KMFDM’s Relentless Beat Due in Ventura : The band, whose latest album is called ‘Angst,’ is led by a couple of Germans who reveal the real meaning of the group’s name.

The industrial, techno, sonic guitar assault of KMFDM is like riding on a motorcycle about 200 m.p.h. with the Predator singing in your ear.

This is what happens when children grow up and most of their friends are machines. The powerful yet meticulous programming on KMFDM songs is sufficient to get the kitchen appliances dancing across the counter, so relentless is the beat. Which means that local toaster ovens will be hopping Friday when KMFDM comes to the Ventura Theatre.

Not surprisingly, KMFDM is not your typical barrel of laughs unless you think that all Martin Scorsese movies are comedies. KMFDM’s latest album--entitled “Angst”--pretty much says it all.

Here are some sample lyrics from “Sucks,” a single off “Angst.”

Our music is simple, totally fake/It’s done by machines ‘cause they don’t make mistakes/We don’t have no lyrics; our message is nil/We hate all DJs--they’re making us ill/Whatever we tell you is meant to be crap/We hate all music, especially rap/We don’t like Michael Jackson; we hate Depeche Mode/We don’t care for Madonna or Kylie Minogue/You must think we’re stupid; but we’re way above it/We don’t give a (bleep) and the kids just love it . . . .”

A couple of Germans who now live in the United States are mostly to blame for all of this. Sascha Konietzko is the programmer supreme and also a vocalist and percussionist. En Esch is the one who learned to sing by watching every Tasmanian Devil cartoon too many times. He also is a guitarist and percussionist. Mark Durante and Svet Am play more guitars, real loud.

Rumors abound about the meaning of their name. The usual explanation is an unprintable one that concerns the demise of techno popsters Depeche Mode.

A year ago, a Florida radio station sponsored a contest to name the band. Some of the entries included Kiss My Friendly Delicious Mom, Koresh Made Fifty Die Miserably, Kick Me for Doing Math, Kill Me for Drug Money, Kennels Make Friendly Dogs Mean, Kevorkian Makes Feeble Dorks Mighty or Killing Madonna Frees Desperate Minds.

Actually, the answer is more prosaic than any of those. Esch and Konietzko were doing performance art in Paris in 1983. The French cultural affairs minster criticized the act, saying the Germans “. . . had no pity for the majority of the visitors to the exhibition.” In German, “no pity for the majority” is “Kleine Mitlied fur das Mehrheit.” KMFDM.

Now that you know what you’re in for, Konietzko talked it all over from his Seattle home.

You guys have been everywhere. What’s the difference between American audiences and European audiences?

“The Americans seem to be more into it, more enthusiastic. For the Europeans, it has to do with a certain arrogance. It’s like they’ve seen it before, heard it better, heard it louder and the acid was better, or whatever.”

You live in Seattle. What’s the scene like up there?

“I don’t go out too much. To me, the city seems to be pretty high-strung and uptight.”

Your partner, En Esch, lives in New Orleans. What’s the writing process?

“We meet when it’s necessary. Usually a song starts with a certain loop, the guitar stuff comes later and the lyrics usually come last. I like to call our music ‘ultra heavy beat.’ Some people call it industrial, but that’s not really what it is. Our music has very positive lyrics and strong song structures. It’s really not like Ministry or Skinny Puppy at all.”

Why do concerts always start late?

“I asked myself just last night: Why are concerts always so loud? I’m getting older, and I’ll have to be wearing earplugs soon. I guess concerts are a process of entertainment anticipation. You get dressed, then go to the club and stand around sweating, waiting for something to happen. Then you have a couple of drinks, then stagger home. We usually start on time within 20 minutes or so.”

The Ventura Theatre show is $19.50.

“It is? That’s high, really high. We try to keep the prices down because we want people to come and see us. We’re not the types that you see driving around in limos like U2 talking about crap they don’t believe in. We try to keep the prices of our T-shirts down to about 12 bucks, and our shows are usually between $13 and $16. And usually there’s four bands or so on the bill, so it’s more or less entertaining. We make a conscious decision about those things.”

What’s up with MTV attempting to censor “A Drug Against War,” one of your videos?

“They didn’t really try to censor us, but this particular animated video was very expensive and some people at Wax Trax thought, ‘Yeah, we need MTV,’ and wanted to change it. But I couldn’t care less. MTV is a major source of stupefying people. They make kids dumb. But Fox plays our video, and clubs everywhere play it, so that’s OK.”

What’s the secret to survival and sanity on the road?

“Don’t drink. Don’t smoke too many cigarettes. Eat good food. If you don’t drink, you’ll usually go to bed early.”

Details

* WHAT: KMFDM, Sister Machine Gun, Chemlab.

* WHERE: Ventura Theatre.

* WHEN: Friday night, 8.

* COST: $19.50.

* FYI: 648-1888.