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Category: Shows

… sauna clubbing ctd: Cockney Rejects and a lovely audience!
Actually i do not know where to start nor to finish. Whilst many of me mates where in Blackpool the other week they brought home only good stories about Jeff (doing a spoken word performance) and Cockney Rejects (doing a great show). For me as a regular Blackpool absentee it did not matter too much, i was just keen to see them again (having had to miss the 2019 edition of the Sauna event).

Just like 2019 they where paired with This Means War from Belgium, who technically took the stage 2nd, as there was a short Book presentation in the pub for starters. I preferred to stay outside, enjoying plenty of chats with people from near and far, watching them brothers Nickel applying liquid drugs through the eyeballs on Matthias and trying to stay out of the sauna – it was damn hot in Hamburg.

This Means War kicked off to an already well filled Monkeys and they play Oi! with a definite scent of Hard Rock, though not leaning too far into that territory.
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This Means War (Monkey Music Club, Hamburg, 13.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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For me it was a mixed bag, i sometimes felt a wee bit offended by them trying to bond with the audience. Not sure what did offend me, because i guess they just tried to be friendly and with the audience, rather than fronting the audience.

Within their rooster they do have one or the other quite melodic song with sing-a-long qualities, overall most of them without “speeding”. They played for about 30 minutes i take and they got some cheers (and even some folks singing along).
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This Means War (Monkey Music Club, Hamburg, 13.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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For me there was one ill-fated choice though, but again it may just be stubborn and selfish me: If i would do support for Cockney Rejects i would not cover Cock Sparrer in my set and if i cover Cock Sparrer then definitely not “Suicide Girls”. Period.

With a quick changeover it was all ready for the Rejects and by now the Monkeys was well filed (though i believe not sold out). And what was awaiting the lot? A mixture of old and new, classic Oi! anthems and selected songs from their later efforts.

Cockney Rejects – Set List (Monkeys Music Club, Hamburg, 13.08.2022)

They took the stage totally unpretentious and stormed into their set as a well oiled engine. And the engine got some new extra horsepower, the young lad on drums was pushing them forward a wee bit more than in the past (at least it felt like that).
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Cockney Rejects (Monkey Music Club, Hamburg, 13.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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As always Jeff was the engagement manager and due to the smaller stage he could not do as much sparing as he does on bigger ones. He was having a little chat here, a little smile there and consistent messaging: We are the Cockney Rejects and we do what we like to do. Period.

The lot from start to finish went with the band, and then a bit more and then over the top. And it was mostly fun in front of the stage, thanks largely to the absence of the football faction. Even more, there was a large female contingent front row and one individual specifically with non-stop dancing, not bothered by male bodies throwing themselves around.

Great view that pit, great view.
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Cockney Rejects (Monkey Music Club, Hamburg, 13.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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They gave 75 minutes i guess, came back for some encore and in all honesty thanked the club and the lot for having them. As someone noted it may just be that Bridgehouse feeling that they need from time to time.

For me the best ever Cockney Rejects show in Hamburg and a total teardown as we say in German. And the best is that them Brothers Geggus are still consistent with their 1981 attitude.

Snippet from Melody Maker, August 22nd 1981

It is worth to add that they only ever flew in & out for this club show, so big thanks from the Hamburg lot for that effort (in times of travel disruptions left, right and center – as many of the Blackpool Pilgrims experienced on their way home). I also heard some folks saying that most likely they will not do this small stints anymore and instead will concentrate on bigger festival like appearances, if only.

What is definitely true is that their last ever album, Power Grab, is about to come in September. Whatever route they choose will be right for them, i am damn sure. For what they have injected both into Punk (and that little niche Oi!) and into Hamburg at the Monkeys i am forever grateful.

If this was the end, it was a perfect ending.
2022/08/15
… when the support also surprises the main act then it must have been a great show!
As i share my views on shows i attended i never shy away from pointing out items i liked and items i did not like. And there is no preference nor bitterness. What i do like is to get surprises, share surprises and praise surprises.

