www.gehkacken.de

Blog

  • … 2025 in numbers!

    … 2025 in numbers!

    On the private side it wasn’t the best of a year: We had to transfer me Mum & Dad into a care home, me Dad passed away due to cancer and me Mum ain’t the fittest either.

    On top we made a big move into our to-be pension home out of the city, in the green of a “neck of the woods” suburb and as part of it took up a full renovation of a 1970s apartment into modern standards.

    As such less time for shows, less time for reading.

    I saw about the same number of Shows as in 2024 (32) but less bands (equals to less festival like shows):

    #of shows# of bandsav. bands
    per show
    Hafenklang12262
    Monkeys6163
    Pretty Vacant HQ362
    Knust242
    MS Hedi221
    Indra221
    Komet121
    Marias Ballroom133
    Stellwerk144
    FCSP Fanshop111
    31662

    It sure should have been more, specifically at the Hafenklang.

    Best show 2025? That’s a tough one, on my mental shortlist are six shows. Mhhhh. Let’s see:

    Best show: Shattered Faith, Sloppy Seconds and T.S.O.L. at the Hafenklang. I guess mainly because of Jack and his lot driving this one home. Gold!

    Runners up: Razors & Demolition Girl at Burn Down The Baum 18.0 at the Knust (Silver) and Sonny Vincent & Spitfire Stevens (what a great return for Sonny!) at the Hafenklang (Bronze).

    Best set: Rancoeur (Hafenklang), followed by Gimp First (Monkeys) and Youth Of Altona (Pretty Vacant HQ)!

    Biggest surprise: The Spartanics! And luckily they will hit Hamburg on 22.01.2026 at the Hafenklang again. Count me in!

    On the reading side it was even more bleak: For the first time since i take these statistics (2016) i dropped below 20.000 pages read per year. Damn.

    # books#pages# of days
    Crime5217.671308
    History31.07225
    Music132210
    Fiction139623
    5719.461

    That is a mere 76 pages read per day (last years high score was 93).

    Most of it was crime and my favorite publishers remain almost unchanged: Polar Verlag (12 books), Suhrkamp (8 books), Unionsverlag (6 books) and Kampa (5 books).

    Also my trust into those who run certain items remains, including almost blindly trusting books translated by the lovely Conny Lösch.

    What was the best read?

    That turned – in hindsight – out to be dead easy:

    Nicolás Ferraro – Ámbar (Pendragon, 2025) – a real surprise (from Argentina) and a real treat!

    Runners up (only by small margin):

    David L. Ulin – Die Frau, Die Schrie (Polar Verlag, 2025) – a book where on purpose i do not disclose anything in the review because the story & twists are utmost cool is something special indeed!

    Les Edgerton – Das grenzgeniale Pseudo-Kidnapping (pulp master, 2025) – How low can you go? Rarely the books heroes where such looser, rarely that right amount of gore (and blood, and vomit) came through the pages!

    And other great reads:

    1974, Glasgow. Never done better than in Alan Parks – Möge Gott Dir Vergeben (Polar Verlag, 2025), A great surprise with a local bloody hard-boiled in Timo Blunck – Ein kleines Lied über das Sterben (Emons, 2025), More excellent Canadian stuff from Giles Blunt – Kanadische Nächte (Kampa, 2025) and a great American road movie (down the drain galore) in Hannah Deitch – Killer Potential (List, 2025).

    A honorable mention: The completion of the Big Bend trilogy by J. Todd Scott!

    Looking forward to some great books in 2026, some have already passed the read!

    On the vinyl side i was still concerned with selling off stuff, my Discogs count is now 4.883 – so right below the magic limit of 5.000!

    In 2025 i added only 37 new records to the collection (and that included a some great reissue formats).

    Best ones (in no paricular order):

    Finally score this beauty from Hammerhead. All killer, no filler!

    Boy, what a great band. Not only live but also on record. French Cold Oi! – rarely gets better!

    A friggin live surprise and a great EP set – any musically utmost giftet!

    Sure all of this found it’s way into the 2025 Playlist!

    Songs From The Holy War Archive Volume 25
  • Songs From The Holy War Archive Volume 25

    Songs From The Holy War Archive Volume 25

    Songs From The Holy War Archive Volume 25 (Full Year 2025 Edition)

    Damn, 2025 somewhat was a fucked year. A house move (retirement home, here we came), a family death and other stuff kept me away from mu-sick (both shows, scoring vinyl and all the shebang.

    But still, i added new stuff and unearthed old stuff. And the result is a good 7 hours of Punk Rock with a scent of Surf. The music helps me through work, long or short haul work travel and gives me a gentle uplift.

