Leæther Strip is a Danish musical project founded on 13 January 1988 by Claus Larsen. Its influence has been most felt in the

electronic body music Electronic body music (EBM) is a genre of electronic music that combines elements of industrial music and synth-punk with elements of dance music. It developed in the early 1980s in Western Europe, as an outgrowth of both the punk and the in ...

and

electro-industrial Electro-industrial is a music genre that emerged from industrial music in the early 1980s. While EBM (electronic body music) has a minimal structure and clean production, electro-industrial tends to have a grittier, complex and layered sound ...

genres. Leæther Strip was one of the earliest and most prominent acts on Germany's now defunct

Zoth Ommog Zoth Ommog Records was a German record label that focused on Industrial music and was owned by parent label Music Research. The company was established by German music producer Andreas Tomalla (aka Talla 2XLC) in 1989 and later handed over to pro ...

record label. For distribution outside of Europe, the music has been licensed to the U.S. labels

Cleopatra Records Cleopatra Records is a Los Angeles-based independent record label that has the sub-labels Hypnotic Records, Goldenlane, Stardust, Purple Pyramid, Deadline and X-Ray Records. History Founded in January 1992 by Brian Perera, it specializes in go ...

and

Metropolis Records Metropolis Records is a record label that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania ...

. After the demise of Zoth Ommog in 1999, Larsen signed to Bloodline Records, which only released a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

before also going out of business. In 2005, Leæther Strip signed with the Belgian-based label

Alfa Matrix Alfa Matrix is a Belgian record label. Founded in 2001, the label releases musical styles including aggrotech, industrial music, dark elektro, synthpop, and electronica. Based in Brussels, the label consists of label and artists manager Séba ...

. On 3 June 2011 Larsen announced his split from Alfa Matrix in order to self-release future material.

History

Larsen was born on 13 November 1967 in

Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...

, Denmark. He first released music under the name of Leæther Strip in 1989, but he had been in as many as three bands previously, the last of which was a solo "instrumental melodic techno" project named Forbidden Art. His 1995 release ''G.A.W.M.U.S.'' (Getting Away With Murder U. S.) included two early demos from 1982 and 1984, with the latter forming the unknown beginning of the band according to an interview conducted with Claus Larsen. In 1991, Larsen created a side-project called

Klute ''Klute'' is a 1971 American neo-noir psychological thriller film directed and produced by Alan J. Pakula and starring Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, Charles Cioffi, Nathan George, Dorothy Tristan, Roy Scheider and Rita Gam. Its plot follows a ...

in which he also remained the sole member. The band name was intended to convey the literal meaning — a small band of leather — though Larsen has been guarded as to the reason. During some early shows, the racy implications of the name "strip" led some to believe that his act was explicitly pornographic to the point where one show was scouted by a pornographic magazine. His first album, ''The Pleasure of Penetration'', was produced by Talla 2XLC (Andreas Tomalla of

Bigod 20 Bigod 20 was a German EBM-techno band which was formed in 1988 by music producers Andreas Tomalla (a.k.a. Talla 2XLC and formerly of the band Moskwa TV) and Markus Nikolai (a.k.a. Jallokin). Nikolai, together with Thomas Franzmann, run the Berl ...

) and Ra/Hen (Ralf Henrich of Robotiko Rejekto) and released on the German label

Zoth Ommog Records Zoth Ommog Records was a German record label that focused on Industrial music and was owned by parent label Music Research. The company was established by German music producer Andreas Tomalla (aka Talla 2XLC) in 1989 and later handed over to pro ...

. His early records were labeled "industrial" music, although Larsen himself had no specific opinion of what genre the music fit into. In 1994, Larsen changed the sound of Leæther Strip, with the release of a synthesized semi classical album, ''Serenade for the Dead'', which was conceived as a soundtrack to a fictional film. This change in sound was compounded by the tragedy of the near death of his father and culminated in the darker and more somber 1995 album ''Legacy of Hate and Lust''. The releases since then have reincorporated electronic dance elements, and have redefined Leæther Strip into what Larsen calls "symphonic electro". Leæther Strip remained silent for several years after the release of the single ''Carry Me'' in 2000 and the official band website, which once contained a wealth of information regarding the project, was taken offline. In foreshadowing the return of his band, Larsen's remix of the band KiEw's song ''Graograman'' on the ''Diskette'' EP (2003) states at the beginning of the song, in a sing-song computer-generated voice, ''"Leæther Strip will return for more electronic mayhem"''. In an interview conducted late 2005, Larsen revealed that label issues, as well as personal concerns, caused the dormancy of the band during the 2000–2005 period. 28 October 2005 marked the official return of Leæther Strip with the EP release ''Suicide Bombers'' on the

label. Claus Larsen opened a

blog A blog (a Clipping (morphology), truncation of "weblog") is an informational website consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries also known as posts. Posts are typically displayed in Reverse chronology, reverse chronologic ...

