Absolute Beginner:

Their first appearance was in Kulturladen Eppendorf where they recruited DJ Mad on the spot. This was followed by their first appearance outside of Hamburg & they came upon the name Absolute Beginner (no "S") & started rapping only in German & only about critical themes.

Ale Sexfiend from Buback Tonträger noticed the band after hearing a very scratchy demo & decided to include their anti-police song, "K.E.I.N.E." on his rap-sampler, "Kill the Nation with a Groove". For the recording Ale took them to the Knochenhaus (Tonstudio) where they met producer Matthias Arfmann who would produce all future Beginner recordings.

In May, 1993, their first EP, "Götting" appeared & in July their anti-commerce song, "Diese Schlacht" appeared on the "Cook Monster" sampler by Yo Mama. In the fall of this same year they toured with Cora E., Marius No.1, STF & Weep Not Child under the tour name, "Kill the Nation with a Groove".

In 1994, sick of the increasing bourgeois rules in the hip-hop scene, they recorded the old school/new school song "Das Alte Lied" with Main Concept & MC Rene & in June their second Maxi, "Ill Styles" appeared in their new style. Musically & lyrically they tried to indicate that they were doing something different & above all else they followed NO RULES! They then began the "Klasse von '94" tour with Main Concept & MC Rene through Germany, Austria & Switzerland. During this tour they met the drummer, Torsten, who soon became a permanent part of their live sets.

Their first album, "Flashnizm (Stylopath)" came out in 1996. It was a potpourri of musical styles such as dub, bossa nova, funk, rap, cuts & beats & included many diverse guest musicians such as Lothar Meid, Caligari, David P. & more. The reviews were numerous & enthusiastic but sales were disappointing. Undaunted, with many friends & colleagues, they put out the video, "Natural Born Chillaz". They also decided to take the album on the stage & went on an extended tour.

After this tour they decided it was time to get back to their roots, AKA: 2 turntables & 3 microphones. They withdrew for a bit to work on a rap album where every track could be a single. They were pleased when Ale from Buback took on the contract as they'd have more freedom than with Universal but at this same time, to everyone's dismay, Mardin decided to quit.

But work continued... "Rock On" & "Liebes Lied" came out & the album "Bambule" went to 28 on the charts. This was followed by almost a year on tour with Dynamite Deluxe, Main Concept, Beastie Boys & numerous festivals.

In 1999, Eißfeldt, under the alias, Jan Delay, contributed a cover version of Nena's "Irgendwie, Irgendwo, Irgendwann" for Herbert Grönemeyer's historic sampler, "Pop2000" which was followed by a Bambule remix album, "Boombule" which included music by many of their colleagues who'd aided in previous works.

In 2001, on Eißfeldt's tape-label, Eimsbush, Eißfeldt released his reggae solo album under the name Jan Delay, called "Searching for the Jan Soul Rebels" as Denyo released a hip-hop solo under the name Denyo77 called "Minidisco". Both were followed by a collective tour with fellow Eimsbush atrists, Illo77 & D-Flame. A new Beginner album is in the works. -Mikki 6/02

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