    And that is what it hopefully gives you, who savors the playlist (either at home or at work, for long night shifts).

    You know who you are.

    You know that you make life, shows and footie so much more fun. FANX!

    Now go and re-create!

    1. Laika & The Cosmonauts – Look! No Head! (3:08)
    2. Teen Idols – Five Lessons Learned (1:55)
    3. The Stiffies – Don’t Wanna Be Your Friend (2:25)
    4. The Extras – G. Masina (feat. Sonny Vincent, Jamie Oliver, Greg Norton) (0:50)
    5. The Mullet Monster Mafia – Swamp (2:23)
    6. Motras – Looking Like 20/20 (2:14)
    7. Kouarrg – Dans L’ombre (2:37)
    8. The Roxies – Alright (3:19)
    9. Tyranna – Back Of Baby (2:19)
    10. Surf Aliens – Tentáculos (2:16)
    11. Guillotine – J’emmerde Demain (2:52)
    12. Geoffrey Oi!Cott – People Made Of Lego (2:06)
    13. Reaper – Internal Torment (3:05)
    14. The Evil Eyes – Dia De Los Muertos (2:46)
    15. Atlantes – Marée Haute (2:10)
    16. Head – Just A Little Bit Better (2:16)
    17. Squared Off – Nightmare (2:40)
    18. Funk Of It All – Step Down (3:24)
    19. Hassman A Prace Na Silnici – Hassmanova brutalne Neopunkova Minuta (1:04)
    20. Angelic Upstarts – Five Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (2:49)
    21. Hunting Lions – Age Of The Guillotine (3:05)
    22. Diaz Brothers – Melancholy Hand Grenades (2:44)
    23. Rancœur – Partir Sans Dire Adieu (2:36)
    24. Die Böse Hand – Lachleute & Nettmenschen (1:07)
    25. The Burnouts – Anthems Past (2:13)
    26. Bovver Wonderland – Man You Never Knew (1:28)
    27. Music Farm – Silly Girl (2:24)
    28. The Sleeveens – Give My Regards To The Dancing Girls (2:18)
    29. Cockney Cocks – I Don’t Care (3:13)
    30. Strikt – Skitfolk (2:30)
    31. Toledo Panic – Falling Down (2:46)
    32. Home Front – Always This Way (3:16)
    33. Tower Crane Towers – The Breaks (2:24)
    34. Surfin Wagner – El Baile del Muerto (2:23)
    35. The Skunts – End Away (1:58)
    36. Neurotic Swingers – Sexy & Mysterious (1:50)
    37. Toxic Mutants – Ugly Bug (2:18)
    38. Cheap Violent Cats – 25000 Gallons Of Paranoia (3:52)
    39. On The Huh – King For A Day (2:41)
    40. Gimp Fist – Without You (3:09)
    41. Accident – World War III (1:03)
    42. The Baboon Show – High Five With The Guys (1:35)
    43. Sharp Class – Tales Of A Teenage Mind (3:01)
    44. Neat Mentals – All About Horst (1:56)
    45. Smash Your Face – Over Flow (Remastered Version) (1:24)
    46. Grape – Shitty Stuff On Radio (1:56)
    47. Lost In Society – We Want Change (2:34)
    48. Hams – Riot (2:24)
    49. Fuerza Bruta – Enemigo (1:48)
    50. Lenny Lashley’s Gang Of One – Kingston (2:47)
    51. The Mighty Thirst! – Bovver Boy Boogie (2:49)
    52. Go! Tsunami – Mermaid vs. Sasquatch (2:32)
    53. Zooparty – So Many Second Chances (2:00)
    54. Teenage Hearts – All Hate (1:22)
    55. OTO – Bad Boy (1:35)
    56. No Time – Iron Breed (2:25)
    57. The Rapists – Glory To Who Hates You (1:52)
    58. Dawn Patrol – All Our Yesterdays (3:17)
    59. Dolor De Muelas – Persona 5 (1:25)
    60. Dead Bob – Make Believe World (3:00)
    61. Kabuki Joe – Osaka Nights (2:59)
    62. Knife In The Leg – New City Looks (1:34)
    63. The Riptides – Staring At Her Tits (1:02)
    64. The Clench – No Apologies (2:49)
    65. Voodoo Court – Toxic Seaweed (3:09)
    66. Riot City Radio – Anchor In The Storm (3:25)
    67. Punter – Rise Of The Technocrat (2:26)
    68. The Adicts – Numbers (25th Anniversary Version) (2:23)
    69. Croteau – Not My King (2:10)
    70. Frankie and The Pool Boys – Dead Man Surfin’ (2:55)
    71. 5th Threat – Blood Fued (1:44)
    72. A Way Out – Its All Over (2:39)
    73. City 493 – La Mia Vita (2:10)
    74. Hard Wax – This Town (2:08)
    75. Raff – Courir Dans La Rue (1:13)
    76. Johnny & The Waves – Tidal Wave (2:14)
    77. Myband – Radio Noise (1:21)
    78. Spogelse – All Go No Slow (1:55)
    79. Cockroach Clan – Facts On The Wall (1:49)
    80. Nosebleed – Secret (1:29)
    81. Junior Battles – Twenty Five (4:02)
    82. Cidadao – Gauche Caviar (1:47)
    83. Black Bacon – A Hole In The Wall (3:43)
    84. Dear Landlord – High Fives (2:03)
    85. The Samples – Thatcher’s Boot Boys (2:50)
    86. Wonk Unit – Je M’Apelle Alex (2:08)
    87. The Spartanics – Sad Days For The Kids (2:25)
    88. Enrico Marchiori – Il Pontile (2:17)