to inform fans of his current activities and progress on the project. A string of releases followed including the 2-CD album ''After the Devastation'', and the 2006 EP releases ''Walking on Volcanos'' and ''Fætish''. Also in 2006, Claus Larsen released a free song via his

MySpace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

page, a remix of ''Frank Tovey taught me things''. The song was subsequently downloaded over 10,000 times. On

13 April Events Pre-1600 *1111 – Henry V, King of Germany, is crowned Holy Roman Emperor. *1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire. * 1455 – Thirteen Years' War: th ...

2007, Leæther Strip released the album ''The Giant Minutes to the Dawn''. It was made available in several editions, including a special limited edition box-set which includes the band's first DVD release. According to various reviewers, the album constituted the "true" return of the band to classic Leæther Strip form. In a post to his MySpace blog made in late November 2008, Larsen announced his intention to develop a

live show Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film * ''Live'' (2023 film), a Malayalam-language film *'' Live: Phát Trực Tiếp'', a Vietnamese-langua ...

for a small run of exclusive engagements in 2009. Two shows took place in Denmark in April 2009, and Leaether Strip has been confirmed to perform at the Power Strip Festival in the USA and the Amphi Festival in Germany during Summer 2009. Via a video teaser on YouTube Claus Larsen announced that the first Leaether Strip album, ''

The Pleasure of Penetration ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'', would be re-released as a remastered double CD set on 13 November 2007, Claus Larsen's birthday, under the title ''Retention n°1''. The release is part of an ongoing box series through which Claus Larsen will re-release his complete back-catalogue via the Belgian label

. Each re-release will have both the fully remastered version of the original album on disc 1 and on the second disc, a totally re-written and reinterpretation of some selected songs from the original album by Leaether Strip himself re-recorded with current technologies. The original track-list on disc 1 has been extended to 15 tracks with the addition of early 12" tracks and other rarities of the period. 13-03-23 e-tropolis Leatherstrip 07

Larsen's lyrics for Leaether Strip are often frank and direct, sometimes to the point of being hostile. Political songs include the anti-Nazi song "AEighty AEight" which contains the chorus "You are not human / You are not soldiers" as well as the song "Suicide Bombers" (On the

Suicide Bombers A suicide attack (also known by a wide variety of other names, see below) is a deliberate attack in which the perpetrators knowingly sacrifice their own lives as part of the attack. These attacks are a form of murder–suicide that is ofte ...

EP) with its chorus question, "Who told you to die that way?" More frequently, Larsen explores his own personal issues in the same open fashion, resulting in many tracks that are simultaneously aggressive and introspective. Larsen's husband and band companion, Kurt Grünewaldt Hansen, died on 28 September 2020, after a battle with cancer, aged 75.

Discography

; Albums * 1990 – ''

'' * 1990 – ''

Science for the Satanic Citizen ''Science for the Satanic Citizen'' is a 1990 album by Leæther Strip, released by Zoth Ommog. It incorporates a number of samples from films, including Hellraiser. Track listing # "Zyklon B" # "G.A.W.M." # "Rotation (Axis Off)" # "Satanic Citize ...

'' * 1992 – ''

Solitary Confinement Solitary confinement (also shortened to solitary) is a form of imprisonment in which an incarcerated person lives in a single Prison cell, cell with little or no contact with other people. It is a punitive tool used within the prison system to ...

'' * 1993 – ''

Underneath the Laughter ''Underneath the Laughter'' is a 1993 Leæther Strip album released by Zoth Ommog Records Zoth Ommog Records was a German record label that focused on Industrial music and was owned by parent label Music Research. The company was established by ...

'' * 1994 – '' Serenade for the Dead'' * 1995 – '' Legacy of Hate and Lust'' * 1996 – '' The Rebirth of Agony'' * 1997 – '' Self-Inflicted'' * 2005 – '' After the Devastation'' (2 CD) * 2007 – ''

The Giant Minutes to the Dawn ''The Giant Minutes to the Dawn'' is an album by Leaether Strip. Some editions of the album included the bonus EP ''The Hourglass''. Track listing # "Will the Sun Return?" # "Dirty Little Secret" # "Sedated Nation" # "Commotio" # "The Trouble" # ...

