Der Plan -

Der Plan are a German NDW trio who pioneered experimental synth-pop and dadaist electronics across six albums on Ata Tak between 1980 and 1991. They fused surreal lyricism with DIY electronics on Geri Reig (1980) and crystallized their self-styled electronic schlager on Normalette Surprise (1981).

The group expanded into film soundtracks with Die letzte Rache (1983) and twisted light-hearted forms into subversive structures on Fette Jahre (1985) and Es ist eine fremde und seltsame Welt (1987). Their innovations in minimal synth, audio collage, and staged absurdity left a lasting imprint on the Neue Deutsche Welle underground.

Members: Moritz R (vocals), Frank Fenstermacher (percussion, keyboards, 1979-93), Kai Horn (1979), Chrislo (synthesizer, 1979-80), Robert Görl (synthesizer, 1979-80), Kurt Dahlke (synthesizer, 1979-93)

Background

Der Plan formed in Düsseldorf in early 1979 under the name Weltaufstandsplan (World Uprising Plan), when Moritz Reichelt (Moritz R®) and Frank Fenstermacher joined forces around a raw, anti-band concept that treated rhythm, voice, and noise as interchangeable sonic material. Kai Horn rounded out the original trio but exited before any recordings, pushing the project into an open-ended, studio-based format rooted in collage and found-sound tactics.

Their first phase culminated in an untitled 7″ EP—commonly known as Das Fleisch—pressed in August 1979 at 33⅓ rpm in a hand-numbered edition of 1,500 copies.

For the sessions, the group used two original DAF members, synthesist Chrislo Haas and drummer Robert Görl, respectively credited as Pkz161156 and Gogo Girl. They recorded the material on a cassette dictation machine, assembling a jagged sequence of unnamed segments across both sides, with only “Das Fleisch” receiving a title in the documentation. Der Plan spray-painted a portion of the sleeves in silver and gray by hand, locking their cut-and-paste visual aesthetic to the sonic irreverence that soon defined the Ata Tak label.

Geri Reig

Der Plan released their debut album, Geri Reig, in May 1980 on Ata Tak.

The album presents a tightly-wired set of experimental miniatures shaped by minimal synth figures, rigid drum machine patterns, and abrupt electro-acoustic insertions.

Keyboardist Moritz R. weaves wiry, staccato patterns against analog pulses and synthetic stabs, while guitarist Frank Fenstermacher adds dissonant accents and clipped chords that mirror the vocal phrasing. Percussive anchor Pyrolator manipulates drum boxes and sequences as a destabilized underpin, often disrupting pulse to reinforce the album’s spliced structure and jagged timing.

Geri Reig opens with terse, agitated bursts on “Adrenalin Lässt Das Blut Kochen,” where clipped patterns dart across rigid synthetic beats in erratic formation. The title track warps this intensity into a fragmented chant, dropping processed voices into broken rhythmic loops. “Gefährliche Clowns” strips down further into skeletal pulses and metallic pangs, its vocal lines reduced to static-drenched punctuations. “Hans und Gabi” hinges on blocky staccato repetition with filtered voices that snap around a weaving synth pattern.

On Side B, “Commerce Extérieur Mondial Sentimental” piles short, spiraling segments into a mechanical tumble, but soon slips into pure texture-manipulation, with later tracks adopting a near-collage logic—bitcrushed fragments, sputtering filters, childish motifs, and sharp bursts of rhythm tumbling unpredictably. Throughout, the album sustains a disoriented, near-theatrical tension where composition edges into destabilized play.

A1. “Adrenalin lässt das Blut Kochen” [Adrenaline Makes the Blood Boil] (3:14)
A2. “Geri Regi” (2:28)
A3. “Persisches Cowboy-Golf” [Persian Cowboy Golf] (1:21)
A4. “Gefährliche Clowns” [Dangerous Clowns] (3:22)
A5. “Kleine Grabesstille” [Little Deathly Silence] (1:05)
A6. “Der Weltaufstandsplan” [The Global Uprising Plan] (2:42)
A7. “Hans und Gabi” (3:08)

