FM Einheit (also known as F.M. Einheit, FM, Mufti, real name: Frank Martin Strauss, born December 18, 1958, in Dortmund) is an industrial and electronic musician from Germany. While primarily known for his percussion work with the influential industrial group Einstürzende Neubauten, he has also collaborated with KMFDM, Goethes Erben and recorded several albums in collaboration with other musicians (such as Andreas Ammer, Ulrike Haage) and solo. FM Einheit was also involved in the projects Stein and Gry.
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Early years
In the late 1970s and early 1980s he was also a member of the punk bands Abwärts from Hamburg and Palais Schaumburg. In the early 1980s he joined Einstürzende Neubauten as a percussionist and became a long-time band member. Most of the percussions which FM Einheit played on were custom-made metal instruments or such tools as a hammer drill. FM Einheit was instrumental to the development of the sound of the group. Live performances of Einstürzende Neubauten with FM Einheit included lots of metal banging, destruction on the stage and even fire. These shows became legendary and influenced the band image.
1990s - 2000s
In the 1990s he was also a member of a band Stein, also featuring Ulrike Haage and Katharina Franck from the band Rainbirds. FM Einheit left Einstürzende Neubauten in the middle 1990s during work on the album Ende Neu, probably due to strong disagreements with the band's leader Blixa Bargeld. One of his major projects after Einstürzende Neubauten was the band Gry with a female singer Gry Bagøien from Denmark. They released two albums: The Touch Of E! (1998) and Public Recording (2000, featuring Pan Sonic and Neubauten's Alexander Hacke) FM Einheit is also involved in theater and radio plays.
Discography
- 1990 Stein
- 1993 Prometheus/Lear
- 1993 Radio Inferno (F.M. Einheit/Ammer)
- 1994 König Lear
- 1994 Merry Christmas (F.M. Einheit/Caspar Brötzmann)
- 1994 Apocalypse Live (F.M. Einheit/Ammer/Haage)
- 1995 Merry Christmas
- 1996 Deutsche Krieger (F.M. Einheit/Ammer)
- 1997 Sensation Death
- 1999 Odysseus 7 (F.M. Einheit/Ammer/Haage)
- 2000 Frost 79° 40' (F.M. Einheit/Ammer/Gry/Pan Sonic, live)
- 2002 Crashing Aeroplanes (F.M. Einheit/Ammer)
- 2006 Echohce (F.M. Einheit/J.Lidell/d.Link)
- For discography of FM Einheit with Einstürzende Neubauten, see: Einstürzende Neubauten's discography (all releases 1982-1995).
- For discography of FM Einheit with Gry, see: Gry's discography (all releases).
