Birth Control (band)

History

Birth Control got its start in West Berlin in 1966, emerging from two earlier groups called the Earls and the Gents. The original seven members were Bernd Koschmidder on bass, Reinhold Sobotta on organ, Rolf Gurra on saxophone and vocals, Fritz Gröger on vocals, Reiner Borchert on guitar, Hugo Egon Balder on drums, and Klaus Orso on guitar. Every one of these musicians left within five years, but the band carried on under drummer Bernd Noske, who had joined in late 1968, and guitarist Bruno Frenzel, who came aboard in 1969.

After Frenzel died in 1983, the group split up, only to reunite in 1993 with Noske as the sole original holdover; returning members included bassist and vocalist Horst Stachelhaus, guitarist Rocco Zodiak, and keyboardist Xaver Fischer. Stachelhaus passed away in 1999, but Noske kept the band going, touring Germany and putting out new albums after 2000. Former players Peter Föller (bass, vocals) and Zeus B. Held (keyboards) later appeared as guests at some shows.

The band ended when Noske died on February 18, 2014; his final lineup featured bassist Hannes Vesper, keyboardist Sascha Kuhn, and guitarist Martin Ettrich. In 2016, the group reformed with Föller on vocals, Ettrich on guitar and talkbox, Kühn on keyboards, Vesper on bass, and Manni von Bohr on drums, releasing "Here and Now" that same year, their first studio album in thirteen years.