Laibach () is a

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

n and Yugoslav

avant-garde music Avant-garde music is music that is considered to be at the forefront of innovation in its field, with the term "avant-garde" implying a critique of existing aesthetic conventions, rejection of the status quo in favor of unique or original elem ...

group associated with the industrial,

martial Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial ; March, between 38 and 41 AD – between 102 and 104 AD) was a Roman and Celtiberian poet born in Bilbilis, Hispania (modern Spain) best known for his twelve books of '' Epigrams'', pu ...

, and neoclassical genres. Formed in 1980 in the

mining town A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Historical mining communities Australia * Ballarat, Victoria * Bendig ...

Trbovlje Trbovlje (; ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 4: ''Štajersko''. 1904. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 58.) is Slovenia's eleventh-largest town, located in the traditional province of Styria ...

, Slovenia, at the time a constituent republic within

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

, Laibach represents the musical wing of the

Neue Slowenische Kunst Neue Slowenische Kunst (; NSK; ) is a political art collective that formed in Slovenia in 1984, when the Socialist Republic of Slovenia was part of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. NSK's name was chosen to reflect the theme in its works ...

(NSK)

artist collective An artist collective or art group or artist group is an initiative that is the result of a group of artists working together, usually under their own management, towards shared aims. The aims of an artist collective can include almost anything t ...

, a group which Laibach co-founded in 1984. From the early days, the band was subject to controversies and bans due to their use of iconography with parodies and

pastiche A pastiche () is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking ...

s of elements from

totalitarianism Totalitarianism is a political system and a form of government that prohibits opposition from political parties, disregards and outlaws the political claims of individual and group opposition to the state, and completely controls the public s ...

nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

and

militarism Militarism is the belief or the desire of a government or a people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and to use it aggressively to expand national interests and/or values. It may also imply the glorification of the mili ...

, a concept they have preserved throughout their career. Censored in Yugoslavia, receiving a

dissident A dissident is a person who actively challenges an established political or religious system, doctrine, belief, policy, or institution. In a religious context, the word has been used since the 18th century, and in the political sense since the 2 ...

status and a

cult following A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The latter is often called a cult classic. A film, boo ...

in their home country, the band embarked on international tours and gradually acquired international fame, which led to wider acceptance by Yugoslav public and to attention of the country's mainstream media. After Slovenia became independent in 1991, Laibach's status in the country has turned from rejection by a part of the public to promotion into a national cultural icon. Early Laibach albums were industrial-oriented, marked by heavy rhythms and roaring vocals. Later in the mid-1980s, their sound became more richly layered, featuring samples from

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

and

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

. The band's lyrics, variously written in Slovene, German and English, are usually delivered by the deep

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

vocals of lead vocalist Milan Fras. Initially the lyrics handled war and military themes; later, the focus turned to any highly charged political issue of the moment, sending intentionally ambiguous messages. They recorded a number of cover versions of popular songs, often turning light melodies into sinister-sounding

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...

tunes. The band has seen numerous line-up changes, with Milan Fras (lead vocals),

Dejan Knez Dejan Knez (born 18 May 1961 in Trbovlje) is a Slovenian artist, musician, painter and founder and former member of the group Laibach. He is the son of the Slovenian painter Janez Knez. In 1978, he formed the band Salte Morale, which would lat ...

(bass guitar, keyboads, drums), Ervin Markošek (drums, keyboards, electronics) and Ivan "Jani" Novak (stage effects) forming the best-known line-up. They have worked with a number of collaborators and guest musicians. During their career, Laibach have also recorded film and theatre music and produced works of visual arts, while the band members have embarked on a number of side projects.

History

The beginnings: Laibach with Tomaž Hostnik (1980–1982)

Laibach evolved from the band Salto Mortale, formed by

in 1978 in a

mining industry Mining is the extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or feasibly created artificially in a la ...

town of

. Laibach was officially formed on 1 June 1980. The members chose 1 June as the official date of the band's formation as it was Trbovlje's official holiday, marking the 1924 violent clashes between Trbovlje workers and the

Organization of Yugoslav Nationalists The Organisation of Yugoslav Nationalists (, ), acronymised as ORJUNA or Orjuna, was a proto-fascist, anti-communist, terrorist, and Yugoslavist nationalist organisation established in 1921 in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Initiall ...

. The name ''Laibach'', adopted after a suggestion from Knez's father, well-known painter Janez Knez, is the

German language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western Europe, Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and Official language, official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switze ...

name of the Slovenian capital

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, a name used during the period when Slovenia was a part of the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

, as well as during the World War II occupation of Yugoslavia. Initially, the members of the band did not reveal their names, but during its initial phases, the band consisted of Dejan Knez (bass guitar, keyboards, drums,

megaphone A megaphone, speaking trumpet, bullhorn, blowhorn, or loudhailer is usually a portable or hand-held, cone-shaped horn (acoustic), acoustic horn used to amplifier, amplify a person's voice or other sounds and direct it in a given direction. ...

), Tomaž Hostnik (vocals), Ivan "Jani" Novak (stage effects, credited as " engineer of the human soul"), Andrej Lupinc (bass guitar), Srećko Bajda (synthesizer), Marko Košnik (synthesizer) and Marjan Benčina (synthesizer). In later interviews, the members stated that the band formation was sparked off by the suicide of

Joy Division Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...

vocalist

Ian Curtis Ian Kevin Curtis (15 July 1956 – 18 May 1980) was an English singer, songwriter and musician. He was the lead singer, lyricist and occasional guitarist of the band Joy Division, with whom he released the albums ''Unknown Pleasures'' (197 ...

, the death of Yugoslav president

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...

and the beginning of the dissolution of Yugoslavia. Since its formation, Laibach had been preparing a

multimedia Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms, such as Text (literary theory), writing, Sound, audio, images, animations, or video, into a single presentation. T ...

project ''Rdeči revirji'' (''Red District''), a piece intended to challenge and provoke the political authorities in Trbovlje. The project was scheduled to be presented in the Workers' Hall in Trbovlje. However, the group's use of

Kazimir Malevich Kazimir Severinovich Malevich (

's black crosses on their posters was determined by the authorities to be "improper and irresponsible", leading to considerable negative reaction in the media and the cancellation of the performance of ''Red District''.

The band's first live appearance and an exhibition entitled ''Žrtve letalske nesreče'' (''Victims of an Air Accident'') took place in January 1982 at the

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

club FV. It was followed by performances in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, in Lapidarij club, and in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

, in Students' Cultural Center's

foyer A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer, entryway, reception area or entrance hall, it is often a large room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera house, concert hall, showroom, cine ...

. For their live performances they used gramophones, radio devices and electronic instruments that they had built themselves, and the group's musical style was characterized by the Yugoslav music press as

industrial rock Industrial rock is a fusion genre that fuses industrial music and rock music. It initially originated in the 1970s, and drew influence from early experimental and industrial acts such as Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten and Chrom ...

. Instead of

dry ice Dry ice is the solid form of carbon dioxide. It is commonly used for temporary refrigeration as CO2 does not have a liquid state at normal atmospheric pressure and Sublimation (phase transition), sublimes directly from the solid state to the gas ...

as a source of

theatrical smoke Theatrical smoke and fog, also known as special effect smoke, fog or haze, is a category of atmospheric effects used in the entertainment industry. The use of fogs can be found throughout motion picture and television productions, live theatre, con ...

, the group used original military

smoke bomb A smoke bomb is a firework designed to produce a large amount of smoke upon ignition. History Early Japanese history saw the use of a rudimentary form of the smoke bomb. Explosives were common in Japan during the Mongol invasions of the 13th ...

s, which was as unpleasant for themselves as for the audience. At a concert in Belgrade, the smoke forced part of the audience to escape through the venue's windows. In Zagreb, the use of smoke bombs on stage caused a search of the band's equipment conducted by the

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (JNA/; Macedonian language, Macedonian, Montenegrin language, Montenegrin and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian language, Croatian and ; , J ...

. The band stated that they used smoke bombs because they were "dealing with military subjects", which satisfied the officers in charge of the search. At this early stage of their career, Laibach's visuals employed mining iconography; eventually, the group would add such symbols as

Triglav Triglav (; ; ), with an elevation of , is the highest mountain in Slovenia and the highest peak of the Julian Alps. The mountain is the pre-eminent symbol of the Slovene nation, appearing on the Coat of arms of Slovenia, coat of arms and Flag ...

, deer horns and the Malevich's black cross encircled with a

gear A gear or gearwheel is a rotating machine part typically used to transmit rotational motion and/or torque by means of a series of teeth that engage with compatible teeth of another gear or other part. The teeth can be integral saliences or ...

to their imagery. At the time of their concerts in Ljubljana, Belgrade and Zagreb, the name Laibach and the posters with black crosses caused controversy, with some seeing this as a direct reference to the occupation of the country in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The newspaper ''

Delo ''Delo'' () is a business oriented online media in Ukraine, belonging to ekonomika+ media holding. ''Delo'' was the first daily in Ukraine, publishing its real print circulation (13.000 - 15.000) and trying to introduce Western editorial and b ...

'' published a reader's letter which stated: "Is it possible that someone has allowed in Ljubljana, the first Yugoslav city to be awarded the Order of the People's Hero, some youth group to carry a name which forcibly tries to revoke the name Laibach?". The band used this question as the opening for their performance on the Novi rock (''New Rock'') festival in Ljubljana, held on 10 September 1982. For their performance at the festival, frontman Tomaž Hostnik wore a military uniform, and despite being hit in the face by a bottle, causing him serious injuries, managed to bring the performance to an end. A part of the Yugoslav music press described the concert as the "symbolic end of

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

". On 11 December 1982, at the YU Rock Moment festival in Zagreb, the band held the performance entitled ''Dotik zla'' (''Touch of Evil''). It was Hostnik's last performance with Laibach. Ten days later, he committed a

ritual suicide A suicide method is any means by which a person may choose to end their life. Suicide attempts do not always result in death, and a non-fatal suicide attempt can leave the person with serious physical injuries, long-term health problems, or ...

by hanging himself from a

hayrack A hayrack () is a freestanding vertical drying rack found chiefly in Slovenia. Hayracks are permanent structures, primarily made of wood, upon which fodder for animals is dried, although their use is not limited to drying hay. Other foodstuffs s ...

