Alex C.: Biography

• Overview
• Discography
• Biography
• Related Artists

• Eiffel 65
• Shaun Baker
• Topmodelz

• Right Said Fred
• Rollergirl
• Pete Könemann
• Yass

• U96

Birth Name:

Alex Christensen

Born:

Apr 7, 1967 in Hamburg, Germany

Genres:

Electronic & Dance Music, House Music, Club Dance Music, Dance Pop Music

Decades Active:

1990's|2000's

Alex C. is a Eurodance producer from Germany who initially established himself as U96 with the charttopping 1991 single "Das Boot" before breaking away in 2002 for a successful solo career often in tandem with vocalist Yasmin K. (aka Yass). Born on April 7, 1967, in the Wilhelmsburg district of Hamburg, Alex Christensen broke into the dance music scene in 1991 with "Das Boot," a Eurodance adaptation of Klaus Doldinger's theme song from the classic 1981 film of the same name. Billed to U96 a reference to the film's subject, Unterseeboot 96, a submarine employed in the Atlantic Ocean during the Second World War "Das Boot" became a massive club anthem in Germany, going all the way to number one. Though often associated soley with Christensen, U96 was technically a group effort, with Ingo Haus, Hayo Panarinfo, and Helmut Hoinkis also earning songwriting and production credit.

A fulllength U96 album, Das Boot (1992), was released in the wake of the charttopping title track. Followup singles from the album included "I Wanna Be a Kennedy," "Come 2Gether," and "Ambient Underworld," the first of which became a Top Five hit while the others fared less well. A second album, Replugged, followed in 1993, along with a couple accompanying Top Ten singles, "Love Sees No Colour" and "Night in Motion." U96 remained active throughout the remainder of the decade, scoring a couple more major hits ("Love Religion," "Heaven" both Top Fives), but fell out favor with the club scene and struggled to rival their initial success with "Das Boot." Meanwhile, Christensen began working on a growing number of side projects, including dance productions for Rollergirl ("Dear Jessie," 1999; Now I'm Singin'...and the Party Keeps on Rollin', 2000) and collaborations with producer Peter Könemann as Joint Venture.

Christensen finally split from U96 after a 2000 remake of "Das Boot" (i.e., "Das Boot 2001") and a greatesthits compilation, Best of 19912001 (2000), and embarked on a solo career as Alex C. He debuted with "Rhythm of the Night" in 2002, followed by "Amigos Forever" and "Angel Forever." Featuring vocalist Yasmin K. and released by Epic, the singles became Top 40 hits. Christensen then reunited with Hayo Panarinfo, Helmut Hoinkis, and Ingo Hauss as U96 for a oneoff single, "We Call It Love," in 2003, but it fell flat in the marketplace. Also during this time period he produced dance tracks for A Touch of Class (aka ATC) and Right Said Fred (formerly of "I'm Too Sexy" fame). He also resurrected the U96 moniker yet again in 2006 for a round of fairly unsuccessful singles ("Mr. DJ Put on the Red Light," "Vorbei") and an accompanying album, Out of Wilhelmsburg (2007).

Following the cold reception for his latest incarnation of U96, Christensen returned to his Alex C. moniker in 2007 for the amusingly titled single "Du Hast den Schönsten Arsch der Welt" (in English, "You Have the World's Most Beautiful Ass"). Featuring vocalist Yasmin K. (now billed as Yass) and cowritten by frequent collaborator Peter Könemann, "Du Hast den Schönsten Arsch der Welt" became a surprising charttopper, Christensen's first number one single since "Das Boot" in 1991. Commercially revitalized, he prepared additional singles as Alex C. featuring Yass, including the Top Five followup hit "Doktorspiele," and released the fulllength album Euphorie (2008).

- Jason Birchmeier

, All Music Guide