Chicks on Speed is an electropop group which started in Munich in 1997, after its members had met through the Academy of Fine Arts there. Chicks on Speed's core members consist of:
Grouped around Chicks on Speed is a large and ever-changing collective of musicians, producers, graphic artists, designers, film and video makers, and so on. Though usually considered part of such musical genres as electroclash, Chicks on Speed actually started as a multidisciplinary art group who applied punk-inspired DIY ethic to performance art, collage graphics and home-made fashion (they have created their own stage costumes with cheap and recycled material such as plastic bags and gaffer's tape, for example).
They originally got their name when they earned some extra money at art galleries by hanging paintings on the walls and someone quipped that they worked like "chicks on speed".
They had their own club nights at Munich's Seppi Bar: Chicks on Speed had created an installation piece which was called I Wanna Be A DJ, Baby, where they stood behind DJ decks and smashed records while a sound collage tape was playing. For this project they also put together a "box set" with a T-shirt, a cassette, a paper record and a fake interview for their "band", at this stage still imaginary. During this time period they met Upstart (a.k.a. Peter Wacha) of Disko B record label who helped Chicks on Speed to actually get started in music.