—one of the Slovenian national symbols—near his hometown of

Medvode Medvode (; ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 110.) is a town in Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Medvode. The Sava and ...

. Laibach disapproved of his act of suicide and posthumously "expelled" Hostnik from the group. Despite this, the group would in the future often refer to him and dedicate various projects to him, including an installation entitled ''Apologia Laibach'', created around Hostnik's self-portrait.

Dissident status in Yugoslavia (1983–1985)

The group resumed its activities at the beginning of 1983, when they held an exhibition in the Prošireni mediji (''Expanded Media'') gallery in Zagreb. After a number of complaints, the management of the gallery attempted to persuade members of Laibach to remove part of the pieces, which they refused, and only four days after the opening, the management decided to close the exhibition. The band continued their concert activities with the vocalist Milan Fras. The group held a concert in Ljubljana's Freedom Hall, featuring guest performances by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

bands Last Few Days and 23 Skidoo. The 30-minutes long recording of dogs barking and snarling were used as the concert intro. The day after the performance, the group received considerable media coverage for a concert at the Zagreb Biennale entitled ''Mi kujemo bodočnost'' (''We Forge the Future''), during which the group used simultaneous projections of the

propaganda film A propaganda film is a film that involves some form of propaganda. Propaganda films spread and promote certain ideas that are usually religious, political, or cultural in nature. A propaganda film is made with the intent that the viewer will ad ...

''Revolucija še traja'' (''The Revolution is Still Going On'') and a

pornographic film Pornographic films (pornos), erotic films, adult films, blue films, sexually explicit films, or 18+ films, are films that represent Human sexual activity, sexually WIKT:explicit, explicit subject matter in order to sexual arousal, arouse, fasci ...

. After the simultaneous appearance of late

and a penis on the screens, the performance was interrupted by the police, and the members of the band were forcibly removed from the stage. Following the performance at the Zagreb Biennale, the band published their "

manifesto A manifesto is a written declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party, or government. A manifesto can accept a previously published opinion or public consensus, but many prominent ...

", entitled "Akcija v imenu" ("Action in the Name Of"), in the '' Nova revija'' literary magazine, largely thanks to

Taras Kermauner Taras Kermauner (13 April 1930 – 11 June 2008) was a Slovenian literary historian, critic, philosopher, essayist, playwright and translator. Life Taras Kermauner was born in Ljubljana as the son of the Slovene communist politician and intelle ...

, a philosopher, literary historian and one of the magazine editors. In the "manifesto" the band quoted

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

(" Artists are engineers of the human soul") and

Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

("Art is sublime, leading to fanaticism"). The subsequent debut television appearance on 23 June 1983, in the informative-political program ''TV tednik'' (''TV Weekly''), caused major negative reactions by the public. The members of the band appeared in the program sitting motionlessly, wearing army uniforms and

armband An armband is a piece of material worn around the arm. They may be worn for pure ornamentation, or to mark the wearer as belonging to group, or as insignia having a certain rank, status, office or role, or being in a particular state or conditi ...

s with black crosses. The host of ''TV tednik'' Jure Pengov stated: "Maybe now someone will react and ban, exterminate this danger, these horrible ideas and beliefs". After Laibach's appearance in ''TV tednik'', they were officially banned from using the name Laibach on their records and live appearances, the decision even being printed in the Official Gazette of

SR Slovenia The Socialist Republic of Slovenia (, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Slovenija, Социјалистичка Република Словенија), commonly referred to as Socialist Slovenia or simply Slovenia, was one ...

. The scandal even led to some of the group members hiding in

Pleterje Charterhouse Pleterje Charterhouse (; , also ''Pleterjach'', The group then, together with Last Few Days, started the international Occupied Europe Tour '83, which included sixteen dates in eight

West Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

an and

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...

countries. The performances provoked a lot of interest in the European media, especially with the band's totalitarian musical and visual style. The socialist background, effective live appearances and a dissident status in their home country provided the group with a swift increase of interest in the Western countries. By combining the imagery of socialist realism,

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

—which provoked the Slovene WW2 Veteran Organization in Yugoslavia—and

Italian futurism Futurism ( ) was an Art movement, artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such as the ...

, the group created a unique aesthetic style which could not pass unnoticed by the public. In

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, they provoked the public by declaring themselves the sympathizers of

Wojciech Jaruzelski Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski ( ; ; 6 July 1923 – 25 May 2014) was a Polish military general, politician and ''de facto'' leader of the Polish People's Republic from 1981 until 1989. He was the First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party ...

. The statement provoked someone to present them with feces rolled into newspapers during the press conference in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. At the time of the tour, the song lyrics were mostly in German, but having included cover versions of

English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...

songs, the group would start focusing more on the latter. In 1984, the band members moved to

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

, where they worked as labourers in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, worked at a pier in

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

and appeared as extras in

Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American filmmaker and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Stanley Kubrick filmography, his films were nearly all adaptations of novels or sho ...

's ''

Full Metal Jacket ''Full Metal Jacket'' is a 1987 war film directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick from a screenplay he co-wrote with Michael Herr and Gustav Hasford. The film is based on Hasford's 1979 autobiographical novel '' The Short-Timers''. It stars ...

''. Through the Belgian record label L.A.Y.L.A.H. Anitrecords, the group released their debut record, a

12" single The twelve-inch single (often written as 12-inch or 12) is a type of vinyl (polyvinyl chloride or PVC) gramophone record that has wider groove spacing and shorter playing time with a "single" or a few related sound tracks on each surface, compar ...

with

Slovene language Slovene ( or ) or Slovenian ( ; ) is a South Slavic languages, South Slavic language of the Balto-Slavic languages, Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. Most of its 2.5 million speakers are the ...

songs "Boji" ("Fights"), "Sila" ("Force") and "Brat moj" ("My Brother"). At the time, the band also appeared on the various artists album ''World National Anthems'' released by TRAX International, with their version of the Yugoslav

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...

Hej, Sloveni "Hey, Slavs" is a patriotic song dedicated to the Slavs and widely considered to be the Pan-Slavism, Pan-Slavic anthem. It was adapted and adopted as the national anthem of various Slavic-speaking nations, movements and organizations during the l ...

". The band returned to Yugoslavia to prepare an exhibit at Ljubljana's Students' Cultural Center, entitled ''The Occupied Europe Tour Documents'', which opened on 5 May 1984. Simultaneously, the band released the live

audio cassette The Compact Cassette, also commonly called a cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog audio, analog magnetic tape recording format for Sound recording and reproduction, audio recording and playback. Invented by L ...

''Vstajenje v Berlinu'' (''Resurrection in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

''). On 7 October 1984, Laibach officially founded the informal art collective

(German for ''New Slovene Art'') with

visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics (art), ceramics, photography, video, image, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual a ...

group

IRWIN Irwin may refer to: Places ;United States * Irwin, California * Irwin, Idaho * Irwin, Illinois * Irwin, Iowa * Irwin, Nebraska * Irwin, Ohio * Irwin, Pennsylvania * Irwin, South Carolina * Irwin County, Georgia * Irwin Township, Venango Co ...

and Scipion Nasice Sisters and Rdeči Pilot (''Red Pilot'') theatre groups. They were later joined by Novi kolektivizam (''New Collectivism'')

design studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

, Graditelji (''Builders'') architecture bureau, Retrovizija (''Retrovision'') film group and the Odeljenje za čisto in praktično filozofijo (''Section for Clean and Practical Philosophy'') group. The band also started two musical side projects, Germania and

300.000 V.K. Dejan Knez (born 18 May 1961 in Trbovlje) is a Slovenian artist, musician, painter and founder and former member of the group Laibach. He is the son of the Slovenian painter Janez Knez. In 1978, he formed the band Salte Morale, which would lat ...

On 21 December 1984, Laibach held a concert dedicated to the late Hostnik at the Malči Belič Hall in Ljubljana. Due to the fact that they were still banned from using the name Laibach, they announced the concert with posters featuring only a black cross, the initials of the hall, and date and time of the concert. The following year, the group released their debut studio album, ''

Laibach Laibach () is a Slovenian and Yugoslav avant-garde music group associated with the industrial, martial, and neoclassical genres. Formed in 1980 in the mining town of Trbovlje, Slovenia, at the time a constituent republic within Socialist Fede ...

'', through the Ljubljana Students' Cultural Center's label Ropot. Due to the ban of the name Laibach, the cover featured the group's trademark black cross without any text. On one of the album tracks, the band used a sample from a speech by Josip Broz Tito, however, it was removed by the state censors. During the same year, the German label WUS released Laibach compilation album ''

Rekapitulacija 1980–1984 ''Rekapitulacija 1980–1984'' is a retrospective album by the Slovenian industrial group Laibach. It was first released as a double LP boxset in 1985, and re-released on CD in 1987. On the cover is a kozolec, an ancient iconic Slovene hayrack ...

'' (''Recapitulation 1980–1984''). The recording of their performance at the Neu Konservatiw festival in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

on 15 June 1985 was released on the live album '' Neu Konservatiw''. At the end of the year, the band once more held a number of performances in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

, this time under the title ''Die erste bombardierung – Laibach über dem Deutschland'' (''The First Bombing – Laibach Over Germany''). The concerts featured hunting imagery, like axes and trophy antlers, and during the concerts, the band members sawed wood on stage, surrounded by live tranquilized rabbits. On 6 February 1986, with the Scipion Nasice Sisters Theatre, the group premiered their own play ''Krst pod Triglavom'' (''Baptism Under Triglav'') at the Ljubljana's

Cankar Hall The Cankar Centre or Cankar Hall () is the largest Slovenian convention, congress and culture center. The building was designed by the architect Edvard Ravnikar and was built at the southern edge of Republic Square in Ljubljana between 1977 and 1 ...

. The performance was followed by a

round table The Round Table (; ; ; ) is King Arthur's famed table (furniture), table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status, unlike co ...

about the ban of the name Laibach, organized in Ljubljana. The discussion featured academics, representatives of political organizations and authorities, including the president of the Assembly of the City of Ljubljana Tina Tomlje. In a TV interview, Tomlje stated that she was informed of the quality of the band's works and of the success they had achieved abroad, but that they would not be allowed to perform in Ljubljana under the name Laibach. Soon after, the group released their second studio album, ''

Nova Akropola ''Nova akropola'' (''New Acropolis'' in Slovene) is the second studio album by the Slovenian and Yugoslav avant-garde music group Laibach. It was released in 1986. Track listing Original album: # "Vier Personen" ''(Four Persons)'' (Jani Novak) ...

