ELEKTROKOHLE
Elektrokohle
Bio
Elektrokohle is a Berlin-based Noise-Post-Punk trio merging the raw intensity of ’80s Punk, Krautrock, Noise, DarkSurf, and Punk-Blues into a sound they call Cold Punk. Their music draws comparisons to acts like Suicide, The Birthday Party, and Warsaw, yet remains distinct with its pounding motorik beats, hypnotic synths, abrasive guitars, and sparse bilingual vocals. Formed in 2021 during the pandemic lockdown, Elektrokohle began as a duo with guitarist Mona Manie and synth/vocalist Mr. Cigarette Butt, channeling the claustrophobic atmosphere of those years into their first lo-fi demos. The arrival of bassist Suzan Flag in 2022 completed the lineup, adding a deep, distorted edge that defined their evolving sound. The trio quickly became known for chaotic, high-intensity live performances, embodying the raw and gritty spirit of Berlin’s underground and DIY scene. Their early releases—Junkie House and Vollmond (2023, Dong Xuan Productions) and the 7" single I Wanna Cry / Abstand (2024, Dushtu Records & Off Label Records)—established them as a rising force in the European post-punk circuit. Sharing stages with artists such as Lydia Lunch, She Wants Revenge, New Model Army, Girls in Synthesis, Drahla, and Agent Side Grinder, Elektrokohle also toured Scandinavia in 2024 with Berlin’s synth-punk act Cosey Müller. In November 2024, just as their long-anticipated debut album Kalt Wie Du Bist was being released, tragedy struck: bassist and close friend Suzan Flag died in a fatal accident. Her presence permeates all ten tracks of the album, recorded shortly before her passing. The debut LP is released on Oráculo Records (home to Boy Harsher, Ultra Sunn, Blind Delon) and the album stands both as a debut and a farewell—an emotionally charged document of loss, friendship, and uncompromising creative force. The band name pays homage to the historic venue VEB Elektrokohle, site of Einstürzende Neubauten’s legendary first performance in East Berlin after the fall of the Wall in 1989—a fitting symbol for a group rooted in both history and reinvention.
Music
LP
Kalt Wie Du Bist
Limited edition of 300 copies (Oraculo Records)
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Fabio Buemi.
EP
"Elektrokohle"
The EP was recorded, mixed and mastered by
Tobias Lill / Dong Xuan Productions
October 2022
7" Single
I Wanna Cry / Abstand
The 7" Vinyl I Wanna Cry was released April 2024 with Dushtu Records (France) and Off Label Records (Germany).
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Fabio Buemi at Funkhaus.
Press
"Visceral and raw, yet, rather poignant Elektrokohle emerge in an impressive manner, and their timeless kind of directness is certainly something to behold, of which to be watchful."
Destroy and Exist
"Music from Berlin has a sound, a vibe if you will, that sets it apart from nearly everywhere else. You can hear that in the post-punk starkness of Elektrokohle."
Skreen B
"It truly sounds like a music out of time with obvious sonic references to krautrock and early German industrial and post-punk but with a sound palette of its own."
Calvin Smith
"The motorik beats, metallic utility percussion and what could be processed guitar or synth, vocals sounding like they’re coming from a tunnel, a bit of German Expressionist aesthetic and a sense of traveling back and forth in time"
Queen City Sound
"ELEKTROKOHLE’s debut album has instantly become a legendary record due to the tragic loss of their incredible bassist just hours after its release. This album is a masterclass in future punk sound; it couldn’t be more powerful or punchy, being a great legacy to actual and future generations interested in furious music."
HHV
"Picture this: ’80s punk barrels into a noise music soirée, gets a taste for the scene, and then decides it’s not leaving until it’s infused the place with some dark, krauty surf and a splash of punk-blues. They’ve dubbed this concoction “Cold Punk” – it’s like donning shades after dark, oozing cool with an air of mystery.
Poat-Punk.com
"Die Songs pendeln irgendwo zwischen alptraumhaften Stimmungen und hypnotischem Groove, während die Band einen Sound auffährt, der Erinnerungen an 'Suicide', 'The Birthday Party' oder 'Malaria!' weckt – aber eben doch mit der frischen Kälte Berlins gewürzt.
Medienkonverter
"Una macchina dall’aspetto brutalista che solo considerata nell’intera essenza rivela la sua funzione, la quale nel mercatocene corrisponde all’identità stessa. Una cupissima totalità dalle tinte metalliche avvolge dall’inizio alla fine Kalt Wie Du Bist, accogliendo l’ascoltatore sulle fredde note dell’apertura Introspective per condurlo in un viaggio attraverso un paesaggio sonoro solo all’apparenza monolitico, ma in realtà carico di influenze.
Sa Scena
Concerts