'' * 2008 – ''

Civil Disobedience Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizenship, citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be cal ...

'' (2 CD) * 2009 – ''

Ængelmaker ''Ængelmaker'' is the twelfth studio album by Danish electro-industrial musical project Leæther Strip. It was released on March 27, 200 Some editions of the album include the bonus EP Yes, I'm Limited Vol. IV. Track listing Disc 1 # Ængelmake ...

'' (2 CD) * 2009 – ''Yes I'm Limited V'' (2 CD) * 2009 – ''Hærværk'' * 2010 – ''Seasons Change – I Don't'' * 2010 – ''Mental Slavery'' (2 CD) * 2011 – ''Untold Stories – The Melancholic Sessions'' * 2013 – ''Serenade for the Dead II'' * 2014 – ''Æscapism'' * 2014 – ''Æppreciation'' * 2016 – ''Spaectator'' * 2017 – 50 * 2018 – ''World Molæster'' ; EP/single releases * 1989 – ''Japanese Bodies'' – 12"S * 1990 – ''Aspects of Aggression'' – EP CD * 1991 – ''Object V'' – EP CD * 1994 – ''Positive Depression'' – EP CD * 1995 – ''Material'' – EP CD * 1997 – ''Anal Cabaret: A Tribute to Soft Cell'' – EP CD * 2000 – ''Carry Me'' – CDS – #38 DAC Top 100 Singles of 2000 * 2005 – ''Suicide Bombers'' – EP CD – #1 DAC Singles chart * 2006 – ''Walking on Volcanos'' – EP CD – #8 DAC Singles chart * 2006 – ''Fætish'' – EP CD – #3 DAC Singles chart * 2008 – ''When Blood Runs Dark'' – Digital-only EP * 2008 – ''Diægnosis'' – Digital-only EP * 2008 – ''Living on Video'' – Single (

) * 2012 – ''Object ÆP'' * 2012 – ''In Broken Homes / Paranoia nr. 13 '' * 2016 – ''Pleasure Boys'' – Single (

) ; Compilations * 1992 – '' Penetrate the Satanic Citizen'' * 1993 – '' Fit for Flogging'' * 1995 – ''

Double or Nothing Double or nothing (UK often double or quits) is a gamble to decide whether a loss or debt should be doubled. The result of a "double or nothing" bet is either cancellation of a debt ''or'' the doubling of a debt. It can be seen as a gentleman's ag ...

'' (2 CD) * 1995 – '' Getting Away With Murder: Murders from 1982 to 1995'' * 1996 – '' Best of Leæther Strip'' * 1997 – ''

Retrospective A retrospective (from Latin ', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in software development, popular culture, and the arts. ...

'' * 2005 – '' Satanic Reasons: The Very Best Of'' (2 CD) ; Limited releases * 1992 – ''Yes, I'm Limited'' – EP CD * 1996 – ''Yes, I'm Limited Vol. II'' – #29

CMJ CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events, online media company and a distributor of up and coming music CDs, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music ...

RPM Chart * 1998 – ''Yes, I'm Limited Vol. III'' (2 CD) – #15 CMJ RPM Chart * 2005 – ''Æftershock'' – CDS (available only with the ''After the Devastation'' limited box edition) * 2006 – ''Hælloween'' – EP CD (available only with the ''Fætish'' limited box edition) * 2007 – ''The Hourglass'' – EP CD (available only with ''The Giant Minutes to the Dawn'' limited box edition) * 2008 – ''One Nine Eight Two'' – CDS (available only with the ''Civil Disobedience'' limited box edition) * 2009 – ''Yes, I'm Limited Vol. IV'' – EP CD (available only with the ''Ængelmaker'' limited box edition) ; DVD releases * 2007 – ''Watch'' – DVD NSTC region 0 (available only with the limited box edition ''The Giant Minutes to the Dawn'') ; Other releases * 1997 – "X-Files Theme" (arrangement of

Mark Snow Mark Snow (born Martin Fulterman; August 26, 1946) is an American composer for film and television. Among his most famous compositions is the theme music for science fiction television series '' The X-Files''. ''The X Files'' instrumental wa ...