'' (''The New Acropolis''), via British independent record label

Cherry Red Records Cherry Red Records is a British independent record label founded in Malvern, Worcestershire by Iain McNay in 1978. The label has released recordings by Dead Kennedys, Everything but the Girl, The Monochrome Set, and Felt, among others, as w ...

. After the album release, the League of Socialist Youth of Slovenia on their 12th congress demanded the ban on the usage of the name Laibach to be lifted. The ban was officially lifted on 4 April 1985, and the group performed their first legal concert in Slovenia under the name Laibach already on the following day, in Hum, entitled ''Krvava gruda, plodna zemlja'' (''Bloody Land, Fertile Soil''). On the Yugoslav Youth Day, the League of Socialist Youth of Slovenia awarded Neue Slowenische Kunst with a plaque, and the League's official magazine ''

Mladina ''Mladina'' (English: Youth) is a Slovenian weekly political and current affairs magazine. Since the 1920s, when it was first published, it has become a voice of protest against those in power. Today, ''Mladinas weekly issues are distributed ...

'' awarded the collective with the Zlata ptica (''The Golden Bird'') award.

International breakthrough, acceptance and wide popularity in Yugoslavia (1986–1991)

Laibach's following release was the live album ''The Occupied Europe Tour 1985'', featuring a choice of recordings from their concerts in Ljubljana, Hamburg and London. In June 1986, the band held four concerts in England, the mini-tour being entitled ''Laibach Over America''. During their staying in London, they recorded three songs for a

John Peel session John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

, and performed with the Michael Clark dance company in London and

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, in the company's play ''No Fire Escape from Hell''. On 10 October 1986, the group performed in

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, on the festival entitled Concert for the Abolishment of Fascist Trade Unions. Having signed for

Mute Records Mute Records is a British independent record label owned and founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller (music producer), Daniel Miller. It has featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Depeche Mode, Erasure (duo), Erasure, Einstürze ...

, Laibach started recording their third studio album, ''

Opus Dei is an institution of the Catholic Church that was founded in Spain in 1928 by Josemaría Escrivá. Its stated mission is to help its lay and clerical members seek holiness in their everyday occupations and societies. Opus Dei is officially r ...

'', working with composer

Slavko Avsenik Jr. Slavko Avsenik Jr. () (9 April 1958) is a Slovenian composer and pianist. He is also the author of numerous children's songs. He is the son of Slavko Avsenik. Biography Avsenik graduated from the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz in ja ...

The inner sleeve of the cover featured a

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍, ) is a symbol used in various Eurasian religions and cultures, as well as a few Indigenous peoples of Africa, African and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, American cultures. In the Western world, it is widely rec ...

consisting of four bloodied axes designed by

John Heartfield John Heartfield (born Helmut Herzfeld; 19 June 1891 – 26 April 1968) was a German visual artist who pioneered the use of art as a political weapon. Some of his most famous photomontages were anti-Nazi and anti-fascist statements. Heartfield a ...

, an anti-Nazi artist. The record was sold secretly in some European countries, as the meaning of the cover was not recognized. The group achieved commercial success with the cover versions of "

Live Is Life "Live Is Life" is a song by Austrian pop rock band Opus, released in 1984 by labels Polydor and OK as the first single from their first live album, '' Live Is Life'' (1984). It was written by the band and produced by Peter Müller, and also inc ...

" by

Opus Opus (: opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera ...

, entitled "Life Is Life", and "

One Vision "One Vision" is a song written and recorded by the British rock band Queen, first released as a single in November 1985 and then included on their 1986 album ''A Kind of Magic''. It was conceived by the group's drummer Roger Taylor.Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

, entitled "Geburt einer Nation" ("Birth of a Nation"), which would mark the direction of their future releases. The track "How the West Was Won" was also well-received by the audience. The usage of the name ''Opus Dei'' caused the Catholic institution of the same name to sue the group, but the case was eventually decided in favor of Laibach. Following the album release, the group embarked on the United States of Europe Tour, during which they stated at a press conference in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

that their influences are

Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 until his death ...

, Toto, and Tati. On 7 April 1987, they recorded three more songs for a John Peel session. During May, they once again performed in Clark's company ''No Fire Escape from Hell'' play, in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

and

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

. On 28 July, they presented the work of Neue Slowenische Kunst at the

London International Festival of Theatre The London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT) is a biennial festival of theatre, performance and cultural events. The organisation also supports year-round activity in London. The organisation was founded by Rose Fenton and Lucy Neal, wi ...

. With Clark's company they performed in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, holding three performances in September 1987. In the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

they were invited to a reception hosted by the British ambassador. They appeared on the reception wearing their uniforms, and the actor

Walter Gotell Walter Jack Gotell (born Walter Jacques Goettel; 15 March 1924 – 5 May 1997) was a German-born British actor. He was well known for his role as General Gogol, head of the KGB, in the Roger Moore era of the James Bond film seriesTom VallancO ...

(known for his role of

General Gogol This is a list of allies of James Bond who appear throughout the film series and novels. MI6 M M is a Rear Admiral of the Royal Navy, and the head of the Secret Intelligence Service. Ian Fleming based the character on a number of peopl ...

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

film series), who was also present on the reception, saw this as a provocation. In Yugoslavia, the play was performed at the

Belgrade International Theatre Festival The Belgrade International Theatre Festival (abbr. BITEF) is a theatre festival that takes place every September annually in Belgrade, Serbia. History Founded in 1967, BITEF has continually followed and supported the latest theatre trends. It h ...

, however, performance by Laibach and Tito's speeches were omitted. In September 1987, the band also performed in Hamburg's

Deutsches Schauspielhaus The Deutsches Schauspielhaus, sometimes referred to as the Hamburg Schauspielhaus or Hamburg Theatre, is a theatre in the St. Georg, Hamburg, St. Georg quarter of the city of Hamburg, Germany History The Deutsches Schauspielhaus was co-foun ...

production of ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

'', for which they also wrote the music. The music from the play would be released two years later on the album ''

''. In Yugoslavia, ''Opus Dei'' was released in November 1987 by the state-owned major label

ZKP RTLJ Založba kaset in plošč RTV Ljubljana or Založba kaset in plošč Radiotelevizije Ljubljana (acronym ZKP RTLJ, meaning ''Publishing and Record Label RTV Ljubljana'' in Slovene), was a major record label in the former SFR Yugoslavia, based Lj ...

. The release was followed by the double album '' Krst pod Triglavom – Baptism'', featuring the music from the play of the same title. The members of the band were invited to a meeting with Jože Osterman, Secretary of the League of Socialist Working People of Ljubljana, who tried to persuade them to change their name to Ljubljana, as, despite the lifting of the ban on the name Laibach, the group's name still sparked occasional controversies in their home country. Despite them, the band held a sold-out concert in Ljubljana entitled ''Svoji ka svojim'' (''To Their Own''), and Yugoslav

lifestyle Lifestyle is the interests, opinions, behaviours, and behavioural orientations of an individual, group, or culture. The term "style of life" () was introduced by Austrian psychologist Alfred Adler in his 1929 book, ''The Case of Miss R.'', w ...

and entertainment magazine ''Start'' pronounced members of the group the fourth on the list of Best Dressed Men in Yugoslavia. After the performance in Ljubljana, the band went on another European tour, during which they appeared at the end of every concert with horned helmets. On their performance at the

Vienna Festival The Vienna Festival (Wiener Festwochen) is a culture festival that takes place in Vienna for five or six weeks in May and June every year. The Vienna Festival was established in 1951, when Vienna was still occupied by the Participants in World W ...

, they provoked the audience with the intro: "

Austrians Austrians (, ) are the citizens and Nationality, nationals of Austria. The English term ''Austrians'' was applied to the population of Archduchy of Austria, Habsburg Austria from the 17th or 18th century. Subsequently, during the 19th century, ...

, You Are

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

", which almost forced organizers to interrupt the concert. Their performance in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

was a part of

European Capital of Culture A European Capital of Culture is a city designated by the European Union (EU) for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong pan-European dimension. Being a European Capital of Culture can ...

program. During the band's performance on a five-meter–high stage, the performance crew roasted an ox on a stake on the hall's balcony. In October 1988, the group released the album ''

Let It Be Let It Be most commonly refers to: * ''Let It Be'' (album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970 * "Let It Be" (song), the title song from the album Let It Be may also refer to: Film and television * ''Let It Be'' (1970 film), ...

'', featuring cover versions of all the songs from the

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

album of the same name, with the exception of the title track, which they did not record owing to lack of studio time, and "

Maggie Mae Maggie Mae, stage name of Andrea Cosima Carle (13 May 1960 – 30 August 2021) was a German singer. Biography Maggie Mae released her first single, ''Ich hab’ Spaß am Leben'', in 1974. She later released a German-language cover of "My Boy L ...

"; under the title "Maggie Mae", the band released their versions of German

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

songs "

Auf der Lüneburger Heide The song Auf der Lüneburger Heide ("On the Lüneburg Heath") was composed in 1912 by Ludwig Rahlfs based on a poem from the collection ''Der kleine Rosengarten'' ("The Little Rose Garden") by Hermann Löns. It is often played at folk festivals in ...

" and " Was Gleicht Wohl Auf Erden". Their version of "

Across the Universe "Across the Universe" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song first appeared on the 1969 various artists' charity compilation album ''No One's Gonna Change Our W ...

" featured

Anja Rupel Anja Rupel (born 19 March 1966) is a Slovene pop singer, songwriter, radio announcer, and journalist. Her father, Fedja Rupel, is a flautist and a professor at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, and her uncle is the politician and diplomat Dimi ...

of the Ljubljana-based

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

band

Videosex Videosex was a Yugoslav synth-pop band formed in Ljubljana in 1982. The band was one of the most prominent acts of the Yugoslav synth-pop scene. The group was established in 1982, but the steady lineup was formed in 1983, consisting of Anja Rupe ...

on vocals. A part of the recorded material from the album would be broadcast by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

before his concerts. LAIBACH Press Photo 1989

In 1989, the band went on a

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

n tour. On their concert in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, they were joined by

n artist and art theoretician

Peter Weibel Peter Weibel (Austrian German: �vaɪbl ; 5 March 1944 – 1 March 2023) was an Austrian post-conceptual artist, curator, and new media theoretician. He started out in 1964 as a visual poet, then later moved from the page to the screen within th ...

