Matterhorn Project

Matterhorn Project were the Swiss duo of PJ and Stella Wassermann. They started making really weird kids/novelty electronic disco music in the 80s and seemed to still be active just a few years ago. Sadly, Stella passed in April of this year. Check the link at the bottom of the post to hear some of her solo material.

The Matterhorn jams all feature pitch-shifted vocals and animal SFX. "The Gnomes Of Zurich" is a favorite. Really reminds of Supersempfft. Albums and singles are around, or can be purchased via CDBaby. Prices for original vinyl aren't outrageous on Discogs or eBay.



From the official site:

"MUH!" (also known as the "moo song" in South Africa, Japan and other parts of the world and the French call it "meuh" or "meu") by Matterhorn Project is unique in pop history. There are cows singing and bells tingling, yodelling and alpine horns, all supported by an infectious eigthies disco-beat and a slightly spaced-out sense of humour. The track stormed the Swiss and international charts in 1985 and got known and loved for its sense of comedy and tongue-in-cheek citing of Swiss clichés.

And on the "Muh" video:

The funny MUH! video clip has been created in 1986 by a student of a German movie academy (unfortunately we can't remember his name).

This clip has been crafted manually, there was no computer animation at that time and every single picture (25 per second) had to be drawn by hand. That's why the video has some lengths but it's very charming and humorous and shows very well the atmosphere of the Swiss mountains although the clothes are more Bavarian than Swiss alpine.

Additionally the video author has added an erotic component to the video story that's not part of the original song. That's why they now say at YouTube that "This video may not be suitable for minors". But it's really not that baaaad - judge for yourself and have fun!



Somewhat detailed bio found on the same site:

http://www.matterhornproject.ch/D_html/mp_D_background.html



Discogs
Official site
German-language Wiki

Hear some nice new age music at Stella's official site.

Two videos from Italian duo Righeira (1983-84)

Righeira was formed in 1983 by Stefano Rota and Stefano Righi. These two singles were huge hits in Italy and found modest success elsewhere in Europe. Righeira had at least two other minor domestic hits, and four full-length albums and numerous singles. This information comes from Discogs, which also says about the duo, "The two members still explain that they are brother[sic] by their first name. They became Michael Righeira & Johnson Righeira"



Note the Mondrian painting coming to life at the beginning, which morphs into a cube and shows the skinny-tie wearing duo images from World War II and the Hindenburg crash. The entire thing seems to take place in a towering modernist apartment complex. Video actually credits the animator at the end, Gianandrea Garola. Limited film + TV resume here.

Both songs are sung in Spanish, and I've included the original lyrics as well as a Google-assisted translation below. If anybody can provide improved English translation let me know. "Vamos a la Playa" is about nuclear blasts destroying civilization, with the mantra "Let's go to the beach" (or is it "Do You Want to Go to the Beach?") repeated as either an oblivious prayer or ironic joke. Then again, the wrist-radios confuse the group's involvement with whatever nuclear scenerio is being described. The gaudy technicolor lighting in the video could be the glare of a mushroom cloud.

"No Tengo Dinero" is a much more obvious illustration of post-war Italian class struggle, presenting a newly monied class "kissed by an idea," with its narrator "living in the highest place in [his] city". But then is this the same figure declaring "I have no money" over and over? A view both from and in opposition to the top, apparently.

Both of these songs are lyrically complex (or muddled, perhaps), hiding specific socio-political ideas in brief narrative verses, which are in turn hidden within endlessly repeated, seemingly vacuous choruses. Especially in the case of "Vamos a la Playa", these choruses actually come to reinforce the central idea of the song. Like the lavish apartment in the "No Tengo Dinero" video, political and ethical notions are masked by not only the passive observation of Righeira (whom didn't write the lyrics--Carmelo and Michelangelo La Bionda did) but the ostentatious surroundings of both high-end video animation and montage, and the meticulous studio wizardry of Italian (post-disco) pop production.



Despite the attractive solarizing effects in this one, I prefer this simpler take:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCVQpcY1au4

Vamos a la Playa

(CHORUS:)
Vamos a la playa oh o-o-o-oh
Vamos a la playa oh o-o-o-oh
Vamos a la playa oh o-o-o-oh
Vamos a la playa oh oh
Vamos a la playa

La bomba estallo
Las radiaciones tuestan
Y matizan de azul

Vamos a la playa

Todos con sombrero
El viento radiactivo
Despeina los cabellos

Vamos a la playa oh oh oh oh oh
Vamos a la playa oh oh oh oh oh
Vamos a la playa oh oh oh oh oh
Vamos a la playa oh oh

Vamos a la playa
Al fin el mar es limpio
No mas peces hediondos
Sino agua florecente

Vamos a la playa oh o-o-o-oh

(REPEAT TO FADE)

English Translation

(CHORUS:)
Go to the beach o-o-oh o-oh
Go to the beach o-o-oh o-oh
Go to the beach o-o-oh o-oh
Go to the beach oh oh

Go to the beach
The bomb exploded
Roasted radiation
And a shade of blue

Go to the beach
All with sombreros
The wind radioactive
Tousled hair

Go to the beach oh oh oh oh oh
Go to the beach oh oh oh oh oh
Go to the beach oh oh oh oh oh
Go to the beach oh oh

Go to the beach
At last the sea is clean
No more smelly fish
But water blooming

Go to the beach o-o-oh o-oh
(REPEAT TO FADE)

No Tengo Dinero

No tengo dinero oh
No tengo dinero no, no, no, no
No tengo dinero oh
No tengo dinero no, no, no, no

Los modernos lujos viven aqua­
En el lugar mas alto de mi ciudad
Se nutren de imagenes y de relais
Yo quisiera estar aha mas

No tengo dinero oh...

Los nuevos italianos crean aqua­
Impavidos y fieros de la velocidad
Neo psichico es el sintatico edan
Yo quisiera estar aha mas

No tengo dinero oh...

Neo psichico
Besado de una dea tu eres
Patria de estos te crean (2)

No tengo dinero oh... (2)

English Translation (I'm sure there are many mistakes here).

I have no money oh
I have no money, no, no, no, no
I have no money oh
I have no money, no, no, no, no

Modern luxury living here-
In the highest place in my city
They feed and relay pictures
I would be more aha

I have no money oh ...

The new Italian create here-
Fearless and ferocious speed
New Eden is the synthetic psichico [??]
I would be there more

I have no money oh ...

New psichico
Kissed by an idea you are
Homeland those you create (2)

I have no money oh ... (2)



Wikipedia
Download Righeira's first album.

Fun is the Game, New Beat is the Name