Yello | |
|---|---|
 Dieter Meier (left) and Boris Blank | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Zürich, Switzerland |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1979–present |
| Labels | |
| Members | |
| Past members | Carlos Perón |
| Website | www |
Yello is a Swisselectronic music band, which formed inZürich in 1979.[2] For most of the band's history, Yello has been a duo consisting ofDieter Meier andBoris Blank; founding memberCarlos Perón left in 1983.
Their sound is often characterised by unusualmusic samples and a reliance on rhythm, with Meier as vocalist and lyricist, and Blank providing the music. Among their best known singles are "Oh Yeah" (1985), which has appeared in many films and television shows, includingFerris Bueller's Day Off,The Secret of My Success,Uncle Buck andThe Simpsons; and "The Race" (1988), which peaked at number 7 on theUK Singles Chart. The band has released 14 studio albums since 1980.[3]
The band was formed byBoris Blank (keyboards, sampling, percussion, backing vocals) andCarlos Perón (tapes) in the late 1970s.Dieter Meier (vocals, lyrics), a millionaire investor and gambler, was brought in when the two founders realized that they needed a singer. The new band's name, Yello, was chosen as aneologism based on a comment made by Meier, "a yelled Hello".[4]
Yello's first release was the 1979 single "I.T. Splash". The LPSolid Pleasure, featuring the original short version of "Bostich" (extended to a hit dance single in 1981), was released in November 1980.[2] Yello's first video was made for the song "Pinball Cha Cha" in 1981; this was included in a 1985 video exhibit atMuseum of Modern Art in New York.[5] In early 1983, just after release ofYou Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess, Perón left Yello in order to pursue a solo career.
The band's fourth studio albumStella went No. 1 in Switzerland in 1985 as the first album ever by a Swiss group to top the Swiss album chart. It also appeared inside the German top 10, gaining gold status. The song "Oh Yeah" from the album gained the band worldwide attention the following year, after it prominently appeared in the 1986 filmFerris Bueller's Day Off[6] and then a year later inThe Secret of My Success. The song was released shortly after and became the band's only single to chart in the US, reaching No. 51,[7] and their only top-50 hit in Australia, reaching No. 9.
In 1988, single "The Race" from the albumFlag reached No. 7 in the UK as their only top-10 hit there.[2] It featured in the filmNuns on the Run.
In 1995, a tribute remix albumHands on Yello was released, featuring remixes byMoby,the Orb,Carl Craig,Carl Cox,the Grid andWestBam.[2]
In 2005, Yello re-released their early albumsSolid Pleasure,Claro Que Si,You Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess,Stella,One Second andFlag,[2] all with bonus tracks, as part of the Yello Remaster Series.
A documentary on Yello,Electro Pop Made in Switzerland, directed byAnka Schmid, premiered at the Riff Raff cinema inZürich in September 2005.
Yello was commissioned to produce music for the launch of theAudi A5 at theGeneva Motor Show in March 2007 and for the Audi A5 advertisement in May 2007.[8]
Yello's sound is mainly characterized by unusual music samples, a heavy reliance on rhythm andDieter Meier's dark voice. Yello makes heavy use of sampling in the construction of rhythm tracks, such as in "The Race" from 1988. Boris Blank has taken a couple of vocal turns on "Swing" (fromYou Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess) and "Blazing Saddles" (fromFlag). Guest vocalists have included Rush Winters,Billy Mackenzie,Stina Nordenstam, Jade Davies,Shirley Bassey, Heidi Happy and FiFi Rong. The group has shared writing credit with Mackenzie, Winters and Happy.
Yello rarely uses samples from previously released music; nearly every instrument has been sampled and re-engineered by Boris Blank, who over the years has built up an original sample library of thousands of named and categorised sounds.[9]
The band's first live performance was on the 18th of September 1978 at the Cinema Forum in Zurich titled "Dead Cat". The performance was originally 15-minutes long and only showed Meier, due to Boris' stage fright at the time. Out of the fifteen minutes of the performance, only four minutes have been publicly circulated on the internet. It has never been released on other formats.
Their second live performance was in December 1983 at the Roxy Club, where they played a more techno-like remix ofBostitch. It's another 15-minute[citation needed] performance hosted byDianne Brill. This time Boris is showing himself too. The single is available as a clear vinyl in the remaster series.
Their most recent live performance was on third of November 2017 in Berlin, where they played their older and newer songs with additional musicians and background vocalists.
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