) on ''Sci-Fi Cafe'' (Hypnotic – CLP 0097-2) * 1999 – ''Serenade for the Dead (re-mastered)'' (2 CD) * 2006 – ''After the Devastation (Limited 3 CD Special Bag Edition)'' : Limited edition of the double album includes: After The Devastation" Limited Edition 3-CD Box Set, "Evacuate Or Die", Double Sided Printed T-Shirt, Poster and Deluxe Bag, Matri-X-traX Chapter I and some postcards * 2006 – ''Fætish (Limited 2 CD Box)'' : Limited to 2000 copies including "Hælloween" 5-track EP, some special fetish goodies (condom, button, postcards) and a booklet full of Leæther Strip fans fetish artwork. * 2007 – ''The Giant Minutes to the Dawn (2 CD+DVD fan boxset)'' : Limited edition including "The Hourglass" EP, "Watch" DVD, the "Trust your instinct" T-shirt and some fan goodies * 2007 – ''Retention no.1'' (2CD) : Reedition of first album ''

'' (re-mastered) + ''The Pleasure of Reproduction'' which includes 2007 re-recordings of first album. * 2008 – ''Retention no.2'' (2CD) : Reedition of second album ''

'' and EP '' Object V'' (re-mastered) + ''Science for the Satanic Spawn'' which includes 2008 re-recordings of both aforementioned releases. * 2011 – Louis Guidone – Meet Your Maker – LGCD06 – Guest Vocalist * 2013 – Vaylon – Primus (Digital Album Mastering) * 2013 – Vaylon – A Part Of Me (Remix & Mastering) * 2014 – Vaylon – Primus VIP Edition (CD Mastering) * 2014 – Vaylon – Magnum Opus (Digital Album Mastering) * 2014 �
Vaylon
�
Magnum Opus – VIP Edition Part One
(CD Mastering) * 2014 �
Vaylon
�
Magnum Opus – VIP Edition Part Two
(CD Mastering) * 2014 �
Vaylon
�
Everything Glows
(Digital EP Mastering)

Side projects

* Klutæ –

side-project, formerly known as Klute

Influenced

Cenobita Cenobita is an aggrotech/cyberpunk band based in Mexico City, created in 1994 by Claus Bita (programming, vocals and production) and former band member Omar Flo (vocals). History Cenobita formed as a duo of Claus Bita and Omar Flo in August 1994 ...

Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft (; "German-American Friendship"), or D.A.F., was a German electropunk/Neue Deutsche Welle band from Düsseldorf, formed in 1978 featuring Gabi Delgado-López, Gabriel "Gabi" Delgado-López (vocals), Robert Gör ...

* Dunkelwerk *

Fad Gadget Francis John Tovey (8 September 1956 – 3 April 2002), known also by his stage name Fad Gadget, was a British avant-garde electronic musician and vocalist. He was a proponent of both new wave and early industrial music, fusing pop-struc ...

Hocico Hocico () is a Mexican electro-industrial duo that was formed in 1993 in Mexico City. History Hocico was officially formed in 1993 by cousins Eric Garcia (aka Erk Aicrag) and Oscar Mayorga (aka Racso Agroyam), with Eric writing lyrics and perfo ...

Psychopomps Psychopomps (from the Greek word , , literally meaning the 'guide of souls') are creatures, spirits, angels, demons, or deities in many religions whose responsibility is to escort newly deceased souls from Earth to the afterlife. Their role is ...

Suicide Commando Suicide Commando is a Belgian electro-industrial music act formed by Johan Van Roy in 1986. For live shows, it consists of Van Roy himself on vocals, Torben Schmidt on keyboards, and Mario Vaerewijck on drums. History Van Roy began experimen ...

Wumpscut Wumpscut (stylised as :wumpscut: or simply :w:) is a gothic-influenced electro-industrial music project from Germany. It was founded in May 1991 by Bavarian disc jockey Rudolf "Rudy" Ratzinger (born 1966). Through 2016, Rudy Ratzinger released s ...

References

External links

* Strip Material – Fan Site
Strip Material , Leæther Strip / Klutæ / Sequential Access / Am Tierpark fan site

Official Label webpage
at

Leæther Strip
at

*
Discography of Leæther Strip
at

Discogs Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...

Discography of Leæther Strip Discography is the study and cataloging of published sound recordings, often by specified artists or within identified music genres. The exact information included varies depending on the type and scope of the discography, but a discography entry ...