Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub

Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub is a German avant-garde pop or independent band, which is strongly marked by the songwriter, singer and guitarist Phillip Boa.

Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub
Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub in Leipzig in 2007
Background information
OriginGermany
GenresIndependent, Pop, Rock, Avantgarde
Years active1985-present
LabelsConstrictor, Universal
Websitewww.phillipboa.com
Members
  • Phillip Boa - vocals, guitar
  • Moses Pellberg – drums
  • Toett – keyboards, percussion, programming & samples
  • Oliver Klemm – guitar
  • Thilo Erhardt – bass
Past members
  • Ted Chau – guitar
  • Chris Van Helsing – guitar
  • Taif Ball – bass
  • Voodoo – voodoo drums, drums
  • Der Rabe (Guido Eickelmann † 2015) – drums
  • Pia Lund – vocals
  • David Rebel – guitar
  • Maik T. – bass
  • Pris – vocals

History

Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub was formed by Phillip Boa in 1985. The group's original line-up consisted of Pia Lund, Voodoo and Der Rabe.[1] In the same year the band released their debut album, Philister.[2] Philister was released on the Label JA! Music and landed in the German Indie-Charts. As from 1986, Philister was sold over all of Europe through the label Red Flame.[2] The second album, Aristocracie, was released by Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub on the label Constrictor, Phillip Boa's own label. It was produced by Eroc, a student of the producer Conny Plank. This album reached tenth place in the Independent Music magazine Spex's charts for the year 1986.[3] The band has been touring Europe since 1987. Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub signed a contract with the label Polydor Records, where the next three albums, Copperfield and Hair, were released. With the single Container Love, they attained in 1989 commercial success and international recognition.[4] In 1991 the album Helios was released on Polydor.

After Boaphenia (released in 1993 on the label Motor Music), Phillip Boa committed himself to his Metal project Voodoocult. Further albums (God, 1994, She, 1996, Lord Garbage, 1998) were released in the following period on Motor Music. Alison Galea from the Maltese band Beangrowers took the place of Pia Lund after she left the band between 1997 and 2003. The Beangrowers were backed by Phillip Boa and performed in 2000 as the support band for concerts from Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub. Annually, since 2001, the band plays two or three Christmas concerts in the Leipziger Moritzbastei.

Between the years 2000 and 2003 Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub released a total of three albums on the Label Sony/BMG-RCA (My Private War, 2000, The Red, 2001, C 90, 2003). In the year 2005 the album Decadence & Isolation was released on the label Motor Music, which was influenced from 1980s music from bands like The Cure and Joy Division.[5] In the autumn of 2006 Boa with his Voodooclub went on their Remastered-Tour. On this tour they strictly only played songs from the three re-released remastered longplayers Copperfield, Hair und Hispanola. In 2007, the album Faking to Blend In was released on Motor Music. In February, 2009, the album Diamonds Fall was released on Rough Trade Records. For this album the drummer from Can, the late Jaki Liebezeit, was engaged and played the complete drums and percussion as a Voodooclub member. In the summer of 2010 the live album Exile on Strait Street was released on their own label Constrictor. The albums Helios and Boaphenia were remastered and released in the spring of 2011 on Vertigo Records/Universal.

In August 2012 the studio album Loyalty was released on Cargo Records. The album was recorded on Malta and in London. Produced by David Vella, Boa and Brian Viglione. Mixed by Ian Grimble in London and mastered by Frank Arkwright in Abbey Road Studios. In the same year John Robb (a renowned English music critic) wrote, in Louder Than War Magazine: "One of the best German bands of the last three decades, Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub have been on a creative surge recently. Their recent album of melancholic post indie is a great piece of work."[6]

In 2013 the fan album Reduced! was released, which was recorded in the winter of 2012 in the Moritzbastei. It should radiate "the dirt and the intensity from a intimate club concert". Only the instrumentation was worked out in studio, the mistakes were uncorrected. At the same time, Pia Lund set a "landmark" in the band's history and left at the end of 2013 of her own free will.[7] From 2014 the band work with different female guest singers.[8]

On 22 August 2014 the studio album Bleach House was released on Cargo Records,[9] which reached place 7 in the album charts, the best position in the charts in the history of the band. The album was produced by David Vella on Malta and was mixed in London, at the Konk Studios London by Dougal Lott. It was mastered by Fred Kevorkian in the Avatar Studios in New York.

Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub is one of a few German bands that also international recognized by critics and fans.[10] To this day, they are the German band with the most "Album and Single of the week" credits in the British music press (8 x "Single of the week" and 5 x "Album of the week" in NME, Melody Maker and Sounds). Phillip Boa was in the top 20 of the survey "Made in Germany – The Most Influential German musicians".[11] Furthermore, he stands as one of the sharpest observers of our society and a distinguished songwriter in Germany, with "a cynical-poetic view, full of mysterious metaphors and sharp wisdom" (NME).

The Voodooclub have shared a staged with other bands and artist such as David Bowie, Bob Dylan, John Lydon's Public Image Ltd., Nick Cave, Sonic Youth, Björk, The Fall, Residents, Gun Club, Iggy Pop und Manic Street Preachers. The Voodooclub has been produced by Tony Visconti (David Bowie), John Leckie (Morrissey, New Order), Gareth Jones (Interpol, Depeche Mode), Gordon Raphael (Strokes), Ian Grimble (Manic Street Preachers, Bauhaus, Mumford and Sons), etc. They have also worked together with Aphex Twin, LFO, Schneider TM, The Notwist, Jaki Liebezeit (CAN) as well as Brian Viglione (Dresden Dolls, Nine Inch Nails).