    89. Latecomer – Softage (1:49)
    90. Widows – Famous Five (2:14)
    91. Restraining Order – Be Like Me (1:06)
    92. Pojkfan Trilskas – Vid 25 (2:58)
    93. Split Dogs – Blood Runs Cold (2:19)
    94. Kingargoolas – Fórceps Poseidon (2:50)
    95. Bad Sam – Other People’s Meds (2:14)
    96. The Stress – Break The Chains (2:24)
    97. Le Volume Était Au Maximum – 25 (2:34)
    98. Rancid – Sex & Death (2:04)
    99. The Bills – The Fly (1:57)
    100. Wirrsal – Fünf Finger Rabatt (1:02)
    101. The Panpanics – Pervert In Disguise (3:19)
    102. Chemical-X – Don’t Look At Me (1:13)
    103. The Terraces – 25 Years (2:29)
    104. Gulag Beach – Down The Drain (3:52)
    105. Drastic Action – Just A Cliché (1:46)
    106. Hot Load – No Streets (1:36)
    107. The Clinch – A New Land (2:43)
    108. The Killer Bananazz – Freaks of Nature (1:39)
    109. The Domestics – Pills (0:46)
    110. The Snags – Crack And Glue (1:30)
    111. True Breed – Fever Dream (2:33)
    112. The Crack – I Want You (Original Version 1982) (3:02)
    113. The Shoemakers – She Has No Time (3:04)
    114. American Television – Wasteland, USA (1:52)
    115. The Murderburgers – 8 A.M. Headlights (1:56)
    116. Vilder – Radio (2:39)
    117. End It – Could You Love Me? (4:37)
    118. Double Knockout – Highway Stranger (2:18)
    119. Invertebrates – Bastardized (1:27)
    120. Marie Marie – Do You Do You Brush Your Teeth? (2:30)
    121. Roxie & The Razorblades – We Are The Bomb (3:16)
    122. Helen Love – I’ll Wear The Sparks One (1:49)
    123. Loaded – Jackie Cola, Rock ‘N’ Rolla (1:53)
    124. Gallows – The Great Forgiver (2:14)
    125. Skinhead – Everything Is Stories (1:51)
    126. Slant – The Trap (1:27)
    127. The Contractions – Rules And Regulations (2:16)
    128. Professional Againsters – We own the streets (1:16)
    129. Basementones – Tunica Molesta (2:35)
    130. The Kilaueas – Surf Demon (1:54)
    131. Matanza – Five feet High and Rising (1:49)
    132. Claimed Choice – Make Some Noise (1:41)
    133. Dingo – Die! Fraudulent Rock Stars (3:04)
    134. IQ Zero – Lonely (2:14)
    135. Not OK – Pint Hickey (2:22)
    136. Terra Flop – Not My World (1:21)
    137. Dirk And The Seconds – Weary Moon (2:40)
    138. The Routes – Shake Five (3:10)
    139. City Miles – Thirty Degrees (3:18)
    140. The Melmacs – Good Advices (2:27)
    141. The Earwigs – Here Come The Earwigs (Single Version 1981) (3:18)
    142. Toro Jones – Bone Vampire (2:44)
    143. The SkudFux – Revolution (2:26)
    144. Starving Wolves – Nothing More (3:51)
    145. Klobber – Klobbering (1:29)
    146. CLOX – Getting Better (2:19)
    147. School Drugs – Cold Hearted (2:30)
    148. Armor – Fodder (2:35)
    149. Jodie Faster – No God No Master No Algorithm (0:40)
    150. Desperate Fün – The Next Myself (2:41)
    151. One Time Crime – Walk Away (3:27)
    152. The Madeira – Witch Doctor (3:58)
    153. Slalom D – Harbour Walls (4:00)
    154. The Dole – Who Cares (2021 re-recorded version) (2:52)
    155. Two Fingers Up – Strike A Match (2:24)
    156. Betty Machete And The Angry Cougars – I Want Out (0:50)
    157. The Coils – Do You Remember? (3:37)
    158. Dub Spencer & Trance Hill – 25 Years feat. The Catch (The Catch) (4:55)
    159. Seizure – Accept Manipulation (1:43)
    160. Mark Malibu and the Wasagas – Pet Semetary (3:31)
    161. North City Lager System – I’m Not As Big A Cunt As You Think I Am (2:00)
    162. Knife In The Leg – Five Of Us Makes Ten Clenched Fists (2:02)
    163. Modern Pets – Five Finger Discount (1:51)
    164. Edge – Ae E Dovv (2:26)
    165. Surfterraneos – Invasión (3:16)
    166. Sacramentos – Todo Lo Que Hiciste (1:46)
    167. Nasty Pets – School Daze (1:46)
    168. Hi-Fi Spitfires – Cold Blood (2:29)
    169. The Eat – Communist Radio (1979 Version) (1:48)
    170. The Workers – Kawasaki Jim (2:01)
    171. Hard Shoulder – Socials (2:19)
    172. The Liarbilitys – Radio (1:37)
    173. Trash Knife – Zombies (1:18)
    174. Scunthorpe Yobs – Class War (2:27)
    175. The Covids – Steppin Out (2:15)
    176. Desperate Livin’ – Gevär (2:16)
    177. Lion’s Law – Un Jour (2:21)
    178. NOi!se – What We’ve Gained (2:58)
    179. Fifty Foot Combo – It’s Alive (2:55)
    180. Witte – 25 Stunden am Tag (3:15)
    181. The Massacred – Power On Top Of Power (2:24)
    182. The Haermorrhoids – Ambitious Beer Can Collector (2:10)

