endeared the band to the far-right scene. The album was followed by Böse Menschen – Böse Lieder in 1985. Shortly after the release of the Mexico EP in late 1985, the band split with Rock-O-Rama; it had been defrauded of royalties and was concerned about the growing far-right reputation of the label, which did not represent its viewpoint. In 1985, Böhse Onkelz appeared in the TV movie Zagarbata by Tabea Blumenschein. The film was a ZDF co-production, directed by Christoph Dreher, about the skinhead and punk subcultures of the early 1980s. 1986–1992: Banning and media attention Apart from the indexing of Der nette Mann in 1986, things were calm around the band after its departure from the skinhead scene. After one charity concert, there were no live performances until 1989. In 1987 they released the album Onkelz wie wir..., followed by Kneipenterroristen in 1988. The albums contained songs about drinking and violence, but were richer musically and lyrically. Despite Russell's alcohol and heroin addictions, the band continued to work together. During this period the band was ignored by the media; however, this changed with the growing album sales of Es ist soweit, Wir ham’ noch lange nicht genug and Heilige Lieder. On 16 June 1990 the band's best friend, Andreas "Trimmi" Trimborn, was stabbed to death during an incident at a bar in Frankfurt's Sachsenhausen district. Two days later, Böhse Onkelz supporters located the assailant: a Bundeswehr soldier whose father held high military rank. The killer was acquitted; the judge stated that Böhse Onkelz and its entourage were known to be violent, and the stabbing was committed in self-defense. Even today, all witnesses reject the claim that Trimmi threatened the killer and his companion (both of whom had allegedly snorted cocaine minutes before the incident). Russell fell into a deep depression over the loss of his friend, masking his grief with drugs and alcohol; his substance-abuse habits became so destructive that he almost died. The songs "Nur die besten sterben jung" ("Only the best die young") and "Der Platz neben mir" ("The place beside me") were written for Trimmi. 1992–1997: Commercial success and criticism In 1992, with no marketing, the album Heilige Lieder rose to No. 5 on the German LP charts. Despite its increasing commercial success, the band bore the stigma of being part of the right wing until its end. The Onkelz faced considerable criticism, which led to