AND ONE
By Lotta Jansson.
German trio from Berlin who broke through two weeks after the band was formed! The third album "Spot" which was released in May is in the top of selling charts in Europe. In the fall they will come to Sweden for a tour. Release called the vocalist and songwriter Steve Naghavi.
And One
was formed in 1989 by Steve Naghavi and Chris Ruiz 
who met at "Linientreu", a Berlin disco.
They decided to try to play together. Both were big lovers of Belgian EBM [Electronic Body
Music, e.g. Front 242] so they used an old drum machine and two simple keyboards to try be
like their idols.
The project and the cooperation worked out well and they compiled a demo with the best songs. After only two weeks the producer Jor nibbled. He was very interested and had plans to start an sublabel of the record company Modern Music. And One were asked if they were interested in being the first contracted band. Of course Chris and Steve said yes. Their first single "Metalhammer" was released in 1990.
The band quickly got a chance to play live and they was very well received of a fast
growing audience. They played at parties and Depeche Mode convents, and opening for a
Split Second, Consolidated, Pankow and Die Form among others. This led to that And One
reached a larger crowd than other newly started bands usually have the chance to do. With
this starting position there was no room for failure. And One were expanded with Alex Two
on keyboards and
they released their debute LP "Anguish".
Politics have always been interesting for Steve and during the Gulf War he followed the news all the time and sampled speeches of wellknown politicians. This was part of the producing of the song with the working title "Saddam Hussein", which was supposed to be their next maxi. Machinery [Jor Mulder's label] thought it was a too big risk to call the song "Saddam Hussein" and release it right during the war. They waited to the end of the war and then released the single under the name of "Aus der Traum". The maxi got a hearty reception and the sales beat the old records. Dance floors all over Europe was filled and German Frontpage's readers voted And One for best new-comer in 1991.
And One were of course very satisfied and the profits from "Aus der Traum" was given to Greenpeace, with the line "the true victim of the war is the nature". "Techno Man" became the next single and And One was a fact. Their typical sound appeals to listeners all over Europe and in Spain they sell more than for instance Bryan Adams and KLF. With this song the band reached out to a wider audience and DJs who usually won't play EBM took it to their hearts. The following album "Flop!" was released under Machinery's anti drug motto: "Keine macht den Drogen!", together with other bands such as Oomph! and Snog.
Chris Ruiz leaves the band without any excitement. Why?
- He was never interested in making music professionally but wanted to have And One more like a hobby project. Chris didn't find himself having time with touring, interviews and so on. His ideas didn't work with mine and Alex's, so he simply left us on our own.
Joke Jay is the name of the new member who was supposed to fill the place Chris
left on backing vocals and drums. Joke and Steve also writes songs together.
- Together we want to picture the problems of young Germansdue to the fall of the Wall and how we together can be strong and solve the problems.
The successes of And One continued with "Monotonie" were Steve's and Joke's cooperation showed in the shape of the song "Turn the Nation", which became the next top hit. Neverending success followed And One and the band they seemed to be comfortable with their newly won place at the German EBM-top. An European tour followed with 25 concerts in Germany, Belgium, Hungary and Spain.
- We really love to play live and to see new places. There is always a lot of nice people around you when you're on a tour. I have always loved to dance and to sing, Steve tells.It is very important for us to get out and see our fans and talk to them. We try to vary ourself as much as possible and we always make live remixes of our songs to make the music not too much like the one on our records.
Are you going to release any live video?
- It is possible. We already have material recorded, but it has to be mixed together.
What has inspired you to these hits that have become such successes?
- First of all Depeche Mode, to whom I've been listening to since I was twelve. I listen very much to all kind of music except jazz. Ice T, Panthera and Ministry are bands I like a lot. But mostly it is the real life that brings me inspiration.
Steve continues:
- I often write the basics of new songs when we are out on the road. That's when I get good ideas and start playing them for instance on our bus on our way to a new place. I always bring a small battery powered keyboard so that I can play the melody lines I get on my mind at once, before they disappear.
And One's lyrics are a bit strange and often has an ironical undertone. Steve tells that the lyrics are the most important of the song and he finds it important reaching out with his message to the fans.
- My lyrics often speaks of things I react over, positively or negatively. They reflect the period of my life when the songs were written and contains both sorrow and joy.
