Gina X Performance
| Company type | Music group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Headquarters | Cologne , Germany |
| Products | Dance-rock, electropop music |
Gina X Performance (commonly abbreviated as GXP) was a German dance-rock and electropop ensemble originating from Cologne, Germany. The project centered around vocalist and lyricist Gina Kikoine alongside producer Zeus B. Held, with additional contributions from various studio and touring musicians.
Between the late 1970s and early 1980s, the act produced four studio albums, achieving recognition in dance clubs across North America and Europe. Among their prominent tracks were "No G.D.M."—which was subsequently covered by Erasure—and "Nice Mover".
Biography
Zeus B. Held, previously a member of the rock group Birth Control, embarked on a solo career in 1978 before joining forces with Gina Kikoine that same year. Their initial single, "No G.D.M.", dedicated to the English author Quentin Crisp, gained considerable acclaim and secured appearances at major festivals, including a performance before an audience of 14,000 in Vienna alongside artists such as Boney M.
Their debut album, Nice Mover (1979), combined disco elements with avant-garde influences, featuring instruments like the Minimoog, ARP 2600, and vocoder. The subsequent release, X-Traordinaire (1980), introduced a warmer tonal palette with songs exploring profound subjects, including homages to tenor Enrico Caruso and poet Federico García Lorca. Although critical responses varied, singles such as "Do It Yourself" helped maintain their presence in the music scene.
During a short break dedicated to individual projects, Kikoine worked with Billy McKenzie and lent her vocals to Fashion's "Love Shadow," while Held issued a solo album and produced for acts including John Foxx and Dead or Alive. In 1981, GXP presented Voyeur, an album characterized by its more experimental and stripped-down style; it did not spawn singles but was promoted through concerts across Europe.
Reuniting in 1984 as Gina X, Kikoine and Held released Yinglish, which featured a more approachable sound enhanced by J. J. Jeczalik’s production using the Fairlight CMI. This album included cover versions of The Beatles' "Drive My Car" and Brigitte Bardot's "Harley-Davidson". Following modest commercial results, Kikoine returned to Cologne’s artistic community as a writer and event coordinator, while Held continued producing music for prominent artists such as Nina Hagen and Udo Lindenberg.
Selections from Nice Mover have appeared on compilations like Andrew Weatherall's The 9 O'Clock Drop and DJ Hell's Music From Hell. Additionally, "Vendor's Box" from X-Traordinaire was featured on the 2020 synth-pop collection "Music, Musik, Musique".