Novalis was a 1970s progressive-rock group formed in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Their best-known albums include ''Sommerabend'' and ''Wer Schmetterlinge lachen hört''.

Band history

Vocalist Jürgen Wentzel and bassist Heino Schünzel placed a newspaper advertisement in search of bandmates in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

in 1971. They were joined by organist Lutz Rahn and drummer Hartwig Biereichel. Together with guitarist

Carlo Karges Carlo Karges (31 July 1951 – 30 January 2002) was a German musician who became a guitarist and songwriter for the rock band, Nena. He wrote the lyrics of Nena's most famous song, "99 Luftballons", released in 1983. He was attending a 1982 Rolli ...

they formed Mosaik, soon changing the name of the band to Novalis. After the release of their first album in 1973, Wentzel left the group and Heino Schünzel took on vocal duties. Carlo Karges, who would go on to join

Nena Gabriele Susanne Kerner (born 24 March 1960), better known as Nena, is a German singer and songwriter who rose to international fame in 1983 as the lead vocalist of the band Nena with the Neue Deutsche Welle song "99 Luftballons". In the same ye ...

's backing band, was replaced by Detlef Job.

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n vocalist Fred Mühlböck joined the group in 1976. The lyrics used on the group's first album were written in English, but on the suggestion of new producer

Achim Reichel Achim Reichel (born 28 January 1944) is a musician, producer, and songwriter from Hamburg, Germany. He is known for his 1991 hit single ''Aloha Heja He'', and serving as the frontman for the 1960s beat group The Rattles, who, among other achieve ...

, formerly of

The Rattles The Rattles are a German rock band, formed in Hamburg in 1960, best known for their 1970 psychedelic hit single, "The Witch". Career The Rattles performed in Hamburg, and played at the same venues as The Beatles on several occasions in 1962. In ...

, they began to sing in German in 1975. The group incorporated poems by their namesake, the Romantic-era writer

Novalis Georg Philipp Friedrich Freiherr von Hardenberg (2 May 1772 – 25 March 1801), pen name Novalis (), was a German polymath who was a writer, philosopher, poet, aristocrat and mystic. He is regarded as an idiosyncratic and influential figure of ...

, among others, into their work, along with their own lyrics. With Fred Mühlböck's powerful and unmistakable voice, the group's greatest successes and even a degree of international recognition came with the albums ''Sommerabend'', ''Brandung'' and ''Vielleicht Bist Du Ein Clown?'' Lutz Rahn released a 1978 solo album entitled ''Solo-Trip''. Proceeds from the group's 1979

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

, ''Flossenengel'', which was based on the theme of

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

, went to the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...

. By the early 1980s, and in the wake of the

Neue Deutsche Welle Neue Deutsche Welle (NDW, , "New German Wave") is a genre of West German rock music originally derived from post-punk and new wave music with electronic influences. The term was first coined by Dutch radio DJ Frits Spits on the popular nationwid ...

, Novalis appeared rather outmoded. The group sought a new direction, but split following numerous personnel changes. Their final album was 1985's ''Nach Uns Die Flut''. They were accompanied on tour that year by guitarist Günther Brackmann. Rahn and Biereichel put together a 1993 compilation of live recordings of Novalis at their peak.

Members

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Discography

* ''Banished Bridge'', 1973 * ''Novalis'', 1975 * ''Sommerabend'', 1976 (''Summer evening'') * ''Konzerte'', 1977 (''Concerts'') * ''Brandung'', 1977 (''Tide'') * ''Vielleicht bist du ein Clown?'', 1978 (''Maybe you're a clown?'') * ''Wer Schmetterlinge lachen hört'', 1978 (''Who hears butterflies laughing'') * ''Sonnenwende'', 1978 (''Solstice'') * ''Flossenengel'', 1979 (''Angel with fins'') * ''Augenblicke'', 1981 (''Moments'') * ''Neumond'', 1982 (''New Moon'') * ''Visionen'', 1982 (''Visions'') * ''Sterntaucher'', 1983 (''Star diver'') * ''Bumerang'', 1984 (''Boomerang'') * ''Nach uns die Flut'', 1985 (''After us the flood'') * ''Novalis lebt!'', 1993 (''Novalis lives!'', live compilation) * ''Flossenengel'', 1995 (compilation)

External links

Novalis on germanrock.de
(in German)

(in German)
Novalis on Babyblaue Prog-Reviews
(in German)

(in German) {{Authority control German rock music groups German progressive rock groups Krautrock musical groups Musical groups established in 1971 Musical groups disestablished in 1985 Brain Records artists Warner Music Sweden artists Vertigo Records artists