In January 1993 comes the single "Life Isn't Easy in Germany", were one D-Mark per record goes to the saving of the East German youth clubs. This is part of an action called "Rettet die Jugendklubs" that And One formed to save those youth clubs that before the German unification was supported by the DDR government. The project means that German mega artists like Udo Lindenberg and Nina Hagen shall support one club each by giving the profits from one of their concerts to their specific club. And One will perform such a show in September during their tour. The project seems to work well, but the band don't want to comment it until fall when most shows will take place. The action also means to increase the understanding between kids in the West and kids in the East and work against that the East becomes a cultural developing country.
For "Life Isn't Easy in Germany" there has been made a video, but slighly delayed. That due to problems during the shooting. Steve tells:
- During three days we ran around in Berlin to fix a funny and good video for our new single. I drove all kinds of vehicles. Unfortunately, the recording was too dark and we also managed to spoil some of the film because the camera broke. It was just to start all over again...
Thanks to supportive fans And One kept the moods high and eventually the final video product appeared at important TV channels like MTV, were it has been played a lot. The video was especially produced as a presentation of the band, but of course it also works as an important promotion.
- Good promotion is very important for a band of today, Steve says. We have got very good back-up from Machinery Records and we are satisfied with their work. There is no point in changing to a major label now that we have grown, since Machinery has grown with us. To be albe to do a good job there is a need to have a working cooperation.
The result of the stay in the Machinery studio in Berlin turned up as the album "Spot", which was released in the middle of May this year [1993]. Here Steve and the others have taken help from a ten-year-old girl from Serbia, who Steve met at Mc Donald's in Berlin.
- We needed a young girl's voice for "Hall of Souls", and Serbia is very actual right now, so I asked her if she wanted to contribute, Steve adds.
On "Friends of the Stars" it was originally supposed to have Steve's girlfriend to sing, but Jor, the producer, wasn't completely satisfied. The record company then contacted the singer Ofra Haza, who at the moment visited Berlin. She was positive to contribute and spent a couple of hours in the studio together with And One.
Which one of your songs do you like the most, personally?
- "Consequence of Time", Steve says without a doubt. It will probably become our next single in a dance version. We have already remixed it to a radio version, with also will be the music for our next video. As b-side we want to have "Wild Pain" in a club-song remix. However, this is not finally decided yet, since we want to hear people's reaction upon our material, before we decide what songs to release as single.
The record company has also mentioned "Recover You", "Wild Pain", "Friend of Stars" and "Hall of Souls" as possible singles. They have thought of a voting where interested can send their votes for which song they want to become the next And One single. (Machinery Records, P.O. Box 11 0226, W - 1000 Berlin 30).
The lyrics on "Spot" Steve has a lot to tell about. For example "Tanz der Arroganz", which they made as an attempt to end all those malicious rumours that have been spreading like rings on water during And One's increasing success.
- When we haven't been as much in media as other larger German bands have there for instance been rumours spreading that we are very arrogant and don't want to give interviews. It is typical for when a band points out a little and don't follow common paths, they quickly get words on them saying they are very strange. If we want to arrogant, for instance, well, let us be!
Talking of media, Steve was voted "Germany's sexiest teenager 1992" in the teenager magazine Tempo. He seems most embarrassed and doesn't actually want to comment it.
- I hope that people listen to our music because they like it, not because of what we look like!
What about the electronic scene in Germany nowadays?
- It feels like if the state is unchanged, but there were more and better bands before. We try to make a compromise between EBM and pop to reach out to a wider audience and to have a style of our own. Our music is meant for everyone, not just a small group who just listens to EBM, for instance.
And One will come to Sweden for a tour in September. Steve tells that it will be fun to come here, since noone in the band has been here before.
- Sweden seems to be such a nice country with nice people. Not like Germany with giant terrible dirty cities, there is so much hate here. I would like to live in another country, but it is a big step to take!
What do you think of the reunion of East and West Germany?
- It was about time, but is has caused some big problems to both sides that noone really had counted for or imagined. In a few years when the worst things have gotten into order and both sides have got used to each other we will probably feel like one country again.
What about your fans? Are they both in East and West?
- The majority and the most devoted fans are definetly in the East, but we sell most records in the West, since it's there where people can afford it. Unfortunately, the differences are giant when it comes to the economical standard.
What will And One sound like in the future?
- We will follow the same path, but try to avoid to repeat ourselves. It is important for a band to have a concept which is their sign, onto which the fans can tie the music. I am still the same composer, but I will probably surprise myself as usual.
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