After many intensive years and more than 2 million sold albums, on 16 September 2016 the single collection Blank Expression – A History Of Singles 1986-2016 was released on Capitol Records/Universal Music and reached place 8 in the German album charts. The collection included, with the most important singles, also 12 new songs with album title Fresco – A Collection Of 12 New Songs.[12][13]

Musical style

Boas music is influenced by British post-punk, indie/alternative rock and avant-garde. Continuous characteristics are catchy melodic choruses, which are according to the mood change, pierced and distorted. Thereby, clash high, melodic singing and melancholic vocals which communicate and harmonize with each other.

Discography

Studio albums by Phillip Boa & The Voodooclub
  • 1985: Philister (Ja! Musik) – German Independent charts #1
  • 1986: Aristocracie (Constrictor) – German Independent charts #1
  • 1988: Copperfield (Polydor) – German charts #53
  • 1989: Hair (Polydor) – German charts #23
  • 1990: Hispañola (Polydor) – German charts #14
  • 1991: Helios (Polydor) – German charts #20
  • 1993: Boaphenia (Polydor) – German charts #15
  • 1994: God (Motor Music) – German charts #23
  • 1996: She (Motor Music) – German charts #32
  • 1998: Lord Garbage (Motor Music) – German charts #22
  • 2000: My Private War (RCA/BMG) – German charts #23
  • 2001: The Red (RCA/BMG) – German charts #59
  • 2003: C 90 (RCA/BMG) – German charts #46
  • 2005: Decadence & Isolation (Motor Music) – German charts #40
  • 2007: Faking To Blend In (Motor Music) – German charts #59
  • 2009: Diamonds Fall (Rough Trade) – German charts #45
  • 2012: Loyalty (Cargo Records) – German charts #13
  • 2014: Bleach House (Cargo Records) – German charts #7
  • 2016: Fresco (Capitol Records) – German charts #8
  • 2018: Earthly Powers (Capitol Records) – German charts #3

Compilations, Live and Re-Releases
  • 1986: Philistrines (Red Flame, UK)
  • 1989: 30 Years of Blank Expression (DiDi, Greece)
  • 1991: Live! Exile On Valletta Street (Polydor)
  • 1994: Hidden Pearls (Fanclub Release)
  • 1996: Hidden Pearls & Spoken Words (Fanclub Release)
  • 1997: Fine Art On Silver – Best Of (Motor Music) – German charts #28
  • 1998: Master Series Best Of (Re-Release "Fine Art On Silver") (Motor Music)
  • 2001: Singles Collection 1985–2001 Best Of (RCA/BMG)
  • 2005: BOA Best Singles Best Of (Remastered) (Polydor/Universal)
  • 2006: Copperfield (Remastered) (Polydor/Universal)
  • 2006: Hair (Remastered) (Polydor/Universal)
  • 2006: Hispañola (Remastered) (Polydor/Universal)
  • 2010: The Malta Tapes, Vol. 1 (Constrictor)
  • 2010: Live! Exile on Strait Street (Constrictor)
  • 2011: Helios (Remastered) (Vertigo/Universal)
  • 2011: Boaphenia (Remastered) (Vertigo/Universal)
  • 2013: Reduced! (A more or less acoustic performance) (Constrictor)
  • 2015: Aristocracie (Remastered) (Constrictor)
  • 2016: Blank Expression: A History Of Singles 1986-2016 (Capitol/Universal) – German charts #8
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References
  1. Discogs: Guido Eickelman alias Der Rabe on Discogs.
  2. phillipboa.de: Website von Phillip Boa and The Voodooclub, sleeve notes of the album Philister.
  3. Bestenlisten aus deutschen Rock- und Popmusik-Zeitschriften, Website.
  4. Popsplits: Interview mit Phillip Boa und Pia Lund, Popsplits – "Container Love", 2007, on: YouTube.
  5. Stephan Glietsch: PHILLIP BOA & THE VOODOOCLUB. Decadence & Isolation. In: Spex, 7 February 2006 Archived 30 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Interview with Phillip Boa, CrazyClipTV 98 Phillip Boa Interview, on: YouTube.
  6. John Robb en: „One of the best German bands of the last three decades, Phillip Boa and the Voodoo Club have been on a creative surge recently“, louderthanwar.com, 7 December 2012. Retrieved 2013-02-08.
  7. phillipboa.de: Reduced! A more or less acoustic performance June 2013.
  8. phillipboa.de: Presse space. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
  9. phillipboa.de. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  10. Germany, programm.ARD.de - ARD Play-Out-Center Potsdam, Potsdam. "Rockpalast: Phillip Boa and the Voodooclub". programm.ARD.de. Retrieved 2017-09-29.
  11. "Made in Germany - Die einflussreichsten deutschen Musiker", laut.de, 26 March 2011. Retrieved 2015-05-21.
  12. , radioeins.de. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
  13. , offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 2016-09-20.
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