| Genre | No Wave (German: Neue Schwarzmusik) |
| Origin | |
| Influenced | |
| Influences | |
| Preceded by | |
| Years active | Late 1970s - Present |
| Characteristics | Avant-garde • Arty • Genre-defying • Experimentation with improvisation • Dissonance • Unconventional instrumentation |
| Notable artists |
200px|thumb|right| Der Plan, a key No Wave band
German no wave music scene, also known as Neue Schwarzmusik, was a style of rock music and radical art movement that emerged in Germany in the 1970s. It is considered a form of post-punk, experimental rock, and industrial music.
No Wave music emerged in the late 1970s in Germany as a reaction against the commercialization of punk rock, which musicians felt had become too formulaic and predictable. It embraced the art rock and prog rock influences of the German Krautrock and post-industrial scenes as a means of exploring more abstract, arty, and genre-defying forms of rock music.
Die Neue Schwarzmusik, a two-day festival held in Berlin in 1977, is considered the primary catalyst for the No Wave movement. At the festival, various German and European bands who would become central figures in No Wave and post-punk, such as Tangerine Dream, Neu!, Can, and Kraftwerk, played alongside New York and London-based acts like Suicide, Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, and Wire.
The style of No Wave was characterized by avant-garde musical explorations, including improvisation, dissonance, electronic, and unconventional instrumentation. The term Neue Schwarzmusik, or "New Black Music," came to define the genre, emphasizing its place as a new form of rock music that emerged from the shadows of punk rock and industrial music.
No Wave musicians experimented with various styles, often incorporating jazz influences and electronic music elements. Some bands, like Der Plan, Einstürzende Neubauten, and Dada Ästhetik, would gain critical and cult success, while others saw minimal commercial appeal.
The genre was often associated with visual, performance art, and multimedia art performance. The movement had a significant influence on other art movements such as New German Wave cinema, Neue Deutsche Welle, and Neue Slowenische Kunst.
Though short-lived at its height, the No Wave movement has had a lasting impact on post-punk, industrial, and experimental music worldwide. It helped inspire the noise rock, industrial hip hop, and world music scenes and was a significant influence on popular techno and industrial metal bands.