, who appeared on stage half-naked with a horned helmet on his head. After their return from North America, they went on a Yugoslav tour, starting with a sold-out concert in Ljubljana's

Tivoli Hall Tivoli Hall () is a complex of two multi-purpose indoor sports arenas in the Tivoli City Park in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. The complex was opened in 1965. The larger, ice hockey arena has a seating capacity of 6,800 people and is the ho ...

. Their performance in Zagreb started with the traditional Serbian instrument

gusle The gusle () or lahuta (; related to English ''lute'') is a bowed single- stringed musical instrument (and musical style) traditionally used in the Dinarides region of Southeastern Europe (in the Balkans). The instrument is always accompanie ...

, and in Belgrade, the NSK philosopher Peter Mlakar held a speech which was a cynical parody of

Slobodan Milošević Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...

's speeches in

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. The following year, the group released ''

Sympathy for the Devil "Sympathy for the Devil" is a song by English rock band the Rolling Stones. The song was written by Mick Jagger and credited to the Jagger–Richards partnership. It is the opening track on the band's 1968 Studio album, album ''Beggars Banquet ...

'', an album of different cover versions of the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

song of the same name. The release was followed by European and North American tour. Upon returning to Yugoslavia, the group embarked on a tour across industrial regions of Slovenia. Their concert in Šentjurje was visited by only five people due to poor promotion, but the band nevertheless performed the whole set. The band celebrated their tenth anniversary with a concert held on 21 December 1990 in Trbovlje, at the town's

thermal power station A thermal power station, also known as a thermal power plant, is a type of power station in which the heat energy generated from various fuel sources (e.g., coal, natural gas, nuclear fuel, etc.) is converted to electrical energy. The heat ...

, which was their first concert in their hometown. At -15°C, the visitors of the concerts were welcomed by a

brass band A brass band is a musical ensemble generally consisting primarily of brass instruments, most often with a percussion section. Ensembles that include brass and woodwind instruments can in certain traditions also be termed brass bands (particularl ...

and majorettes. 16 years later Chris Bohn of ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime fiction, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created and primarily written by the American author and former police reporter David Simon for the cable network HBO. The series premiered o ...

'' magazine proclaimed this show as one of the 60 most powerful concerts of all times. After this concert, the group undertook a tour of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

Slovenian independence and beyond: new releases and new controversies (1991–present)

In 1992, the group released '' Kapital'', an album dealing with

materialism Materialism is a form of monism, philosophical monism according to which matter is the fundamental Substance theory, substance in nature, and all things, including mind, mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. Acco ...

in contemporary society. The band released the album on

vinyl record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English) or a vinyl record (for later varieties only) is an analog signal, analog sound Recording medium, storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, ...

, audio cassette and

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. It employs the Compact Disc Digital Audio (CD-DA) standard and was capable of hol ...

, recording different versions of the same songs for each format of the album. During the same year, they proclaimed the State of NSK, promoting its flag, money, postage stamps and passports. The following year, Mute Records released the ''

Ljubljana–Zagreb–Beograd ''Ljubljana–Zagreb–Beograd'', released in 1993, is an album by Slovenian industrial group Laibach, recorded in 1982. It is named after three capitals of three former Yugoslav republics - Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name ...

'' live album, featuring recordings from the 1982 concerts in the three cities, presenting a document of politically active rock from the group's early career, especially with the songs "Tito-Tito", "Država" ("The State"), and "Rdeči molk" ("Red Silence"). In 1994, they released the album ''

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

'', which commented on the current political events in Eastern Europe, former Yugoslavia and the actions of the

pact, filtered through their blend of

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

and

. The album featured cover versions of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

's " The Final Countdown",

Bolland & Bolland Bolland & Bolland are two Dutch music producers and brothers, Rob Bolland (born 17 April 1955) and Ferdi Bolland (born 5 August 1956). They were born in Port Elizabeth in South Africa. Career The duo produced and wrote for such artists as F ...

's " In the Army Now",

Don Fardon Donald Arthur Fardon (born 19 August 1940) is an English pop singer. Fardon is best known for his cover of the song "Indian Reservation" (1968), a UK number 3 hit and global million selling disc. He also wrote the football anthem " Belfast B ...

's "

Indian Reservation An American Indian reservation is an area of land land tenure, held and governed by a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States#Description, U.S. federal government-recognized Native American tribal nation, whose gov ...

" (renamed to "National Reservation"), and

Stanislav Binički Stanislav Binički ( sr-cyr, Станислав Бинички, ; 27 July 1872 – 15 February 1942) was a Serbian composer, conductor, and pedagogue. A student of German composer Josef Rheinberger, he became the first director of the Oper ...

's composition "

Marš na Drinu The "March on (or to) the Drina" (, ) is a Serbian patriotic march which was composed to commemorate the Serbian victory in Battle of Cer during World War I and came to be seen as a symbol of Serbian resistance and victory in the World War I. Alo ...

" ("March on the

Drina The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long river in the Balkans, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Al ...

"). During the same year, the band also recorded the song "Zrcalo sveta (Das Spiegelglas der Welt)" ("Mirror of the World") for the

Kraftwerk Kraftwerk (, ) is a Germany, German Electronic music, electronic band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk was among the first successful a ...

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century a ...

''Trans Slovenia Express'', featuring songs by Slovenian acts. The group went on the Occupied Europe NATO Tour 1994-95, provoking the audience in Zagreb and

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

with their performances of "Marš na Drinu", a

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

patriotic

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...

. The tour resulted in the

box set A boxed set or (its US name) box set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box, hence 'boxed', and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists ...

comprising a live CD and a

VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...

tape, which featured a selection of recordings from the two-year tour, including the performance in

on the date of the signing of the

Dayton Agreement The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement or the Dayton Accords ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Dejtonski mirovni sporazum, Дејтонски мировни споразум), and colloquially kn ...

. In 1995, the group for a while considered splitting into several simultaneous lineups so that they could perform in different places at the same time, but the idea was abandoned. The following year, the group released ''

Jesus Christ Superstars ''Jesus Christ Superstars'' is the fifth studio album by Slovenian industrial and electronic music group Laibach. Released in 1996 the concept album collects original and cover songs where religion is the central theme. The theme of religion is ...

'', featuring their version of

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...

rock opera A rock opera is a collection of rock music songs with lyrics that relate to a common story. Rock operas are typically released as concept albums and are not scripted for acting, which distinguishes them from operas, although several have been ad ...

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...

''. The group promoted the album in the United States with an eighteen-date tour, followed by a tour across Germany. On 15 May 1997, the band performed with the Slovenian Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Marko Letonja, and the Tone Tomšič Choir, for the opening ceremony of the Ljubljana European Month of Culture, presenting orchestral versions of their earliest material, which they rarely performed live, arranged by Uroš Rojko and Aldo Kumar with the members of the group. During the same year, the live album ''M.B. 21 December 1984'' was released, featuring recordings from the 1984 secret concert in Ljubljana's Malči Belič Hall, the February 1985 concert at the

Atonal festival, and the April 1985 performance at the Zagreb club

Kulušić Kulušić was a concert club in Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia), which hosted many famous international acts and all the important acts from the region. It is particularly associated with the New wave music in Yugoslavia, Yugoslav new wave ac ...

. The performances had featured guest appearance by Jože Pegam on clarinet and trumpet, and some songs included samples of Tito's speeches. On 14 November 1997, at a concert in Belgrade, another Peter Mlakar speech received a decidedly mixed audience reaction, in which he asked the audience to "eat the pig and digest it once and for all", referring to the then-

president of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *''Præsidenten ...

Slobodan Milošević. LAIBACH Press Photo 2003

In 2003, the group released the album ''

WAT A wat (, ; , ; , ; ; , ) is a type of Buddhist and Hindu temple in Cambodia, Laos, East Shan State (Myanmar), Yunnan (China), the Southern Province of Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Etymology The word ''wat'' is borrowed from the Sanskrit ''v ...

'' (an acronym for ''We Are Time''), which, alongside new material, featured the song "Tanz mit Laibach" (German for "Dance with Laibach"), inspired by the song "Der Mussolini" by the German band D.A.F. Part of the album lyrics were written by Peter Mlakar, and part of the music was composed by the album producer Iztok Turk (former member of

) and the DJs

Umek Uroš Umek (; born May 16, 1976), better known as DJ Umek or simply UMEK, is a Slovenian dance music producer and DJ. Musically active since 1993, he is the owner of several techno record labels. In 1999 he founded Consumer Recreation and Recycle ...

, Bizzy and Dojaja. In 2003, one of the forming members of the group, Dejan Knez, left Laibach. In 2004, the group released the double compilation album ''Anthems'', featuring a career-spanning selection of material, as well as the previously unreleased cover of

Drafi Deutscher Drafi Franz Richard Deutscher (9 May 1946 – 9 June 2006) was a German singer and songwriter of Sinti origin. Biography Early life and career Deutscher was born in Charlottenburg, in the western zone of Berlin, Germany. Between 1964 and 1966 ...

song "Mama Leone" and remixes of Laibach songs by Random Logic, Umek, Octex, Iztok Turk and others. The compilation also features a thorough group biography written by Alexei Monroe. In 2004, the band released two

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

s: the first, entitled ''Laibach'', featured music videos and ''A Film about WAT'', directed by Sašo Podgoršek, and the second, entitled ''2'', featured a recording from the Occupied Europe NATO Tour concert in Ljubljana held on 26 October 1995 and the documentary film ''A Film from Slovenia'', directed by Daniel Landin and Peter Vezjak. During 2006, the group released the album ''

Volk The German noun ''Volk'' () translates to :wikt:people, people, both uncountable in the sense of ''people'' as in a crowd, and countable (plural ''Völker'') in the sense of ''People, a people'' as in an ethnic group or nation (compare the E ...

'' (the title meaning ''Wolf'' in Slovene and ''People'' in German), featuring cover versions of national anthems, including the NSK "state anthem" "

Das Lied der Deutschen The "", officially titled "", is a Germany, German poem written by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben . A popular song which was made for the cause of creating a unified German state, it was adopted in its entirety in 1922 by the Weima ...

", originally written in 1797 and used as German national anthem during the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German Reich, German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclai ...