    Songs From The Holy War Archive Volume 25:
    182 tracks in playlist, average track length: 2:21
    Playlist length: 7 hours 8 minutes 56 seconds

  • Bücher, schnell gelesen: 1.808

    Bücher, schnell gelesen: 1.808

    James Lee Burke – Clete (Pendragon, 2025)

    Gelesen: 06. – 08.01.2026 (netto 339 Seiten)

    Aus dem Amerikanischen von Jürgen Bürger.

    Band 24 der Dave Robicheaux Reihe und diesmal hat sich James Lee Burke einen kleinen Spass erlaubt:

    Der unberechenbare Sidekick von Dave, ehemaliger Partner im NOPD und irgendwie Privatdetektiv Clete Purcel erzählt die Geschichte aus seiner Sicht.

    Allerdings ist Clete alles andere als ein zuverlässiger Erzähler: Er ist alkoholkrank, psychisch labil, depressiv. Die Sünden und Teufel der Vergangenheit sind tief in seinem Gehirn.

    Mehr als einmal fantasiert er sich Dinge herbei die einfach nicht real sein können (und es wahrscheinlich so auch nicht waren). Trotzdem bleibt es ein typisches Dave Robicheaux Buch voller Gewalt. Verstörend, explizit und mitunter sinnlos. Warum manche Figuren verletzt werden und warum so brutal bleibt irgendwie, genauso wie das Ende, halbwegs im Dunkeln.

    Drogen. Nazis. Gangster. FBI. Korrupte Cops. Racheengel. Frauen, die gerettet werden müssen.

    All-in, und ziemlich crazy. Wie Clete eben so ist.

    Der Running Gag des Buches ist das Clete irgendwie immer wieder im Krankhaus landet und sich immer wieder selbst entlässt.

    Das Buch ist ein getarnter Krimi: Ein Actionthriller, der das nicht fehlerfreie Gute gegen das immer unerbittliche Böse antreten lässt. Und ist dazu noch durchdrungen von Traurigkeit und Sehnsucht nach all den vergangenen Sonnenuntergängen. Also ehr … Poesie?

    Als Einzelstück ist die Sicht von Clete spannend, die Geschichten aus Sicht von Dave sind … besser. Weniger fantasierend.

    Trotzdem ein fesselndes Buch, das eben zur Serie gehört.

    Soundtrack dazu: Didjits – Gold Eldorado, was sonst?

    PS: Und James Lee Burke so?