For quite some time the Hafenklang supports the K-Town Hardcore Fest by giving travelling bands (and others) a pass-through opportunity, this year the warm-up was with 5 bands travelling through Hamburg to K-Town and A.F.K. as a local add-on.
As always it was to be a mixed bag, this time ranging from near (Azijnpisser from Eindhoven) to far (HEZ from Panama) but all in true DIY spirit. DON/T from Hamburg where also planned in but had to drop out short notice.
So it was for the dutchies from Azijnpisser to kick off the proceedings, as early as 20:00. The Hafenklang was not yet full and for me as a local it felt attendance was largely bands’n’friends. It did change later but i guess the Hamburg lot was still underrepresented.
Azijnpisser (means “vinegar pisser”, a cool band name as a dutch mate of mine pointed out) perfectly set the pace for the evening: hard hitting, fast forward and aggressive. And all of that with a near perfect sound & delivery despite the fact that they had to enlist a replacement bass player for this show.
Azijnpisser (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 22.06.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
Their real asset though was their singer, great vocal abilities and perfect screaming, howling and growling… all that roaming in front of the stage with an in yer face attitude. They have just released their first vinyl, 16 songs across 25 minutes – go and check Cold Cuts out now!
Next A.F.K. from Hamburg and they took the banging to the next level I’d say: No compromise seeking banging and even more aggressive vocals. And the singer sported a fun add-on i had not seen on stage prior: He strapped a belt to himself with an effect pedal he ran his mike through (either reverb or echo effect i guess), giving his voice the extra umpf or shreekness.
A.F.K. (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 22.06.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
A.F.K. i believe is short for Aargh Fuck Kill and that is how they went about: Knüppelgeballer (that is “stick banging” literally and describes the feeling as a listener that the band thoroughly beats you up with a stick) at its best. I did not come across them before but i will now check out their output, they where very convincing live.
One of the first row dancers to A.F.K. took the stage next, the guitar player from HEX also seemed to have enjoyed the locals pretty much. With HEX i got a first, this is the first punk band from sunny Panama i get to hear and see. What immediately stood out was the four distinct different personas on stage, what also was going to stand our was their sound.
HEZ (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 22.06.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
I can only make wild guesses here but i my guess would be that mu-sick-ally they have grown up in an environment that – on the positive side – gave them no scene inherited boundaries. On the negative side i guess there are plenty of boundaries for them with their music, locally. Check out their song “La Hez“:
Habitamos las cloacas Es una vida subterranea Somos seres subversivos Y tu no eres mi amigo Nos alimentamos de tóxicos Vivimos rodeados de tóxicos Somos seres subversivos Y tu no eres mi amigo No somos de tu clase Y no queremos agradarte
We inhabit the sewers It's an underground life We are subversive beings and you are not my friend We feed on toxic We live surrounded by toxic We are subversive beings and you are not my friend We are not your kind And we don't want to please you
For me the positive side upheld: They added some unusual bits to their sound next to the stomping drums and distorted bass in namely the guitar adding soundscapes. And the vocal delivery was – yet again – all angry. Great stuff, check them out for yourself.
And where HEZ where surprise for origin, Zanjeer appeared as a total surprise for almost anything: Origin – Bremen, of all places. Members coming all the way from Colombia, Pakistan, England and Germany. And vocals delivered in Urdu, Farsi & Punjabi. Something strange to read & listen? Here you go:
Bhaago bhaago bhaago Bhaago bhenchod Bhaago bhaago bhaago Watan se bhaago Des ghaleez jese public ghusalkhanay Zehni mareez, sab watan pagalkhanay Kidhar mein jau? Kahan mein rahu? Mere paas kya hai? Mere paas kuch nahin Hamdullah!
Run run run, Run motherfucker Run run run Run from your country My country is filthy like public toilets All nations are mental asylums Where do I go? Where will I live? What do I have? I have nothing Thank God!
On top they also created a very different visual on stage, sure largely to the singer looking different than usually expected in a H/C band. Adjust your assumptions!
ZANJEER زنجیر (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 22.06.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
They surprised the hell out of the lot and despite some of their songs sounding the same (at least to my innocent ears) they got everyone dancing and sweaty.
That was indeed different and for me exactly in the sweet spot of getting out to experience something new, something uncommon and – if lucky – something nonconforming. I guess i will need to quiz some folks who went to K-Town how they were received there, it is a special band for sure.
With Code 13 from Minneapolis, Minnesota, the proceedings got back into more common territory – plain good fast USHC. They have been around ever since the 90s and played Germany on DIY tours a couple of times i believe. I always missed them, so was happy to see this incarnation.
Code 13 (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 22.06.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
Their blasts where short and fast, their Complete Discography clocks in at 50 songs in 50 minutes – no chord wasted. Out of the rooster that night they may not have been the one with the most cheers but they definitely where the ones most versed and most tight. A solid fast slab of HC!
By now it was late and almost midnight, with still a band to come. Rigorous Instituation had to reach the Hafenklang first, got stuck on the way through Germany and making it literally only by a narrow margin. As such it took them a wee bit longer to setup, get eg. the synthies hooked up & working and do a little sound checking (with the drummer up’ing and down’ing the Bass in his monitor somewhat erratic).
Finally they kicked off, all the way from Portland, Oregon. And being very non-Portland to me when it came to sound. And presentation.
From the start i had the feeling i am seeing a play (as on a Theater Stage), delivered by a doomsday troupe. Delivered against a backdrop of scorched earth. Used as a soundtrack for a movie that is very very dark, very very creepy.
Rigorous Institution (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 22.06.2023 (c) gehkacken.de 2023)
Given they played last the had the fitting tasks, at least to a certain element, to empty the Hafenklang. And indeed not everybody was up to their assault. In good moments they created a near perfect wall of sound, in bad moments they sound like an erratic presenter with a band grabbed from the streets, thrown together at random.
I bet you they are not out to be loved and they do not seek love. But as a doomsday troupe they do work – check them out yerself.
It was a somewhat non-Hamburg night at the Hafenklang, i only had two lovely companions around me and saw only a few custom faces.
Was the rooster too tough or unknown? Was the urge to experience something new, something different, something uncommon not there? No clue, i left the Hafenklang energized to sustain work on Friday and with the outlook to be seaside with me love on the weekend.
The shortest praise for the evening though came from Fab, who books this and other shit at the Hafenklang:
Great night! 150 lovely people and 6 bands from around the globe in an sweaty humid packed room going crazy. This kind of shows are the reason i‘m still doing this, cauz one night like this, still gives me more positive energy than anything else and still helps me to stand all this sick shit on this fucked up world. ❤️🖤 stay punk! support the international DIY punk scene!
It is that simple, it is that plain. Thanks Fab for making this (and much more) possible every week, it is worth it if i have to do the accounting! Already looking forward to the next surprise.
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