. Each cover featured a guest vocalist singing the anthem in their own language, with the exception of the cover of the "

State Anthem of the Russian Federation The "State Anthem of the Russian Federation" is the national anthem of Russia. It uses the same melody as the " State Anthem of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics", composed by Alexander Alexandrov, and new lyrics by Sergey Mikhalkov ...

", which was entitled "Rossiya" and featured a choir composed mostly of the children of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

n and Ukrainian diplomats in Slovenia. During the same year, on 1 June, the group performed J. S. Bach's "

The Art of Fugue ''The Art of Fugue'', or ''The Art of the Fugue'' (), BWV 1080, is an incomplete musical work of unspecified instrumentation by Johann Sebastian Bach. Written in the last decade of his life, ''The Art of Fugue'' is the culmination of Bach's e ...

" in Bach's hometown

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, and their interpretation of the work was released on the album '' Laibachkunstderfuge'' in 2008. In 2007, the group released the DVD ''Live at the CC Club'', featuring the recording of their London concert held on 16 April 2007. The 2008 DVD ''Volk Dead in Trbovlje'' featured the recording of the band's performance held in Trbovlje's Worker's Hall on 23 March 2007, as well as music videos for the songs from ''Volk'' and a documentary about the tour entitled ''Volk Tour Medley'', all directed by Sašo Podgoršek. Laibach wracku raciborz 07 2010 009

In 2011, the group released the box set ''Gesamtkunstwerk – Dokument 81–82'' (''Total Work of Art – Document 81–82''), featuring five vinyl records and a DVD with unreleased studio recordings from the early phases of their career. The compilation was released in a limited number of 600 copies only. During the same year, the band recorded a cover of

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

's "

Ballad of a Thin Man "Ballad of a Thin Man" is a song written and recorded by Bob Dylan, and released in 1965 on his sixth studio album, ''Highway 61 Revisited''. Recording Dylan recorded "Ballad of a Thin Man" in Studio A of Columbia Records in New York City, located ...

", recorded for the tribute album ''Projekt Bob Dylan: Postani prostovoljec!'' (''Project Bob Dylan: Become a Volunteer!''), commissioned by the American Embassy in Ljubljana in honor of Dylan's 70th birthday. The band was hired by director

Timo Vuorensola Timo Vuorensola (; born 29 November 1979) is a People of Finland, Finnish film director, singer and actor. He has directed ''Star Wreck'' movies ''Star Wreck V: Lost Contact'', and ''Star Wreck: In the Pirkinning'', created by Samuli Torssonen. ...

to compose music for his

science fiction comedy Science fiction comedy (sci-fi comedy) or comic science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that exploits the science fiction genre's conventions for comedic effect. The genre often mocks or satirizes standard science fic ...

film ''

Iron Sky ''Iron Sky'' is a 2012 comic-science-fiction action film directed by Timo Vuorensola and written by Johanna Sinisalo and Michael Kalesniko.

'', and it was released on the

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ( ...

''Iron Sky'' in 2012. The double album ''Iron Sky Director's Cut'' featured their music originally composed for ''Iron Sky'', but eventually not used in the film. On 14 April 2012, in the Tate Modern Turbine Hall the band held a concert which was envisioned as the recreation of their 1983 concert at Zagreb Biennalle, with guest appearances by some of the group's early members. The recording of the concert was released on the double live album ''Monumental Retro-Avant-Garde''. In 2014, Laibach released the album ''Spectre'', the title referring to the first line of ''

The Communist Manifesto ''The Communist Manifesto'' (), originally the ''Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (), is a political pamphlet written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, commissioned by the Communist League and originally published in London in 1848. The ...

''. The band dedicated the album songs "Eurovision", "The Whistleblowers" (musically based on "

Colonel Bogey March The "Colonel Bogey March" is a British march that was composed in 1914 by Lieutenant F. J. Ricketts (1881–1945) (pen name Kenneth J. Alford), a British Army bandmaster who later became the director of music for the Royal Marines at Plymout ...

"), "We Are Millions and Millions Are One" (featuring new member Mina Špiler on lead vocals) and "No History" to

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. He came to international attention in 2010 after WikiLeaks published a series of News leak, leaks from Chels ...

and

Edward Snowden Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is a former National Security Agency (NSA) intelligence contractor and whistleblower who leaked classified documents revealing the existence of global surveillance programs. Born in 1983 in Elizabeth ...

. The

deluxe edition The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, collector's edition or expanded edition are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as b ...

of the album featured four bonus tracks, including a cover of

Blind Lemon Jefferson Lemon Henry "Blind Lemon" Jefferson (September 24, 1893 – December 19, 1929) was an American blues and gospel singer-songwriter and musician. He was one of the most popular and successful blues singers of the 1920s and has been called the "Fat ...

's "

See That My Grave Is Kept Clean "See That My Grave Is Kept Clean" (also known as "One Kind Favor") is a song recorded by American blues musician Blind Lemon Jefferson in two slightly differing versions in October 1927 and February 1928, that became "one of his most famous comp ...

" and

Serge Gainsbourg Serge Gainsbourg (; born Lucien Ginsburg; 2 April 1928 – 2 March 1991) was a French singer-songwriter, actor, composer, and director. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provocative rel ...

's " Love on the Beat", and a book entitled ''Spectre Playbook'', a Laibach "manifesto" with a goal of uniting social activists from around the world. The album ''Spectremix'', released in 2015, featured ''Spectre'' songs remixes by

Marcel Dettmann Marcel Dettmann (born 26 October 1977) is a German DJ, producer, and record label owner. Dettmann is a resident DJ at the Berghain nightclub in Berlin. He used to work at Berlin's record store Hard Wax between 2002 and 2012. In addition to be ...

Gramatik Denis Jašarević (born 19 October 1984), known by his stage name Gramatik, is a Slovenian electronic music producer, originally from Portorož, Slovenia. He currently resides in New York City. Early life Denis Jašarević was born in Portoro� ...

, Iztok Turk and other artists. During 2014, the band was invited by National Cultural Centre of Poland to record music for the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

. The band released the material on the EP ''1 VIII 1944 Warszawa'', featuring a version of the classic song of the insurgency "Warszawskie Dzieci" ("Children of Warsaw"), In August 2015, on the initiative of Norwegian director Morten Traavik, the band performed in

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. The band held two concerts, on 19 and 20 August, at Kim Won Gyun Musical Conservatory in Nampo-dong, Pyongyang, to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the end of Japanese rule of Korea. The concerts saw large attention of the Western media, a part of which described Laibach's upcoming performance as the first performance of a Western rock band in North Korea, although this was later revealed to be a misinformation. The concerts were the subject of the documentary film ''

Liberation Day Liberation Day is a day, often a public holiday, that marks the liberation of a place, similar to an independence day, but differing from it because it does not involve the original creation of statehood. It commemorates the end of an occupation ...

'' by Morten Traavik and Uģis Olte, which premiered in 2016. In 2017, the band performed in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

, becoming the only musical band in the world to have performed in both countries. In July 2017, Laibach released the album ''

Also Sprach Zarathustra , Op. 30 (, ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' or ''Thus Spake Zarathustra'') is a tone poem by German composer Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's 1883–1885 philosophical work of the same name. The songs on the album were originally composed for a theatrical production of ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'', based on

Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher. He began his career as a classical philology, classical philologist, turning to philosophy early in his academic career. In 1869, aged 24, Nietzsche bec ...

's novel of the same name, directed by Matjaž Berger and premiering in the Anton Podbevšek Theatre in

Novo Mesto Novo Mesto (; ; also known by #Name, alternative names) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, seventh-largest city of Slovenia. It is the economic and cultural centre of the traditional region of Lower Carniola (southeastern Slovenia) and ...

. In 2018, the group released the album ''The Sound of Music'', featuring their versions of the songs from the film of the same name. The band had previously performed these songs on their North Korea performances, choosing them because they are well-known in the country. The album included their version of the Korean

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

Arirang ''Arirang'' ( ) is a Korean folk song. There are about 3,600 variations of 60 different versions of the song, all of which include a refrain similar to "arirang, arirang, arariyo" (""). It is estimated that the song is more than 600 years old ...

", in which the band used traditional Korean instrument

gayageum The ''gayageum'' or ''kayagum'' () is a traditional Korean musical instrument. It is a plucked zither with 12 strings, though some more recent variants have 18, 21 or 25 strings. It is probably the best known traditional Korean musical instr ...

. In 2020, the band released the box set ''Revisited'', featuring a reissue of their debut album with bonus tracks, new versions of their songs from the first half of the 1980s, and two live recordings – one with the

Radio-Television Slovenia Radiotelevizija Slovenija () – usually abbreviated to RTV Slovenija, RTV SLO (or simply RTV within Slovenia) – is Slovenia's national public broadcasting organization. Based in Ljubljana, it has regional broadcasting centres in Koper and Ma ...

Symphony Orchestra, and the other with the

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

Philharmonic Orchestra. The box set included the release entitled ''Underground'', with a recording of one of three performances the group held in 2017 in

Velenje Velenje (; ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 4: ''Štajersko''. 1904. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 272.) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, sixth-largest city of Slovenia, and t ...

Mine, 200 meters under the ground. The 2021 live album ''We Forge the Future – Live at Reina Sofia'' featured the recording of the concert held at

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía The ''Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía'' ("Queen Sofía National Museum Art Centre"; MNCARS) is Spain's national museum of 20th-century art. The museum was officially inaugurated on September 10, 1992, and is named for Queen Sofía. I ...

on 26 November 2017 and dedicated to their 1983 Zagreb Biennale performance. The release featured the book ''Terror of History'', with texts by journalist

Igor Vidmar Igor Vidmar (born 10 December 1950) is a prominent Slovenian and former Yugoslav journalist, rock music promoter and manager, music producer and political activist. Biography Vidmar was born in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia, but spent most of his childh ...

, author Marcel Stefančić and former

president of Slovenia The president of Slovenia, officially the president of the Republic of Slovenia (), is the head of state of Slovenia. The office was established on 23 December 1991 when the National Assembly (Slovenia), National Assembly passed a new ...

Milan Kučan Milan Kučan (; born 14 January 1941) is a Slovenian former politician who served as the first President of Slovenia from 1991 to 2002. Before being president of Slovenia, he was the 13th President of Slovenia#Socialist Republic of Slovenia, Pres ...