And this hot Tuesday was to be a show of surprises. The least surprise was that the Avengers used the Blackpool weekend as a lift off for a round of shows in Germany, it was actually expected and much welcome. Also a lesser surprise was to meet Biber, former Knallschoten Bass Player, as he usually attends Avengers shows at the Hafenklang.

A slightly bigger surprise was to meet an old school fellow long out of country, who actually was Punk #4 at my school in early 1979 when i was just about to venture into that mu-sick-al direction. I think he is to blame for my love for Sham 69!

The biggest surprise though was the support act. I never took note of them prior and only got word from friends after the show that they had seen an incarnation earlier (and had been equally surprised back then).

And what did surprise me? It was Reverend Beat-Man & The Underground from sunny Switzerland.
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Reverend Beat-Man & The Underground (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 09.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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It has been quite some time that i saw such an enigmatic front man who is able to not only command his troops but also literally confronting the audience in a way that glues eyes towards him. He is quite unique and acts like a real actor in the best positive sense of the word.

And how does their self proclaimed Doom Blues Nasty No-Future-Wave Synth Folk Trash sound? The Doom Blues element of it sounded like this:

Every song sounded different and on every song the Reverend assumed a different persona. I guess his fellow musicians (i understand stolen from other bands. eg. Milan Slick from the Synth-Punk-Duo Entartete Musik on Keyboards, Beatrice Graf from Ester Poly on Drums and Benjamin Glaus from Skinny Jim Tennessee on Guitar) and their respective abilities and background make that possible.
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Reverend Beat-Man & The Underground (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 09.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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They not only got plenty of applause from the audience ( i guess almost 200) but also had Penelope Houston glued to the side of the stage and taking videos. I guess they surprised her as much as they surprised me.

The are unique, driven by a singular cause (and personality, i take) and they bring back a variation that frankly i sometimes lack on eg. H/C shows. Somehow it felt like being back at the very early 80s when Punk branched out way beyond the original rock rooted Punk Rock.

If you dare, try them out. I won’t dare to buy a record (as i am unsure if the music works for me at home or on the move) but if you dare on that front too than please rely on Sounds Of Subterrania to get their stuff. The owner loves them.

The Reverend and his disciples already made the evening a good one, as such i was in no eagerness for the Avengers actually. A rare feel in the context of support and headliner but to a certain extend if was here exactly for them in the first place.
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The Avengers (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 09.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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It feels really good to see Penelope and Greg still at it, supported by young guns on Bass and Drums. At the start the drums felt a wee bit loud, as the drummer had a high intensity, and Gregs guitar was way to low on volume. Down the road that got better and we got to enjoy not a 1:1 copy of the 1978 Avengers but got their classic hits (and they only ever produced hits) in a real 20th century fashion.

Here is Corpus Christi and a song that is covered in 2020 by a rock star is testament to that simple fact: Only ever hits!

And yes, Penelope is still a great voice and has aged well. Would she know that some of her 1978 pictures made an everlasting impression on me? I bet she does, as she has been a hell of a good looking punkette back then. And she does well in keeping the Avengers alive and kicking.
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The Avengers (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 09.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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They played for about an hour i guess but game back for some extras, including the all time sing-a-long and mantra: I Believe In Me!
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I believe in me
I make my dreams real
I believe in me
I said I believe in me
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If there is one 7″ you should get from 1977 US of A then it is the Avengers debut one on Dangerhouse.

To quote an infamous person:

These three songs are the Avengers recording debut. My all time favorite female punk singer, Penelope Houston, fronts the band and is just too great. What a voice filled with feeling she has! You just automatically believe everything she says.

True, so true. The Avengers left behind many happy people, the Reverend left behind many happy people – i can tell you i left happy too. I got what i love most: Live musik i can sing to and live music that surprises me. Paired with meeting people that share an equal vision. Just puuuurfect!