B1. “Commerce Extérieur Mondial Sentimentale” [Sentimental Global Foreign Trade] (2:45)
B2. “Was ich von mir denke” [What I Think About Myself] (3:32)
B3. “San José Car Muzak” (2:58)
B4. “Erste Begegnung mit dem Tod” [First Encounter With Death] (0:48)
B5. “Ich bin schizophren” [I Am Schizophrenic] (2:47)
B6. “Nessie” (1:28)
B7. “Gefährliche Clowns (Manisch-Idiotisch)” [Dangerous Clowns (Manic-Idiotic)] (4:57)
B8. “Die Welt ist schlecht” [The World Is Bad] (1:50)

Der Plan recorded Geri Reig between November 1979 and January 1980 at Art Attack Studios, then self-produced the album while arranging and realizing the material as a closed unit. Moritz R. and Frank coordinated the design, incorporating surrealist visual elements by Milan Kunc and Che Andrea. The LP appeared jointly on the Warning and Ata Tak labels.

Non-album single, 1980:
A. “Da Vorne Steht ‘Ne Ampel” [There’s a Traffic Light Up Ahead] (2:33)
B. “Rot-Grün-Tot” [Red-Green-Dead] (2:53)

Normalette Surprise

Der Plan released their second album, Normalette Surprise, in March 1981 on Ata Tak. The title refers to Side A, comprised of twelve tracks at 33 rpm. Side B (titled Wat’s Dat?) contains three tracks at 45 rpm.

The album tightens their toybox aesthetic with compressed vignettes stitched from voice collage, sequenced pulses, and abrupt tonal pivots.

Keyboardist Kurt Dahlke (Pyrolator) alternates between mechanistic phrasing and warped melodic shapes, while guitarist Frank Fenstermacher inserts clipped stabs and abrupt changes in pacing, often punctuating Moritz R.’s textural overlays. Percussion anchors these units with programmed rigidity, acting as a fulcrum through sudden shifts and dislocated tempo fragments.

Normalette Surprise narrows its patterns into clipped, modular rhythms that churn beneath splintered synth tones and tightly coiled vocal lines. “Leb Doch” threads a steady beat under warped intonations and sharp synthetic overlays, while “Meine Freunde” collapses melody into short, tilted phrases that never resolve, creating friction between cadence and content. “Kleine Schlager-Revue” shifts toward sampled fragments, filtering its vocal textures through flattened rhythmic pacing and disorienting tonal juxtapositions.

“Generäle Essen Erdbeereis” cuts in with a taut, repeat-heavy motif that punches in sequence before fading abruptly. Across the album, Der Plan’s textures remain jagged and hyper-controlled, but each track bends the frame further, from the glitched alarms of “Zurück in die Atmosphäre” to the stuttering bounce of “Da Vorne Steht Ne Ampel,” which spirals through a clipped pulse into a curt, whistled refrain. The brevity of each piece heightens their fragmentary tension, collapsing parody and abstraction into precise, short-circuited forms.

A1. “Lebdoch!” [Live, Will You!] (2:10)
A2. “Renate” (2:13)
A3. “Meine Freunde” [My Friends] (2:02)
A4. “Sie Hat Mich Verlassen” [She Left Me] (1:53)
A5. “Pausen-Sassa” [Breaktime Sassa] (1:58)
A6. “Wenn Der Sonne Ist Verblüht” [When the Sun Has Withered] (2:10)
A7. “Kleine Schlager-Revue” [Little Schlager Revue] (2:33)
A8. “Frl. Nicol” [Miss Nicol] (2:05)
A9. “Ich Bin Ein Komputer” [I Am a Computer] (1:10)
A10. “Robot-Bolero” (1:42)
A11. “Generäle Essen Gerne Erdbeereis” [Generals Like to Eat Strawberry Ice Cream] (2:59)
A12. “Das Insekt” [The Insect] (1:35)

B1. “Wat’s Dat?” (2:08)
B2. “Vier Stapfen Im Schnee” [Four Footprints in the Snow] (1:10)
B3. “Zurück In Die Atmosphare” [Back Into the Atmosphere] (2:26)

Der Plan recorded Normalette Surprise at Ata Tak Studio and produced it as a self-contained unit. Fenstermacher, Dahlke, and Reichelt wrote all compositions and lyrics. Kurt Dahlke later remastered the album at Ata Tak. Moritz R. designed the packaging to extend their collage-art visual language in parallel with the album’s abrupt structural framing.

