Rare Klaus Nomi cable access appearance

By Adam Stanhope in Music, Video Clips on Aug 9, 2008 at 8:19 am

Count me in as a Klaus Nomi fan. Klaus Nomi was a German pastry-maker living in New York City in the late 1970s and early 1980s. An accomplished working pastry-chef by training, he was also an opera singer. Within New York’s gay scene he became well known for his other-worldly look, costumes and performances. He recorded a number of songs and several music videos – most oriented towards disco music. Unfortunately, he was also one of the first victims of the AIDS epidemic within the gay community – before AIDS itself was really understood as a disease. There is a wonderful documentary called The Nomi Song that tells the story of this fascinating character.

Black and white footage of a New York City cable access TV show called “TV Party” featuring the singing pastry-chef has appeared on YouTube and I find it to be electrifying – a great example of what a remarkable performer Klaus Nomi was.

Update: Here’s a link to a great trailer for The Nomi Song.