The songs of Planlos are classics of GDR punk rock. Their lyrics were politically explicit and steeped in an oppressive poetry. Hardly any other band embodied the charisma of the East Berlin punks to such a degree. The band only ever played illegal shows. In 1983, Planlos had a highly secret gig with the Toten Hosen. The end of Planlos resulted mainly from the constant surveillance and call-ups to the National People’s Army, a recurrent item of the Stasi’s defensive magic when the smashing of punk bands was on its agenda.
In 2022, Planlos returned to the stage with singer Pankow and guitar player Micha Kobs. Maik Reichenbach, bass player of legendary Leipzig punk band L’Attentat, was part of the new line-up. After 40 years, Planlos has now finally been honoured with their first record. The original recordings have been released together with re-recorded versions.
The tapetopia series, using the original layouts and track lists, publishes cassette editions from the GDR underground of the 1980s, especially from the “walled-in” scene in East Berlin. More than three decades after their initial “release”, most of these tapes have yet to be heard on either vinyl or CD, even though they made an audible mark in the canon of GDR subculture. Despite the tiny original editions of the time, many of the bands were considered cult in countercultural circles, which made them highly suspect in informed circles.
(Henryk Gericke)