. In 2022, Laibach released the album ''Wir sind das Volk (ein Musical aus Deutschland)'' (''We are the People (a Musical of Germany)'') with the music from the theatre play ''We Are the People'', based on the works of

Heiner Müller Heiner Müller (; 9 January 1929 – 30 December 1995) was a German (formerly East German) dramatist, poet, writer, essayist and theatre director. His "enigmatic, fragmentary pieces" are a significant contribution to postmodern drama and postd ...

, which premiered in Berlin's

Hebbel am Ufer The Hebbel am Ufer (HAU) is a German theater company and international performance center in Berlin. It has three physical locations (HAU1, HAU2, and HAU3), and a digital theatre (HAU4). History HAU was founded in 2003, before the 2003/04 season, ...

center on 8 February 2020. On their 5 and 6 September 2022 performances at the

Ljubljana Summer Festival The Ljubljana Summer Festival is a festival held between July and August in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. First organized in 1953 it is the oldest festival in the country. It attracts notable opera stars, ballet and theatre performers and ...

, the band presented their symphonic work ''Alamut'', based on the 1938 novel ''

Alamut Alamut () or Rudbar () is a region in Iran including western and eastern parts on the western edge of the Alborz (Elburz) range, between the dry and barren plain of Qazvin in the south and the densely forested slopes of the Mazandaran provin ...

'' by

Vladimir Bartol Vladimir Bartol (24 February 1903 – 12 September 1967) was a writer from the Slovene minority in Italy. He is best known for his 1938 novel ''Alamut'', the most popular work of Slovene literature around the world, which has been translated int ...

. The symphony was created in cooperation with

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

composers Nima A.Rowshan and

Idin Samimi Mofakham Idin Samimi Mofakham (b. 1982; Persian: آیدین صمیمی مفخم) is an Iranian composer, born in 1982 to Hengameh Mofid and Kambiz Samimi Mofakham. He is married to Polish composer, Martyna Kosecka. Biography He studied contemporary co ...

. The band performed the symphony with the Radio-Television of Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, vocal group Gallina,

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

choir Human Voice Ensemble and AccordiOna accordion orchestra. Following the premiere in Ljubljana, ''Alamut'' got its first European tour the following year. Laibach was scheduled to perform in

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

on 31 March 2023. However, the band's description of the

Russo-Ukrainian War The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...

as a

proxy war In political science, a proxy war is an armed conflict where at least one of the belligerents is directed or supported by an external third-party power. In the term ''proxy war'', a belligerent with external support is the ''proxy''; both bel ...

angered many Ukrainians and the concert was canceled. In 2023, the band released their latest studio album ''Sketches from the Red District'' and the EP ''Love Is Still Alive'', the latter featuring the songs written by the band for the 2019 ''Iron Sky'' sequel '' Iron Sky: The Coming Race''. In 2024, the band released several singles: an

atonal Atonality in its broadest sense is music that lacks a tonal center, or key. ''Atonality'', in this sense, usually describes compositions written from about the early 20th-century to the present day, where a hierarchy of harmonies focusing on ...

cover of

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...

's "

Strange Fruit "Strange Fruit" is a song written and composed by Abel Meeropol (under his pseudonym Lewis Allan) and recorded by Billie Holiday in 1939. The lyrics were drawn from a poem by Meeropol published in 1937. The song Protest song, protests the Lynch ...

", a cover of " White Christmas", recorded with Slovenian electronic duo

Silence Silence is the absence of ambient hearing, audible sound, the emission of sounds of such low sound intensity, intensity that they do not draw attention to themselves, or the state of having ceased to produce sounds; this latter sense can be exten ...

, and a Slovene language cover of

Bijelo Dugme () is a Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav Rock music, rock band, formed in Sarajevo, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1974. is widely considered to have been the most popular and the best-selling band ever to exist in the former S ...

song "Top" ("Cannon"), entitled "S topom te bom ciljal moja mala" ("I Will Shoot You With a Cannon, Baby").Laibach & Bijelo Dugme : S topom te bom ciljal moja mala, YouTube
/ref> The latter was recorded in cooperation with Bijelo Dugme's leader

Goran Bregović Goran Bregović ( sr-Cyrl, Горан Бреговић; born 22 March 1950) is a recording artist born in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He is one of the most internationally known modern musicians and composers of the Slavic speaking countries in the ...

as a part of marking 50 years since Bijelo Dugme formation."Bijelo dugme i Laibach objavili su zajedničku pesmu i spot 'S topom te bom ciljal, moja mala'", Danas.rs
/ref> The song featured Laibach's old collaborator Vasja Ulrih on lead vocals, with the accompanying music video, featuring excerpts from Laibach and Bijelo Dugme music videos and live recordings, compiled by Bregović and Laibach.

Musical style

Early Laibach works were described as

by Yugoslav music press. The band's early releases were marked by heavy rhythms and roaring vocals. In the mid-1980s, with incorporating the covers of popular songs into their repertoire, the band's sound became more richly layered, featuring samples from

and

. Laibach's

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s are often used to subvert the original message or intention of the song, a notable example being their version of the song "

" by the Austrian

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

band

. Laibach recorded two versions of the song, titled "Leben heißt Leben" and "Opus Dei". The first, the opening song on the Laibach album ''

'', was sung in German. The second was promoted as a single, and its promotional video (which used the title " Life Is Life") was played extensively on American cable channel

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

. "Opus Dei" retained some of the original song's

lyrics, but was delivered in a musical style that left the meaning of the lyrics open to interpretation. Whereas the original is a feel-good pop anthem, Laibach's interpretation twists the melody into a triumphant military march. With the exception of the promotional video, the refrain is at one point translated into German, giving an example of the sensitivity of lyrics to their context. The ''Opus Dei'' album also features a cover of

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

's "

One Vision "One Vision" is a song written and recorded by the British rock band Queen, first released as a single in November 1985 and then included on their 1986 album ''A Kind of Magic''. It was conceived by the group's drummer Roger Taylor.Volk The German noun ''Volk'' () translates to :wikt:people, people, both uncountable in the sense of ''people'' as in a crowd, and countable (plural ''Völker'') in the sense of ''People, a people'' as in an ethnic group or nation (compare the E ...

'', is based on the national anthem of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, "

God Save the Queen "God Save the King" ("God Save the Queen" when the monarch is female) is '' de facto'' the national anthem of the United Kingdom. It is one of two national anthems of New Zealand and the royal anthem of the Isle of Man, Australia, Canada and ...

". They have also toured with an audio-visual performance centered on

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

's '' Die Kunst der Fuge''. Since this work has no specifications of acquired instruments and is furthermore based on mathematical principles, Laibach has argued that the music can be seen as proto-

. Therefore, the band found ''Die Kunst der Fuge'' to be ideal for an interpretation using computers and software. In 2009, Laibach reworked

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's ''Overture to

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; ), often stylized "The Tannhäuser", was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and 1265. His name ...

'', ''Siegfried-Idyll'' and ''The Ride Of The Valkyries'' in collaboration with the

RTV Slovenia Radiotelevizija Slovenija () – usually abbreviated to RTV Slovenija, RTV SLO (or simply RTV within Slovenia) – is Slovenia's national public broadcasting organization. Based in Ljubljana, it has regional broadcasting centres in Koper and Ma ...

Symphonic Orchestra, conducted by Izidor Leitinger. Laibach's version is titled "VolksWagner". In addition to cover songs, Laibach has remixed songs by other bands. These include two songs by the Florida

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

band

Morbid Angel Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida, formed in 1983 by guitarist, primary composer and sole remaining original member Trey Azagthoth, vocalist and bassist Dallas Ward, and drummer Mike Browning. Widely considere ...

that appear on the Morbid Angel EP ''Laibach Re-mixes''.

Aesthetics, image and controversy

At the early stage of their career, Laibach's visuals employed socialist realist mining iconography, and later the band incorporated, alongside influences from socialist realism, influences from

Nazi art The Nazi regime in Germany actively promoted and censored forms of art between 1933 and 1945. Upon becoming dictator in 1933, Adolf Hitler gave his personal artistic preference the force of law to a degree rarely known before. In the case of Ge ...

and

to their imagery. On their early promotional posters the band used black crosses from the works of

Russian avant-garde The Russian avant-garde was a large, influential wave of avant-garde modern art that flourished in the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, approximately from 1890 to 1930—although some have placed its beginning as early as 1850 and its e ...

artist and art theorist

Kazimir Malevich Kazimir Severinovich Malevich (

, later incorporating a black cross into their logo, consisting of a cross encircled with a gear. In the mid-1980s, when the usage of the name Laibach was banned in Yugoslavia, the group used posters with black crosses without band name to advertise their performances, and their debut album was released with the black cross and without any text on the cover. Cross imagery, and variations on the cross are apparent in many Laibach recordings and publications. Some Laibach releases feature artwork by the

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

and early

Dada Dada () or Dadaism was an anti-establishment art movement that developed in 1915 in the context of the Great War and the earlier anti-art movement. Early centers for dadaism included Zürich and Berlin. Within a few years, the movement had s ...

artist

. The usage of Heartfield's anti-Nazi work depicting swastika consisting of four bloodied axes on the inner sleeve of the album ''

'' caused controversies in some European countries. The visual imagery of Laibach's art has been described as "radically ambiguous". An early example of this ambiguity would be the

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...

entitled ''The Thrower'', also known as ''Metalec'' (''The Metal Worker''). This work features a monochrome silhouette of a figure with a clenched fist holding a hammer aloft. The work could be seen both as promoting industrial protest or as a symbol of industrial pride. Another aspect of this woodcut is the large typefaced word ''LAIBACH'', evoking memories of the Nazi occupation of Slovenia. This piece was featured prominently during the band's 1983 interview for ''TV tednik''. Laibach has frequently been accused of both

far left Far or FAR may refer to: Government * Federal Acquisition Regulation, US * Federal Aviation Regulations, US * Florida Administrative Register, US Military and paramilitary * Rebel Armed Forces (Spanish: '), a defunct guerilla organization ...

and

far right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...

political stances due to their use of uniforms and

totalitarian Totalitarianism is a political system and a form of government that prohibits opposition from political parties, disregards and outlaws the political claims of individual and group opposition to the state, and completely controls the public sph ...

-style

aesthetics Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Ph ...

