Kontroll Csoport - 1983 (1993)

Kontroll Csoport - istniejący w latach 1980-83 węgierski zespół grający najogólniej rzecz ujmując rock alternatywny. Nigdy nie osiągnęli szerszej popularności, grali przeważnie na uczelnianych scenach i imprezach przed niezbyt liczną publicznością. Swą bezkompromisowością i stylem cała grupa a później poszczególni członkowie wywarli znaczący wpływ na rozwój węgierskiej sceny niezależnej.

Kontroll Csoport was founded on New Year’s Eve in 1980. The group’s original musicians included Csaba Hajnóczy, Ágnes Bárdos Deák and László Kistamás, with multiple new members today. The group played an important role in the underground scene in a Hungary trapped behind the Iron Curtain. They had a profound impact on the rock poetry of the period. Though the group could only publish their music after the political changes, some of their recordings were distributed illegally beforehand. This helped the Hungarian cultural opposition to enlarge into a movement. Before the political transition their only concert abroad was in Café Ring in Vienna. An expert of the era, Tamás Szőnyei describes the group as having '...the power of punk, pathos of the opera, reggae and country, chanson, oriental motives and repetitions, all living together in harmony.' 'Lyrics were mostly, as in the case of the greatest, about love and freedom. Their trick was that their music was pleasant to listen to even to conservative ears, so they wrapped their messages into a nice package,' assesses Szőnyei. Member of the New York underground of that period, namely Patti Smith, Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, John Cage and the Velvet Underground had a great effect on the thinking of the group. Ultimately, the group created a unique fusion of styles and a powerful message that preserves its names as one of the most important in Eastern European underground music.

After 1983, Kontroll Csoport continued with new members alongside the original talent. The lineup now includes: Hajnóczy, Csaba: Kampec Dolores Kistamás, László: Balkan Fouturist Müller, Péter Sziámi: Sziámi Bárdos Deák, Ágnes: Ági és fiúk Farkas, Zoltán: keleti fény Újvári, János and Lehoczki, Károly: Új Nem (lepoissonrouge)

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