PS: The story of The Avengers is not without tears and one of the sadder element is the story of the original bass player James Clavin Wilsey, who went to fame and from there down to drugs, homelessness and … death. There is a book on this story but to get my hand on it i would have to spend 25$ on postage. Too expensive. Anyone with an idea to get it in Europe cheaper?
2022/08/12
… world tourage anyone?
Last time World Tourage (a neat euphemism) stopped in Hannover (2019, actually) there where plenty of folks from Hamburg who took the trip down south to Hannover. This year many where already en-route to Blackpool for Rebellion on the weekend, so the Hamburg contingent was rather small, though i met some surprise connoisseurs.

We took sail rather early from Hamburg on a hot & sweaty day and managed to get down to Hannover without a single traffic issue, on top we found a parking spot just next to the Faust – perfect. We knew that MakeWar would take the stage very early and we also realized once there that due to Holidays, still raging Covid and maybe a zillion other individual issues the show would be far from being sold out.

MakeWar we dropped, we rather had a beer, a bite and a chat in the lovely beer garden of the Faust.

When we decided to head into the Faust i was surprised how empty it felt, my guess would be that roughly 450 people attended (and i guess the Faust can hold ~700). A bit of a let down for the Descendents. Putting it into perspective i would also guess that in Hamburg, if they would have played the Markthalle again, it would have been similarly a feeling of emptyness.

A Wilhelm Scream i only ever saw in context of the Descendents, be it support in Hamburg or a the Open Air Festival in Barcelona, both in 2018. Both times they did not appeal to me at all, thus i decided to give them a full 3rd chance now.
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A Wilhelm Scream (Faust, Hannover, 03.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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Unfortunately they still do not resonate with me, too much of their sound is up an alley that i just do not savour. Their biggest asset to me is that everyone to the front is actually singing, so they got some nice multi-vocal songs and choruses. Also, after the show, they turned out generally friendly, interested and humble people. But for me it did not help, it is not my mu-sick.

Thanks to the Rock Star setting their equipment was moved off stage quickly and we had an unobstructed view towards Stephens twin Blackstar Amp & Speakers, Bills massive Drums and Karls twin Ampeg Amp & Speakers. If you bring me blindfolded into a club and just show me that setting – i would instantaneously know the Descendents are on.

And what where the on for tonight?

Descendents – Set List (Faust, Hannover, 03.08.2022)

Comparing to the last EU Shows a bit of a mix, a couple of standards where dropped in favor of some new stuff and the whole thing took an upside down makeover. I was eager by now and sharp at 21:20 (+/-) Stephen, Karl, Bill and Milo took the stage.

For the first couple of songs the sound on our end of the stage, just in front of Stephen, was terrible – the guitar almost non-existent. Luckily this was fixed and further down the set it was audible in the right way but by and large i was not happy with the sound. Maybe the lack of audience shifted resonances or whatever, i have seen and heard much better sound in the past.
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Descendents (Faust, Hannover, 03.08.2022 (c) gehkacken.de 2022)
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Still, the lot had fun and also the band was smiling down from the stage. More to the center of the stage, fronting Milo, was actually a large female contingent having extra fun and being protected from the pit by that one pole – a lucky spot indeed.

How did it sound? As i was not happy with the sound i did not bother to take a video but me mate Beno did, so here is the ode to that little girl in pursuit of partying, using sex to get her drugs and alcohol. As she becomes the village bike, everyone gets a ride…

They played a hot SO36 the night before and i had the feeling that they where a bit exhausted. Somehow it came across as rushing through the set though it could also be down to the simple fact that i did sing-a-long to almost all songs and it went by like a fly.

Perfect away game though we came home feeling like having seen a good draw rather than a mighty away win. But as it was over early it meant we could all be in bed like 01:00 and get up at 06:00 for work, which we did.

… the proud, the few aka the crew!

Whilst some in Blackpool did hope that the Descendents would jump in to fill the Bad Religion vacancy short notice it was clear from their rooster that this won’t happen. But good to see them spending more than two weeks in Europe, lets hope that this will be the regular pattern for the future (and lets also hope they continue to alternate between Hannover and home sweet home).

PS: I have smart friends. Some just ask to hand a thanks to the band (which i did to Bill), some bring on some nice gifts. If you want to taste it, get your Descendents coffee brew down below (Click!Bait!).

Thanks Pery, much appreciated!
2022/08/08