Non-album single, 1981:
A. “Klarheit Liebe Tod Einfachheit Brot” [Clarity Love Death Simplicity Bread]
B. (Untitled)

Die letzte Rache

Der Plan released their third album, Die letzte Rache, in April 1983 on Ata Tak.

Originally conceived as a soundtrack to Rainer Kirberg’s satirical sci-fi film of the same name, the album assembles a fast-cut sequence of brief instrumentals, cues, and character motifs shaped through interlocking electronics and spoken interludes.

Kurt “Pyrolator” Dahlke sets clipped analog sequences in motion, punctuated by the angular injections of guitarist Frank Fenstermacher and the processed accents of multi-instrumentalist Moritz R. Programmed rhythm beds serve as an unyielding underpin, framing each fragment with schematic rigidity while leaving room for abrupt tonal interjections and ensemble overlap.

Die letzte Rache (The Last Revenge) stretches Der Plan’s sonic palette into fragmented theatrical vignettes that veer from brittle miniature scores to warped synth interludes and cartoonish pop spirals. “Schönheit der Macht” overlays soft, slow-pacing with a drifting keyboard motif that folds into a rounded synthetic phrase before evaporating into noise fragments. “Oh, Oh, Oh” rides an angular, jerking beat with squashed vocal filters and jarring tonal bursts, while “Junger Mann” unfolds in clipped patterns, alternating between bright surfaces and warped vocal entries.

“Schauet Her!” loops off-kilter percussion around darting melodic fragments, punctuated by sudden pauses and stammering synth accents. Across its brief cuts, the album collapses genre markers into a collage logic, pushing each phrase to instability while threading in small-scale leitmotifs, helium-toned chants, and unexpected rhythmic pivots. The tonal shifts feel abrupt but intentional, rendering the whole like a decomposing puppet theater wired to short-circuit.

A1. “Die Wüste” [The Desert] (1:26)
A2. “Sechs Fingen An – Titelsong Der Früchte Der Bestimmung” [Six Began – Title Song of the Fruits of Destiny] (0:54)
A3. “Aufbruch – Der Weltkenner Durchschneidet Den Zaun” [Departure – The World-Knower Cuts the Fence] (0:45)
A4. “Am Grab Des Sohnes” [At the Son’s Grave] (1:07)
A5. “Im Unterirdischen Wassersaal” [In the Underground Water Hall] (1:02)
A6. “Denn Alles War Nur Ein Trick – Die Früchte Der Bestimmung” [For It Was All Just a Trick – The Fruits of Destiny] (0:41)
A7. “Zur Alten Dschunke – Thema Der Großen Stadt” [To the Old Junk – Theme of the Great City] (0:53)
A8. “Das Denkmal Des Scheiterns – Eröffnungsfeier” [The Monument of Failure – Opening Ceremony] (2:08)
A9. “Es Ist Schön, Schön Zu Sein – Der Schöne Mann” [It’s Nice, Nice to Be – The Handsome Man] (0:32)
A10. “Donnerwetter! – Der Starke Mann” [Wow! – The Strong Man] (1:06)
A11. “Oh, Oh, Oh! – Der Kluge Mann” [Oh, Oh, Oh! – The Clever Man] (1:11)
A12. “Der Kommissar 1 – Ist Schon Da” [The Commissioner 1 – Is Already Here] (0:25)
A13. “Ich Bin Es – Der Weltkenner” [It’s Me – The World-Knower] (0:53)
A14. “Du Bist Es Nicht – Junger Mann – Die Teenager” [You Are Not It – Young Man – The Teenagers] (2:29)