. They were also accused of being neo-nationalists. When confronted with such accusations, Laibach is quoted as replying with the ambiguous response "We are

fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...

s as much as Hitler was a painter". Laibach concerts have sometimes aesthetically appeared as political rallies, and the members of Laibach are notorious for rarely stepping out of character. When interviewed, they often answer in wry manifestos, showing a paradoxical lust for, and condemnation of, authority. Finnish author and nationalist Tuomas Tähti disclosed in his 2019 book ''Nationalistin henkinen horisontti'' that Laibach member Ivan "Jani" Novak told him in March 2015 that the band is a communist group and most of their work is connected to communism. British musician and journalist Richard Wolfson wrote of the group: Slovenian philosopher

Slavoj Žižek Slavoj Žižek ( ; ; born 21 March 1949) is a Slovenian Marxist philosopher, cultural theorist and public intellectual. He is the international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, Global Distin ...

stated about the group after their performance in North Korea:

Legacy, influence and innovation

Despite emerging on the rich and vibrant

Yugoslav rock scene Popular music in Yugoslavia includes the pop and rock music of the former SFR Yugoslavia, including all their genres and subgenres. The scene included the constituent republics: SR Slovenia, SR Croatia, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SR Montenegr ...

, Laibach is widely considered to be the only Yugoslav band to achieve large popularity in Western Europe during the existence of SFR Yugoslavia. The band has influenced a number of acts, has been paid tribute by several projects and has been a subject of several books and documentary films.

Tributes

In 1999, a tribute album to Laibach entitled ''Schlecht und Ironisch – Laibach Tribut'' (''Bad and Ironic – Laibach Tribute'') was released. Canadian industrial

doom metal Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' ...

band

Zaraza Zaraza (from Ukrainian, Polish, Serbian " plague") is a Canadian experimental/ industrial funeral doom band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Biography Formed in early 1993, Zaraza was born out of a meeting between newly arrived Polish immigrant ...

released a Laibach tribute EP entitled ''Montrealska Akropola – A Tribute to Laibach'' (''

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Acropolis – A Tribute to Laibach'') in 2004.

Martial music

Some early material by Laibach and later neoclassical releases by the band, such as the album ''

'', were influential on certain artists within the martial industrial music genre.

Rammstein

Laibach is often cited as an influence for the popular German

Neue Deutsche Härte (; "New German Hardness", sometimes abbreviated as NDH), also known as dance-metal, is a crossover style drawing from Neue Deutsche Welle, alternative metal, groove metal, electro-industrial and techno. It developed in Germany and Austria d ...

band

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, drummer Christoph ...

. The parallel is regularly made between the bands regarding their aesthetics and deep male vocals both groups share and with their respective backgrounds of originating from former socialist countries. When asked about the topic in an interview, the guitar player of Rammstein,

Richard Kruspe Richard Kruspe (born Sven Kruspe; 24 June 1967) is a German musician. He is best known as one of the founders and the lead guitarist of the band Rammstein, as well as the frontman of the industrial metal band Emigrate. Kruspe has released eigh ...

, claimed Rammstein to have a more emotional approach instead of the more "intellectual" style of Laibach. In the same interview the keyboard player of Rammstein

Christian Lorenz Christian "Flake" Lorenz (; born 16 November 1966) is a German musician. He is best known as the keyboardist in Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein, as well as the main composer of the band along with guitarist Richard Kruspe. He was also a mem ...

drew a parallel between the deep voices of

Till Lindemann Till Lindemann (; born 4 January 1963) is a German singer and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist and lyricist of Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein and solo project Lindemann (band), Lindemann. Rammstein has sold over 25 million records worldw ...

and Milan Fras but considered this to be the only similarity between the two music groups. The documentary film ''Liberation Day'' ends with a notice stating that a member of a certain

industrial metal Industrial metal is the fusion of Heavy metal music, heavy metal and industrial music, typically employing repeating Heavy metal guitar, metal guitar riffs, sampling (music), sampling, synthesizer or music sequencer, sequencer lines, and Distor ...

band was supposed to be interviewed for the film about the influence Laibach had on their earlier work, but it had to be removed due to the prospect of arrest or a fine from the district court of Berlin towards the makers of the film. This, and the early promotional material for the film suggest that it was

Paul Landers Paul Landers (born Heiko Paul Hiersche; 9 December 1964) is a German musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist of Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein, and punk rock bands Feeling B and First Arsch. Landers has released eight studio albums ...

who was to appear in the film. When members of Laibach were asked by an interviewer about Rammstein "stealing" from them, they responded: "Laibach does not believe in originality... Therefore, Rammstein could not 'steal' much from us. They simply let themselves get inspired by our work, which is absolutely a legitimate process. We are glad that they made it. In a way, they have proven once again that a good 'copy' can make more money on the market than the 'original'. Anyhow, today we share the territory: Rammstein seem to be a kind of Laibach for adolescents and Laibach are Rammstein for grown-ups." Laibach would later provide a remix for the Rammstein single " Ohne dich".

Rankings

Laibach album ''

'' was proclaimed in 2006 the 7th on ''

The Mail on Sunday ''The Mail on Sunday'' is a British conservative newspaper, published in a tabloid format. Founded in 1982 by Lord Rothermere, it is the biggest-selling Sunday newspaper in the UK. Its sister paper, the ''Daily Mail'', was first published i ...

'' list of Ten Greatest Tribute Albums of All Time. The album ''

'' was included in 2008 in the book ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music criti ...

''. The same album was polled in 2015 as the 86th on the list of 100 Greatest Yugoslav Albums published by the Croatian edition of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''.

Books and documentaries

Laibach has been the subject of several books: * ''NSK Monography'' (1992), * ''Interrogation Machine: Laibach and NSK'' (2005) by Alexei Monroe, * ''Celostna umetnina Laibach: fragmentarni pogled'', (''The Laibach Integral Artwork: A Fragmentary View'', 2014) by Barbara Borčič, * ''Laibach: 40 godina večnosti'' (''Laibach: 40 Years of Eternity'', 2021) by Teodor Lorenčič. The band has also been the subject of several documentaries: * ''Laibach: Victory Under the Sun'' (1988), directed by Goran Gajić, * ''Bravo'' (1993), directed by Peter Vezjak and Daniel Landin, * ''Laibach: A Film from Slovenia'' (1993), directed by Daniel Landin and Chris Bohn, * '' Predictions of Fire'' (1996), directed by Michael Benson, * ''Divided States of America – Laibach 2004 Tour'' (2006), directed by Sašo Podgoršek, * ''

'' (2016), directed by Ugis Olte and Morten Traavik, * ''LP Film Laibach'' (2017), directed by Igor Zupe.

Members

Laibach evolved from the band Salto Mortale, formed in 1978 by

. The first incarnation of Laibach formed in 1980 included Dejan Knez, Tomaž Hostnik, Srečko Bajda, Andrej Lupinc, and Marko Košnik. Soon after that, Knez's relative Ivan "Jani" Novak and Milan Fras joined the band. First a quintet, Laibach quickly became a quartet and declared that the group had four members: "Vier Personen". From mid-1980s to mid-1990s, while the core quartet included Dejan Knez, Milan Fras, Ervin Markošek and Ivan "Jani" Novak, the members frequently used the pseudonyms Dachauer, Keller, Saliger and Eber. The pseudonym Ivo Saliger was originally used by original singer Tomaž Hostnik and more recently by Ivan Novak. The pseudonym Elk Eber has been used by Dejan Knez. Former member Andrej Lupinc has continued to use the pseudonym Keller after leaving the band. Occasionally, other musicians supplemented the core group, some of whom included Oto Rimele (former guitarist for

Lačni Franz Lačni Franz (trans. ''Hungry Franz'') was a Slovenian and Yugoslav rock band formed in Maribor in 1979. The band is considered one of the most prominent acts of the Yugoslav new wave scene, as well as one of the most prominent acts of the Yugos ...

), Nikola Sekulović (bass player for Demolition Group), and

(vocalist for

and a solo artist). On 20 June 2015, the band held a sound performance entitled ''Musical Nocturne'' with their most famous line-up of Knez, Novak, Fras and Markošek. On 9 May 2025, Laibach held a concert in Cukrarna gallery in Ljubljana "We Forge the Future, Reconstruction of a historical concert", which was a reconstruction of their 1983 Zagreb Biennale concert. Dejan Knez, Ivan Novak, Iztok Turk, Srečko Bajda, Luka Jamnik and Vitja Balžalorsky appeared on stage.

Official members (pseudonyms)

* Eber (after Elk Eber) * Saliger (after Ivo Saliger) * Dachauer (after Wilhelm Dachauer) * Keller

Current touring band

* Milan Fras – vocals * Ivan "Jani" Novak – bandleader, light, stage effects * Marina Mårtensson – vocals, acoustic guitar * Vitja Balžalorsky – guitar * Bojan Krhlanko – drums * Luka Jamnik – electronics, synthesizers * Rok Lopatič – keyboards, synthesizers

Former members and collaborators

* Tomaž Hostnik – vocals, electronics (1980–1982) *

– keyboards, drums, electronics (1980–2003) * Srečko Bajda – electronics, voice, often humorously credited as Felix Casio * Andrej Lupinc – electronics (1980–1982) * Bine Zerko – electronics * Ervin Markošek – drums, keyboards, electronics (left the band in 1989, returned for the studio album '' Kapital'', and appears on press photos until ''

'') * Marko Košnik – electronics (1981–1983) * Marjan Benčina – electronics, synthesizers (1982–1983) *

Mina Špiler Melodrom are a Slovenian alternative dance, alternative synthpop band, founded in 1999. Beginnings The band, originally Marquee, was founded in 1999 at the Slovenian Cinematheque, by three Faculty of Arts, arts students and two students of archit ...

