by Michael SuttonWolfsheim is one of Germany's inveterate synth pop groups, a band that has outlived numerous rock & roll trends by remaining committed to their original sound. The group was formed in 1987 by siblings Markus Reinhardt and Olli Reinhardt and Pompejo Ricciardi (vocals). However, Ricciardi departed from Wolfsheim shortly after they recorded their first demo; he was replaced by Peter Heppner, a singer who was already familiar with the brothers since they were all raised in the same area of Wilhelmsburg, Germany. Olli eventually left the band as well, turning Wolfsheim into a duo. Heppner started writing new tracks, and Wolfsheim distributed two more cassettes to record labels. All of them replied with a rejection. In 1991, Strange Ways Records released Wolfsheim's CD single "The Sparrows and the Nightingales"; it sold more than 10,000 copies. It was followed by "It's Not Too Late"; a full-length, No Happy View, appeared a year later, selling more than 40,000 copies. In 1996, Reinhardt recorded Der Genetische Traum under the name Neustart, a side project featuring members of Girls Under Glass and Stalin. Wolfsheim's fifth LP, Spectators, peaked at number two in Germany in 1999. Spectators was released in the U.S. in 2001 by Metropolis Records; Casting Shadows came in 2003.