B1. “Früchte Radio Special” [Fruits Radio Special] (0:50)
B2. “Des Kerkers Loch – Die Früchte” [The Dungeon’s Hole – The Fruits] (0:29)
B3. “Die Unterirdische Fabrik” [The Underground Factory] (0:52)
B4. “Oder Nicht? – Die Tötungsmaschine” [Or Not? – The Killing Machine] (0:36)
B5. “Der Kommissar 2 – Ermittelt Weiter” [The Commissioner 2 – Continues Investigating] (0:25)
B6. “Der Chor Der Gefangenen” [Chorus of the Prisoners] (1:18)
B7. “Der Assistenten-Song” [The Assistants’ Song] (0:40)
B8. “Der Chor Der Ausgebrochenen” [Chorus of the Escapees] (0:53)
B9. “Schauet Her! – Die Früchte” [Look Here! – The Fruits] (0:32)
B10. “Schönheit Der Macht – Monolog Des Herrschers” [Beauty of Power – The Ruler’s Monologue] (1:41)
B11. “Die Zerstörung Der Grossen Stadt” [Destruction of the Great City] (1:20)
B12. “Das Zimmer Der Tochter” [The Daughter’s Room] (1:19)
B13. “Showdown” (1:04)
B14. “So Wurden Wir Zu Ihm Gemein – Sohn Und Tochter” [So We Became Like Him – Son and Daughter] (1:33)
B15. “Das Ende” [The End] (1:26)
B16. “Der Todesmonolog – Gerät Dem Ausgespaceten Weltkenner Doch Noch Versöhnlich” [The Death Monologue – The Spaced-Out World-Knower Finds Reconciliation After All] (3:25)

Kurt Dahlke mixed and edited Die letzte Rache at Ata Tak Studio. Fenstermacher, Dahlke, and Moritz R. composed the music, while filmmaker Rainer Kirberg provided the lyrics.

Der Plan added two tracks—“Der Grottenolm” and “Die Grotte Der Olme”—from Kirberg’s earlier short film Grottenolm. Moritz R. and Eberhardt Steinkrüger handled the cover photography and design.

Non-single release, 1983:
A. “Gummi Twist”
B. “Space Bob”

Fette Jahre

Der Plan released their fourth album, Fette Jahre, in 1985 on Ata Tak.

Compiled as a retrospective of studio highlights and alternate versions, the album filters five years of sonic bricolage through bright synth arrays, reprogrammed themes, and ensemble revisions. Side B contains both sides of their 1983 single.

Kurt “Pyrolator” Dahlke inserts jagged sequencer motifs and warped pads that interlock with the clipped guitar phrasing of Frank Fenstermacher and occasional solos by guests Pete Jeckyll and Uwe Jahnke. Rhythmic foundations shift between rigid backbeat patterns and processed pulsework, anchoring the spliced transitions and layered interplay of synthetic and acoustic sources.

Fette Jahre (Fat Years) wraps its disquiet in bright surfaces, pairing chipper, clipped rhythms with tightly wound vocal cadences that mask a darker undercurrent. A new version of “Gefährliche Clowns” sets the tone: sharp pacing under tension-loaded phrasing, with tonal shifts that lurch between childlike glee and shrill unease. “Gummitwist” rides a mechanical, bounce-heavy rhythm through sequences of percussive vocals and digitized stabs, building a structure that feels playfully rigid but lined with synthetic menace. Even the most outwardly upbeat pieces carry warped textures—fractured keyboard loops, cartoonish accents, and brief interjections that land like sonic glitches. Each track balances restraint and absurdity, threading existential imagery through sprightly patterns without fully resolving either impulse.

A1. “Roppongi Blues” (1:40)
A2. “Gefährliche Clowns (Neuaufnahme)” [Dangerous Clowns (New Recording)] (2:32) – first appeared on Geri Reig (1980)
A3. “Alte Pizza” [Old Pizza] (2:28)
A4. “Glitzergleiter” [Glitter Glider] (3:04)
A5. “Olm 1” (1:16)
A6. “Hey Baby Hop (Version)” (4:13) – alternate version of track from Normalette Surprise (1981)
A7. “Ich Liebe Dich” [I Love You] (3:24)
A8. “Lipizzanereskapade” [Lipizzaner Escapade] (2:31)