– vocals, synthesizer * Vasja Ulrih – voice (on some early tracks, some tracks on ''

'' and ''Kapital'' studio albums and on "S topom te bom ciljal, moja mala" single) * David Jarh - trumpet and flugelhorn * Janko Novak – operatic voice (on some tracks on the ''

'' studio album) * Borut Kržišnik – guitar * Oto Rimele – guitar * Matej Mršnik – guitar * Dare Hočevar – bass * Nikola Sekulović – bass * Dragoslav Radojković – drums (1982–1986) * Roman Dečman – drums (1986–2006) * Janez Gabrič – drums (2006–2018) * Bojan Khrlanko – drums (2018) * Eva Breznikar – vocals, percussion (''

'' and ''

'' tours) * Nataša Regovec – vocals, percussion (''WAT'' and ''Volk'' tours) * Sašo Vollmaier – synthesizer, piano * Boris Benko – vocals * Primož Hladnik * Damjan Bizilj – synthesizer * Iztok Turk – electronics, composer *

– vocals * Jože Pegam – various instruments * Matjaž Pegam * Peter Mlakar – speeches * Sašo Podgoršek – videos * Grant Austin – sound engineer * Svetozar Mišić – documentation * Anže Rozman – live orchestral arrangements * Álvaro Domínguez Vázquez – live orchestral arrangements *

– orchestral and choir arrangements (from ''

'' to ''

Spectre Spectre, specter or the spectre may refer to: Religion and spirituality * Vision (spirituality) * Apparitional experience * Ghost Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Spectre'' (1977 film), a made-for-television film produced and writt ...

'')

Appearances in popular culture

* In 1989, on his second studio album '' Hoćemo gusle'' (''We Want Gusle''), Yugoslav

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

musician

Rambo Amadeus Antonije Pušić (; born 14 June 1963), known professionally as Rambo Amadeus (), is an author and performer. A self-titled "musician, poet, and media manipulator", he is a noted artist across the countries of former Yugoslavia. His songs com ...

recorded a Laibach

parody A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...

song "Samit u burekdžinici Laibach" ("Summit in the Burek-Bakery Laibach"), featuring the song lyrics from the poems "Santa Maria della Salute" ("Saint Mary of Health") by

Laza Kostić Lazar Kostić ( sr-Cyrl, Лазар Костић; 12 February 1841 – 27 November 1910) was a Serbian poet, prose writer, lawyer, aesthetics, aesthetician, journalist, publicist, and politician who is considered to be one of the greatest minds ...

and "Strepnja" ("Trepidation") by

Desanka Maksimović Desanka Maksimović ( sr-Cyrl, Десанка Максимовић; 16 May 1898 – 11 February 1993) was a Serbian poet, writer and translator. Her first works were published in the literary journal ''Misao'' in 1920, while she was studying at t ...

and the chorus from the

turbo folk In an internal combustion engine, a turbocharger (also known as a turbo or a turbosupercharger) is a forced induction device that is powered by the flow of exhaust gases. It uses this energy to compress the intake air, forcing more air into the ...

song "Čaše lomim, ruke mi krvave" ("I Break the Glasses, My Hands Are Bleeding"). A promotional video was also recorded for the track, parodying Laibach videos and aesthetics. * Von Bach, a fictional

supervillain A supervillain, supervillainess or supercriminal is a major antagonist and variant of the villainous stock character who possesses Superpower (ability), superpowers. The character type is sometimes found in comic books and is often the primary ...

modeled after Milan Fras, appears in the

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

graphic novel ''

Kingdom Come Kingdom Come may refer to: * "Kingdom come", a phrase in the Lord's Prayer in the Bible Film * ''Kingdom Come'' (1919 film), a Western short featuring Hoot Gibson * ''Kingdom Come'' (2001 film), a comedy starring LL Cool J * ''Kingdom Come'', ...

'', by

Alex Ross Nelson Alexander Ross (born January 22, 1970) is an American comic book creator, comic book writer and artist known primarily for his painted interiors, covers, and design work. He first became known with the 1994 miniseries ''Marvels'', on which ...

and

Mark Waid Mark Waid (; born March 21, 1962) is an American comic book writer best known for his work on DC Comics titles ''The Flash'', '' Kingdom Come'' and '' Superman: Birthright'' as well as his work on ''Captain America'', ''Fantastic Four'' and '' Da ...

. Von Bach appears dressed in Laibach-style uniform and displays the group's cross tattooed on his chest. He is described as follows: "German-speaking superhuman and would-be dictator is the example of the Hitleresque villain that had so much symbolic importance in the

Golden Age of comic books The Golden Age of Comic Books describes an era in the history of American comic books from 1938 to 1956. During this time, modern comic books were first published and rapidly increased in popularity. The superhero archetype was created and ma ...

. The blocky cross on his chest is evocative of the kind of bold symbols used by fascists. Von Bach has the words 'Liebe' (love) and 'Hass' (hate) tattooed on his arms and, in fact, his entire body has been covered with one large tattoo of that dark color that most tattoos become, with his natural flesh color only coming through in the designs on his body". On the NSK State website, the band states they have "been paid with uncommon honour" by this. * Laibach's version of the

Juno Reactor Juno Reactor is a multi-national musical and performing group, primarily based in Brighton, UK. Known for their cinematic fusion of electronic, global influences, and orchestral symphonic approach, collaborating with composer Don Davis (composer) ...

song "God Is God" (which was itself inspired by Laibach's cover of

's song "

") from the album ''

'' appears on the second soundtrack disc for the computer game '' Command & Conquer: Red Alert'', which was released only in the German release of the Special Edition pack, and on the album ''The Blair Witch Project: Josh's Blair Witch Mix''.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (1985) * ''

'' (1986) * ''

'' (1987) * '' Krst pod Triglavom – Baptism'' (1987) * ''

'' (1988) * ''

'' (1989) * ''

'' (1990) * '' Kapital'' (1992) * ''

'' (1994) * ''

'' (1996) * ''

'' (2003) * ''

'' (2006) * '' Laibachkunstderfuge'' (2008) * '' Iron Sky – The Original Soundtrack'' (2012) * '' Iron Sky Director's Cut'' (2013) * ''

'' (2014) * ''

Also Sprach Zarathustra , Op. 30 (, ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' or ''Thus Spake Zarathustra'') is a tone poem by German composer Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's 1883–1885 philosophical work of the same name.The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

'' (2018) * ''Wir sind das Volk (Ein Musical aus Deutschland)'' (2022) * ''Sketches of the Red Districts'' (2023) * ''Opus Dei Revisited'' (2024) * ''Alamut'' (2025)

EPs

* '' Party Songs'' (2019) * ''Love Is Still Alive'' (2023)

Live albums

* ''Documents of Oppression (Live from N.L. Centrum, Amsterdam)'' (1984) * ''Vstajenje v Berlinu'' (1984) * ''V2 Live Nr.3'' (1985) * '' Neu Konservatiw'' (1985) * ''Ein Schauspieler'' (1985) * ''The Occupied Europe Tour 1985'' (1986) * ''Divergences / Divisions (Live in Bordeaux)'' (1986) * '' Ljubljana-Zagreb-Beograd'' (1993) * ''Occupied Europe NATO Tour 1994-95'' (1996) * ''M.B. 21 December 1984'' (1997) * ''The John Peel Sessions'' (2002) * ''

Volk Tour London CC Club Laibach () is a Slovenian and Yugoslav avant-garde music group associated with the industrial, martial, and neoclassical genres. Formed in 1980 in the mining town of Trbovlje, Slovenia, at the time a constituent republic within Socialist Fede ...

'' (2007) * ''Monumental Retro-Avant-Garde'' (2012) * ''We Forge the Future – Live at Reina Sofia'' (2021)

Compilation albums

* ''Laibach / Last Few Days'' (With Last Few Days, 1983) * ''

'' (1985) * ''Slovenska Akropola'' (1987) * ''

Anthems An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short s ...

'' (2004) * ''An Introduction to... Laibach'' (2012)

Box sets

* ''Gesamtkunstwerk – Dokument 81–86'' (2011) * ''Revisited'' (2020)

Video albums

* ''Laibach'' (2004) * ''2'' (2004) * ''Divided States of America'' (2006) * ''Volk Dead in Trbovlje'' (2008)

Singles

7-inch singles

* " Life Is Life" / "Germania" (1987) * "

" / "

" (Mute, 1988, London)

12-inch singles

* "Boji" / "Sila" / "Brat Moj" (1984) * "Panorama" / "Decree" (1984) * "Die Liebe" / "Grösste Kraft" (1985) * "Geburt einer Nation" / "Leben heisst Leben (ins.)" (1987) * "Life Is Life" / "Germania" / "Life" (1987) * "

1" / "Laibach, 300.000 V.K." (1988) * "Sympathy for the Devil 2" / "Germania, 300.000 V.K." (1988) - UK No. 137 * "Sympathy for the Devil" / "Sympathy for the Devil" (picture disc, 1988) * "Across the Universe" / "Maggie Mae" / "

Get Back "Get Back" is a song recorded by the English rock band the Beatles and Billy Preston, written by Paul McCartney, and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. It was originally released as a single on 11 April 1969 and credited to "The B ...

" (1988) - UK No. 160 * "3. Oktober" / "Geburt einer Nation (live)" (1990) * "Wirtschaft ist tot" / "Wirtschaft ist tot" (1992) * "Wirtschaft ist tot" / "Sympathy for the Devil" (promotional remixes single, 1992) * " Final Countdown" / "Final Countdown" (1994) * " In the Army Now" / "

War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

" (1995) * "God Is God" (1996) * "Tanz mit Laibach" (2004) * "Das Spiel ist aus" (2004) * "Anglia" (2006)

CD singles

* "Sympathy for the Devil" / "Sympathy for the Devil" / "Sympathy for the Devil" (picture CD, 1988) * "Across the Universe" / "Maggie Mae" / "Get Back" (1988) * "Panorama" / "Die Liebe" / "Decree" / "Grösste Kraft" (1989, London) * "3. Oktober" / "Geburt einer Nation (live)" (1990) * "Wirtschaft ist tot" / "Wirtschaft ist tot" (1992) * "Final Countdown" / "Final Countdown" (1994) * "In the Army Now" / "War" (1995) * "

" / "God Is God" (1996) * "Tanz mit Laibach" (2004) * "Das Spiel ist aus" (2004) * "Anglia" (2006) * "1 VIII 1944" (2014)

Side projects

electronic music side project * Germania, side project by Laibach, Iztok Turk, and

* 600.000 V.K., responsible for the music for the Noordung theatre productions * Kraftbach

References

Additional sources

* * * * * . Foreword by

. *

External links

* * * * {{Authority control Slovenian rock music groups Slovenian industrial music groups Slovenian dark wave musical groups Slovenian post-punk music groups Yugoslav rock music groups Yugoslav musical groups Industrial rock musical groups Musical quintets Mute Records artists Wax Trax! Records artists Musical groups established in 1980 Trbovlje