Photography by CHRISTIAN SAUERLAND
GRENZKONTROLLE is not a band that can be easily categorized. The Cologne-based group moves somewhere between post-punk, political art, and cultural collage – with an attitude that is just as central as their music. What connects them is less a clearly defined genre than a shared ambition: to reflect the present, make it audible and ultimately change it.
Frontman Don L. Gaspár Ali put out a call on social media and through a series of chance encounters, the collective of four eventually came together. It now consists of drummer Roza Roth, guitarist Kodia Funk, bassist Schuttland and frontman Don L. Gaspár Ali. From this seemingly accidental constellation, a formation emerged whose dynamic draws precisely from its diversity.
“We come from very different cultures. The music we grew up with and the way we were raised within our families and cultural backgrounds, naturally shapes our writing process and the way we make music today.”
Photography by CHRISTIAN SAUERLAND
Post-punk bands of the late 1970s and early 1980s serve as an inspiration. Yet the influence lies less in the sound than in the attitude: the DIY spirit of punk, the courage to simply start creating without overthinking. Songs often emerge through improvisation. In the rehearsal space, someone begins with a riff, a rhythm sets in, a groove develops and the instrumentals grow from there. The lyrics usually come later, capturing what is already in the air or growing out of poems the bandleader brings into the room. Their music moves with the times – functioning as a resonance chamber for what is happening in the world around them.
“We see the role of an artist as reflecting the time we live in. And right now, these are very, very dark times. If there ever comes a moment with more peace, more affordable housing, more of everything else, then we would absolutely be willing to make different music. But at the moment, this is the reality and that’s why we’re radically committing to it until something changes.”
In a present filled with “so many issues in this country and on this planet,” the band primarily wants listeners to understand the messages in their songs, to become aware of the problems of our time, to come together and to begin acting as a community, resisting, in one way or another, what is currently unfolding.
Photography by CHRISTIAN SAUERLAND
For GRENZKONTROLLE, politics is not only a matter of lyrics. Their very presence is already a statement. The constellation of the band itself with its different cultural backgrounds, its style and its stage presence creates a tension between what the audience sees and what it hears.
Their musical taste is equally boundless. While on tour, they listen to everything: techno, French chansons, Turkish folk music, Kurdish songs, or old-school hip-hop. Each member brings influences from their own background and this mixture also shapes their sound.
The same openness defines their approach to style. Fashion, for them, is an expression of identity. An important reference point is the Sapeur movement, in which elegant clothing becomes a cultural statement. The guitarist and the frontman, in particular, were influenced by this through growing up within the Congolese community. Designers such as Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto and Issey Miyake inspire their aesthetic, as do icons ranging from Jimi Hendrix and Miles Davis to Nina Hagen.
“As a band, we always go by how we feel. That’s how we end up looking as well. Our look is usually a reflection of our emotions. For each of us, it’s important that it truly comes from within, that it’s never something artificial.”
Photography by CHRISTIAN SAUERLAND
GRENZKONTROLLE do not want to be a traditional punk band or a pop act. Instead, they see themselves as a formation that deliberately moves between scenes, spaces and audiences. Their concerts take place just as much in run-down punk clubs as in large concert halls or, as today, at Soho House in Berlin, as photographed by Christian Sauerland.
Their message remains clear: stay alert, don’t look away and ask yourself what role you want to play in this world.
“Love is everything. Stand up. Be loud.”
Photography by EMMA-SOPHIE SOMBACH