The BossHoss is a German band from

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, founded in 2004. They originally started with

country and western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

style cover versions of famous pop, rock and hip hop songs, for example "

Hot in Herre "Hot in Herre" is a song by American rapper Nelly, released as the first single from his second studio album ''Nellyville'' (2002). It was released on May 7, 2002, by Universal Records. It was written by Nelly, Charles Brown, and the producers ...

" by

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...

, "

Toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...

" by

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

and "

Hey Ya! "Hey Ya!" is a song performed by American hip-hop duo Outkast, specifically group member André 3000, who wrote and produced the song. Along with "The Way You Move", recorded by Outkast's other member Big Boi, "Hey Ya!" was released by Arista ...

" by Outkast. They incorporate stereotypical American

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

behavior into their act; they wear

Stetson Stetson is a brand of hat manufactured by the John B. Stetson Company. "Stetson" is also used as a generic trademark to refer to any campaign hat, in particular, in Scouting. John B. Stetson gained inspiration for his most famous hats when he ...

hats, tank tops and large sunglasses, and display whiskey bottles. The band refers to their music style as "Country Trash Punk Rock."

Band history

The band was formed in 2004 in Berlin by Alec "Boss" Völkel, Sascha "Hoss" Vollmer and Michael Frick, and named after the song "The Real BossHoss" by

The Sonics The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington, Tacoma, Washington (state), Washington that formed in 1960. Their aggressive, hard-edged sound has been a major influence on Punk rock, punk and Garage rock, garage music worl ...

. They were featured in the trendsetting music show ''Tracks'' (on French/German TV channel

ARTE Arte (; (), sometimes stylized in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European public service channel dedicated to culture. It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE, plus ...

) and played live during the

Kiel Week The Kiel Week (german: Kieler Woche) or Kiel Regatta is an annual sailing event in Kiel, the capital of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the largest sailing event in Europe, and also one of the largest Volksfeste in Germany, attracting ...

. In late 2004, they signed a record deal with ''

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, Dutch law. UMG's cor ...

Domestic Division''. In 2005, they released their debut album ''Internashville Urban Hymns'' and signed a promotional contract with ice cream producer

Langnese This is a list of brands owned by the British multinational consumer goods company Unilever. Unilever's billion euro brands These brands have annual sales of one billion euros or more: * Axe/Lynx *Dove *Omo/Persil * Heartbrand (Wall's) ice ...

, for which they covered "

Like Ice in the Sunshine "Ice in the Sunshine" is a song by German pop group Beagle Music Ltd. Initially composed and recorded as a jingle for a 1985 Langnese cinema commercial, it gained massive popularity after its screenings and was subsequently released as a single i ...

", the theme song from a Langnese's TV spot. The band played about 180 concerts that year. In 2005, they adapted "Ca plane pour moi" from Belgian artist

Plastic Bertrand Roger François Jouret (born 24 February 1954), better known as Plastic Bertrand, is a Belgium, Belgian musician, songwriter, producer, editor and television presenter, best known for the 1977 international hit single "Ça plane pour moi". Bi ...

. In 2006, BossHoss provided the soundtrack for the football film '. Release of the first single "I Say a Little Prayer" on April 28 and the second album "Rodeo Radio" on May 19. Half of that second album were their own songs, the other half cover versions. After they had released the second album, their first album rose into the charts again, sold 100,000 copies by the end of May 2006, and became a

gold record Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile meta ...

in Germany.

Band members

The BossHoss - Oberhausen - Leonhard Kreissig - 14

* ''Boss Burns'' (Alec Völkel) - vocals, washboard Although his beard is majestic, unlike Henrik Zetterberg of Detroit Redwing fame,it does not grant immortality if touched. * ''Hoss Power'' (Sascha Vollmer) - acoustic and

electric Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by ...

guitars, vocals * ''Sir Frank Doe'' (Ansgar Freyberg) -

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

* ''Hank Williamson'' (Malcolm Arison) -

mandoline file:Cooking Mandolin with Carrot.jpg, A mandoline used for slicing a carrot A mandoline (US, ) or mandolin (British, /ˌmandəˈlɪn/, /ˈmandəlɪn/, /ˈmandl̩ɪn/), is a culinary utensil used for slicing and for cutting Julienning, juliennes ...

, washboard, stylophone,

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

* ''Guss Brooks'' (André Neumann) - acoustic and

basses * ''Russ T. Rocket'' (Stefan Buehler) - electric guitar * ''Ernesto Escobar de Tijuana'' (Tobias Fischer) -

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

keytar The keytar is a lightweight synthesizer that is supported by a strap around the neck and shoulders, similar to the way a guitar is supported by a strap. Keytars allow players a greater range of movement onstage, compared to conventional keyboard ...

melodica The melodica is a handheld free-reed instrument similar to a pump organ or harmonica. It features a musical keyboard on top, and is played by blowing air through a mouthpiece that fits into a hole in the side of the instrument. The keyboard usual ...

Past members

* Michael Frick -

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

* ''Russ'' (Boris Kontorkowski) - electric guitar * ''Russ T. Nail'' (Dean Micetech) - electric guitar * ''Hank Doodle'' (Mathias Fauvet) - mandolin, washboard, harp

Discography

Studio albums

;Others *Stallion Battalion live from Cologne'' (Released March 7, 2008) (Double-CD plus DVD)

Singles

Notes *"Hey Ya!" is a cover of OutKast *"Hot in Herre / Like Ice in the Sunshine" is a

double A side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

single with covers of

and the

theme *"Heroes/helden" is a remake of David Bowie's "Heroes" *''Christmas-CD'' contains a cover of "

Last Christmas "Last Christmas" is a song by British pop duo Wham!, originally released in December 1984 on CBS Records internationally and as a double A-side on Epic Records with "Everything She Wants" in the UK. Described as a "high watermark of mid-80s Br ...

" by

Wham! Wham! (briefly known in the US as Wham! U.K.) were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981. The duo consisted of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They became one of the most commercially successful pop acts of the 1980s, selling more ...

and "Riding Home for Christmas" *"

I Say a Little Prayer "I Say a Little Prayer" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David for Dionne Warwick, originally peaking at number four on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 pop singles chart in December 1967. On the R&B Singles chart it peaked at number ...

" is a Bacharach-David composition; side B is "

You'll Never Walk Alone "You'll Never Walk Alone" is a show tune from the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ''Carousel''. In the second act of the musical, Nettie Fowler, the cousin of the protagonist Julie Jordan, sings "You'll Never Walk Alone" to comfort and enco ...

", a Rodgers-Hammerstein composition *"Ring, Ring, Ring" is a cover of

De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative ...

DVDs

*''Internashville Urban Hymns, die DVDs'' (2005; available only in Germany)

References

External links

*
Biography at Motor Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:BossHoss, The German parodists Musical groups established in 2004 German country rock groups Musical groups from Berlin Parody musicians