both albums were created by Stephan Eicher almost single-handedly.
With 1989's "My Place", Stephan Eicher went in a different direction. The French lyrics were written by his friend, author Philippe Djian. His largest commercial success came in 1991 with the album Engelberg, which spent five weeks at number one in Switzerland and 46 weeks on the charts in total. The song "Dejeuner En Paix" was also number two in France. It is the beginning of a collaboration with Manu Katché and Pino Palladino which will last until the release of 1000 vies in 1996. With all his following albums, Stephan Eicher regularly reached the top five on the Swiss album charts.
Following a world tour, which included concerts in Africa, he produced his first live album in 1994 (Non ci badar, guarda e passa).
Since 1989, his song lyrics have been written by Djian.
In 2001, Eicher released his first greatest hits compilation album entitled Hotel*s. For many years, the hotel Hess on the Swiss Engelberg was his second home. Martin Hess, the hotelier couple's son, became his close friend and producer. At the hotel, the albums Engelberg and Louanges developed. Eicher selected the title Hotel*s as homage to this grand hotel, which was torn down in the same year. For the title selection for the album, he let the fans co-ordinate with the official homepage.
Cover versions of his songs [edit]
Singer Sian Charia recorded a cover version of Eicher's "Pas d'ami" (translated into Khmer) in Phnom Penh in 1995.
German progressive metal band Vanden Plas covered "Des Hauts, des Bas" on their AcCult EP in 1996.
His song "Combien de Temps" has been remixed by Flood.
Experimental electronic music group Cabaret Voltaire recorded a cover version of Eicher's "No Escape."
The metalband Stahlhammer released a cover version of "Eisbär" on their album Eisenherz.
On the newer edition of the album Wahrheit oder Pflicht by Oomph! a cover version of "Eisbär" is included as a bonus track.
