Tokio Hotel
Tokio Hotel is a rock band from Magdeburg, Germany. They are made up of identical twins Bill (vocalist) and Tom (guitarist) Kaulitz, drummer Gustav Schäfer and bassist Georg Listing. Although first formed in 2001 under the name Devilish, they received international mainstream success in 2007 after the release of their second German album Zimmer 483 and their first English album Scream.
The band is most popular with young girls and middle-aged women due to their catchy sound and, er, unique visual appearance. That was, of course, until the the Internet got a hold of them. Or a hold of Bill, at least.
- Anime Hair: Bill Kaulitz's hair style - especially during the early success of the band - is definitely this.
- Bishonen: The Kaulitz twins.
- Celebrity Is Overrated: A lot of Bill Kaulitz's lyrics are about how being famous made him feel alienated from the world, especially in the song "Humanoid".
- Cover Version: The band covered "Instant Karma" by John Lennon.
- Disappeared Dad: The twins' father.
- Downer Ending: The German version of their music video "Spring Nicht/Don't Jump" ends with Bill letting himself fall backwards off a tall building.
- Dude Looks Like a Lady: Bill Kaulitz and, arguably, Tom Kaulitz (although maybe not anymore). Encyclopedia Dramatica has a page on Bill that refers to him entirely as a hot woman.
- Even the Guys Want Him: Bill, especially if Dude Looks Like a Lady is kicking in.
- Mr. Fanservice: The twins, especially Bill.
- Fan Nickname: "Billa".
- What, like the Austrian supermarket chain?
- Garage Band: They started out this way.
- Guyliner: Bill
- Hotter and Sexier: When the band first reached success, Bill's use of makeup and his general stlye was meant to look more punk-rock than anything. However, as he grew up, he effectively turned into a sexy bishonen and is now widely recognized for his sex appeal. At one point he was called "the most beautiful face since Elizabeth Taylor" and recently won the "Sexiest Vegetarian" award.
- Humongous Mecha: Their "Automatic/Automatisch" music video.
- Intercourse with You: The song "Reden", which in English means "to talk". The actual song is definitely not about talking.
- "Human Connect to Human" and "Down on You"
- Jerkass: Tom Kaulitz borders on this during interviews.
- Metal Scream: "SCHREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIII!!!!"
- Mind Screw: The "Rette Mich" video.
- New Sound Album: "Humanoid", turning the band's genre from rock to... electro? Definitely a change, but since live instruments are still used, their sound is still recongnizable.
- Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Bill.
- Parental Abandonment: The twins' dad.
- Pretty Fly for a White Guy: Tom Kaulitz.
- Raging Stiffie: Tom Kaulitz illegally took Viagra in Taiwan and apparently had a boner for three days.
- Serious Business: Bill Kaulitz is so beloved that he is immortalized in wax.
- Sibling Seniority Squabble: An interview with the band included this exchange:
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Interviewer: Now I notice in the [CD] liner notes, I think Tom, you say "my younger brother"? |
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- Signature Song: "Schrei" / "Scream" and/or "Durch Den Monsun" / "Monsoon".
- Smoking Is Cool
- Stalker with a Crush: Many angry fans accuse Adam Lambert to be this because of how he seems to copy Bill's style and outfit choices. The fact that he has stated on multiple occasions that he does, indeed, have a crush on Bill doesn't help.
- Take That: At the Golden Kamera awards, Bill, instead of the usual acceptance speech, proceeded to give a sarcastic thank you to everyone who called him gay, anorexic, etc, and was basically a big "fuck you" to all the ridiculous rumors they had been barraged with.
- The Rival: Cinema Bizarre and Killerpilze are fellow German bands consisting of bishonen, and both said some nasty things about the band in the past.
- Those Two Guys: Georg and Gustav.