Oh my, following my house move into our retirement place the trip down south to Harburg, over the mighty river Elbe, is now a looong stretch on public transport.
Self-chosen problem though and one to easily overcome. Just do it!
Last year the “Dance into Mai” was dropped, 2025 saw a new edition. Initially planned with the Bad Brians and Demolition Girls next to Youth Of Altona the rooster needed updates due to various illnesses.
Youth Of Altona ended up paired with Uke Of Tomorrow (using ukes to cover the world) and Boy Division (using any tool to slaughter other peoples hits).
But whatever the line-up – it was pretty fast sold-out!
Ukes Of Tomorrow kicked it off, dressed in style and with plenty of their weapons of choice ready: If i counted correctly Kent had three different (n)ukes ready, Totti two.
Ukes Of Tomorrow (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
Whilst Kent remains a great storyteller with an excellent choice of songs (most of the time luring the audience to sing-a-long more silent than loud) my mu-sick-al receptors are somewhat not working well when the song is solely carried by ukes.
That said, it is still entertaining and does not make me flee the room. And that is also how the audience took it – a more mellow warm up to covering Harburg with songs from far and near.
Boy Division next and i have to admit that i gave them a pass multiple times over the years. And i got to admit now that i was simply outright wrong.
A simple quote from the internet (damn internet, never forgets) gives the gist:
It wasn't that people didn't like Boy Division, they were just scared (former booker)
And bringing danger or scare back into Punk is always a bonus. On top they do meet demanding criteria of my dumb mu-sick-al mind:
- Dressing up for the occasion and wearing well orchestrated uniforms on stage
- In case of the desire to play a cover, do it slightly off, slightly odd and in a way that makes people either wonder, speechless or flee.
So what did i finally get? 4 guys with black suit trousers, white shirts, black ties and an electronic name badge showing “Boy Division” in running letters.
A trashy drum kit on a bar stool (with the clever help of electronics) and vocals through a wide variations of megaphones.
Quite a look, quite a sound.
Boy Division (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
And, most likely that made it work that evening for me, it was less art and more driving … Punk. Deconstruction on steroids. But always pushing forward.
Frank – the “art” annotation was always the key fend-off item for me. But that one now is overcome, so they got a new admirer!
And yes, they surprised many of the lot in the Ballroom and got a fair amount of applause.
Youth Of Altona took the stage next and this is how they kicked off with “Return Of The Rat”:
Where Greg Sage once was said to have envisaged the Wipers as non-live
Its inception was at first an exclusive recording project. Then Sage planned to record 15 LPs in 10 years without touring or promoting. He believed it would be possible to avoid live shows, press, pictures and interviews, and this – coupled with the mystique of his unorthodox music – would encourage a deeper, more imaginative engagement with the recordings.
it is Youth Of Altona who pull it out of the cupboard, out of the #recordcollectorsarepretentiousarseholes collection and onto the stage.
And boy did they not only pull this night but pushed. Relentlessly. More than once recognizing on stage “outsch, we are speeding through the set”.
Youth Of Altona (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
For me it was a near perfect set – umpf, drive and the harsh & raw guitar work above a rock-solid backline. And they still have my song of choice in the setlist, to which Christiane added a Karl Alvarez intro. Luv it. Luuuv it big time!
They got all the sing-a-long deserved and they got plenty of cheers. And, finally, some dancing into the May.
And then finished off like this, taking the audience over the edge:
Superb. And making not only us northerners happy but also that lovely couple coming all the way from Munich. And surprising them too with how Hamburg covers Harburg.
There is one other item that stood out and that was not only the location itself (secluded down south over the mighty river Elbe for us Hamburgers) but the perfect stage, the good lights and the extraordinary good sound in front of the stage.
The guys running this not only like what they do but also do it technically great.
So a great choice for this little fun thingy, lets beg for it being back in 2026, maybe with Demolition Girls. And a surprise.
Please.
PS: Again i was lucky, capturing the essence of a band – klick for high res version!
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