This was on many fronts a surprise gig. Sold out – a positive surprise to me. Grade 2 at the Hafenklang – an upfront surprise to me. Paired with Death By Stereo – wtf? Also a surprise to me was that some trusted mates where absent, some with the rather weird inclination towards Grade 2 that they have been watered down by Tim Armstrong. Really?
Indeed Grade 2 not gracing the Monkeys and/or the Indra was a surprise, but Sam was happily attending at the Hafenklang. That they were paired with Death By Stereo was quite a surprise to me, though wide choices in pairing normally give positive surprises.
Death By Stereo is the other band of Efrem Schulz, who also sings for Voodoo Glow Skulls and Manic Hispanic. And frank, it is on an opposite spectrum and unfortunately i feel far from home in that territory.
Death By Stereo (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 27.03.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
They are outspoken and put no stop on hating the bad sides of their home country. Some of their songs have elements i can relate to but many flirt with a mix of a bit of hardcore and loads of metal, including splitting vocals into high tuned (almost female) singing and muffled deep growling.
What they do they do well and they do add some fun moments (including the strings resorting to the bar for a drink whilst continuing to play thanks to wireless connectivity). They where also thankful to the audience from whom their got a fair share of reaction (and some where only there to see them, they left once Death By Stereo left the stage). Not my thingy though – but make your own choice.
Next and with minimal setup tricks Grade 2, who still look young (if i recall correctly they where like 16 when they played Hamburg for the first time). But whilst they do look young they have matured so much as individual musicians and as a band.
They are now under the production wings of Tim Armstrong (and accompany Rancid on their 2023 Europe tour) for the most recent effort and that is far from being watered down – it is actually a nice mix of short banger and sing-a-long songs.
For me they worked from the start, humble but well versed on filling a stage and engaging an audience. And they know how to write songs that are never dull, never boring and have an edge without needing to have that standing out.
Grade 2 (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 27.03.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
As with many others the Covid hiatus gave them ample time – they used it wisely to perfect songs and then get ’em recorded and produced by Tim Armstrong in LA. It is a worthy effort that does not deserve to be called “toned-down” at all. Far from mate!
What was also fun to see was that Jacob (Bass) and Sid (Guitar) constantly swapped position on stage and when Jacob was standing on Sid’s side he was operating the foot pedal for effects for Sid just like he was operating his own – that shows how tight they are as a band and much they are a well oiled machine.
They played an hour and a bit, had plenty of movement and sing-a-long from the audience, it was a fun show to watch. At the end came a cover (Where Eagles Dare from the Misfits, though i got to say that there are even better redemptions) and a quick encore.
And that turned my positive surprise into a well deserved one. Grade 2 are worth many efforts to see them, they are humble and unpretentious lads that continue to be very approachable. After the show thay handed thanks to most of the people leaving the Hafenklang and passing by the Merch table.
From where i sit i wish they have big success now, even and specifically in the US of A so that they can do a decent living off the mu-sick.
Also great that the Hafenklang can start to count on sold out shows again, they also need this after thew 2 1/2 years of not being able to bring the dough home needed to run the club.
More of this please!
PS: My loveliest song of Grade 2 remains this one – i have every ounce of trust that they will stick to it!
Mr. Industry, Mr. Industry - your killing music like a disease
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