B1. “Europa” (4:25)
B2. “Du, Du Bist” [You, You Are] (3:14)
B3. “Da Vorne Steht Ne Ampel (Remix)” [There’s a Traffic Light Up Ahead] (2:32) – remix of 1980 non-album A-side single.
B4. “NGC 7541” (0:27)
B5. “Und Dann… (Remix)” [And Then…] (3:25) – remix of “So Wurden Wir Zu Ihm Gemein – Sohn Und Tochter” from Die letzte Rache (1983)
B6. “Gummitwist” (4:24)
B7. “Spacebob” (2:58)
B8. “Alle Sieben Jahre” [Every Seven Years] (2:30)

Der Plan recorded and mixed Fette Jahre at Ata Tak Studio in Düsseldorf, selecting and reworking key tracks from their prior output. They brought in Holger Hiller, Frl. Birte Walter, Pete Jeckyll, Frank Sanden, and Uwe Jahnke for guest contributions across vocal, drum, and guitar parts. Moritz R., Dahlke, and Fenstermacher wrote most of the lyrics, with Rainer Kirberg supplying text for the final track.

Moritz R. assembled the artwork and layout, while Ulrich Maier handled the photography. Ata Tak issued the album through Verlag Pläne. The CD version adds two bonus cuts: “Fackel der Sehnsucht” and “Wir Werden Immer Mehr.”

Es ist eine fremde und seltsame Welt

Der Plan released their fifth album, Es ist eine fremde und seltsame Welt, in 1987 on Ata Tak.

The album sharpens their modular synth-pop into compact, digitally-rendered forms built around clipped phrasing, synthetic brass hits, and punctuated rhythmic pulses.

Kurt “Pyrolator” Dahlke triggers bright harmonic fragments that intersect with guitarist Frank Fenstermacher’s angular riff loops and counterpoint lines, while Moritz R. overlays voice snippets and sampled fragments in tight spatial arrangements. Programmed percussion provides a mechanical backbeat that locks each track into static grid patterns, serving as both anchor and structural frame.

Es ist eine fremde und seltsame Welt (It Is a Strange and Unfamiliar World) fractures into isolated fragments—each track shifting direction, tempo, and tone without resolution or return. Some pieces hinge on skeletal, stop-start rhythms with abrupt tonal pivots, while others expand briefly into synthetic drones or falsetto chorales before dissolving. Short instrumentals land like sketches: clipped loops over dampened percussion, stammered sequencer runs with jarring filter breaks, or pulsing chords stretched into brief surges that vanish mid-thought. Moments of sharp contrast emerge—angular keyboard vamps punched by synthetic brass, or basslines that thud under distant, clipped voice snippets—but none hold position for long. The album’s scattered structure and rapidly mutating textures produce a disoriented flow, where no single passage anchors the sequence, and each new idea interrupts the last before it settles.

A1. “Get Out!” (2:47)
A2. “Bye Bye!” (2:25)
A3. “1 Mann, 1Ball” [1 Man, 1 Ball] (2:47)
A4. “Kennen Sie Köln?” [Do You Know Cologne?] (2:57)
A5. “Ich Hab den Jordan Gesehn” [I’ve Seen the Jordan] (2:20)
A6. “Press ‘G’ -Punkt!” (2:04)
A7. “Wenn du Nicht Zuhause Bist…” [When You’re Not Home…] (3:09)
A8. “Kreuze Niemals Deinen Weg!” [Never Cross Your Own Path!] (1:05)

B1. “Bleib Gold!” [Stay Gold!] (2:20)
B2. “Komm Zurück” [Come Back] (3:28)
B3. “Die Paranoia-kritische Methode” [The Paranoia-Critical Method] (3:14)
B4. “Die Geschichte des Schwarzen Goldes” [The History of Black Gold] (2:27)
B5. “1 Moment = 2 Sec” (3:25)
B6. “Frisch Verliebt” [Newly in Love] (2:35)

Der Plan recorded and produced Es ist eine fremde und seltsame Welt as a trio at their Ata Tak base in Düsseldorf. Fenstermacher, Dahlke, and Reichelt composed and arranged all tracks, applying digital sequencing and tightly looped structures throughout the album.

Ata Tak issued the release with embossed cover text and distributed it in Germany. Select CD and reissue editions include three bonus tracks: “Film Noir No.2,” a vocal version of “Ich Hab Den Jordan Gesehen,” and “International Hymn For Couch Potato Land.”

Discography: