HEAVY MUSIC HISTORY: Delete Yourself! – Atari Teenage Riot

ATARI TEENAGE RIOT are anarchic rabble rousers of the highest order and stand as one of the most important groups of their generation by a country mile. Fusing venomously anti-fascist and the anti-capitalist lyrics with a fiercely left wing stance alongside anarchist views with hardcore electronic elements and punk attitude overseeing the sonic side of their inflammatory voice.

The German three piece that consisted of vocalist/programmer Alec Empire, fellow vocalist Hanin Elias and MC Carl Crack vehemently destroyed their enemies (most notably those of the Nazi persuasion) and inspired their followers with noise, intelligence, forward thinking views and above all, a sheer ‘fuck them all viewpoint’. The result? A rousing call to arms with their music.

The group’s first album, 1995’s Delete Yourself!, immediately made an impact as ATARI TEENAGE RIOT and their Digital Hardcore Recordings label. Delete Yourself! as an album was unlike anything heard before, and while electronic music had flirted with more punk and metallic elements, never before had it been executed with such passion, gusto and an incendiary display of standing up for what you believe in. This was what punk had promised when it first emerged in the latter years of the 1970s, but it was being delivered in Berlin twenty years later with much more venom and conviction.

The impact that Delete Yourself! had was immediate and it was clear that ATARI TEENAGE RIOT meant business from the start with their riotous collision of varying sounds, including hardcore drum & bass, jungle, gabba, industrial and techno, alongside hip-hop and cyberpunk elements, and completed with some crucial metal and punk samples. The result only amplifies their titanium strength sound. Those breaks and beats could crack your skull so you know this was an intense time aurally, and that is even before you get to the message that the band are conveying.

That message was that of a staunch anti fascist one, the track Hetzjagd Auf Nazis!, which translates as ‘Hunt Down The Nazis’ laid this down beyond a shadow of a doubt and the whole of Delete Yourself! acts as a rousing calm to arms and coupons with lyrics relating to the rise of and potential dangers of cyberspace is certainly prophetic three decades on, the mantra that “Cyberspace is God” on the album’s title track is proof enough, and oh, how that has been proved true as we are here in 2025.

This was undeniably inspiring stuff at the time, and thirty years later, it still sounds inspiring with the energy being palpable as soon as the first beats of the albums perfectly titled opening track Start The Riot clatters into your conciseness, and it doesn’t let up until Delete Yourselff!‘s closing number, Riot 1995, has burned your ears satisfactorily.

Throughout the album, there are so many notable moments such as the albums title track which samples the SEX PISTOLS‘ iconic God Save The Queen (and has subsequently been sampled by new wave hip hop hero JPEGMAFIA), the manic one-two of Into The Death and Raverbashing, and the hazy, dreamlike Sex. There is also a a truly riotous version of the Sham 69 anthem If The Kids Are United that retains the energy and spirit of the original, but reinvents it for the 1990s and beyond as the message still rings true, even thirty years on.

ATARI TEENAGE RIOT‘s follow-up albums, The Future Of War and the noise laden 60 Second Wipe Out, built on what Delete Yourself! had achieved and opened up opportunities for the band. This included working with SLAYER on the Spawn soundtrack on the formidable No Remorse (I Wanna Die).Notable touring included a legendary US tour with RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, who were touring the Evil Empire, and Wu-Tang Clan, who had just released their second album Wu-Tang Forever and were the hottest thing in hardcore hip hop.  but it all started with Delete Yourself and the impact it made both sonically and lyrically and the fact the groups influence can be heard in the music of the fiery likes of Death Grips and HEALTH speak volumes.

With the way the world is going at the moment, the return of ATARI TEENAGE RIOT and their message would be most welcome indeed. While music alone can’t simply cure the world of all its ills, it can provide a soundtrack for change. ALTARI TEENAGE RIOT achieved this with Delete Yourself! in 1995 and 30 years later, its impact can still be felt.

Delete Yourself! was originally released on March 1st, 1995 via Digital Hardcore Recordings.

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