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Tag: Hafenklang

  • … return of the raunchy Oi!: It’s skyfart!

    … return of the raunchy Oi!: It’s skyfart!

    I am lucky. Very lucky. Why? Because i can trust friends who work the booking for my favorite haunt. Fench Cold Oi!? Yes! Bootboy Hardcore? Deal! Surprises? Always! Flyers that bend the genre? Sure thing!

    And so came Oi! The Himmelfahrt with 4 bands stretching from North to way South as in Vienna. And sold out in record time. And on an evening that would be followed by a day off, as such a perfect setting.

    Angry Voices from Hamburg kicked it off, in almost broad daylight. And a bright double rainbow over the mighty river Elbe, luring plenty of folks to the windows to take a snap.

    Angry Voices (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.05.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    They venture between Punk and Oi!, fast forward & growling and more articulated songs. Here is a more or less traditional banger, aptly called “Underpaid & Overdressed”:

    Musically they worked best for me when the focus was on chorus, sing-a-long and mu-sick that was more worked out.

    They got plenty of cheers, plenty of sing & dance-a-long from locals and they also had valid and clear cut messages.

    Perfect intro to the procedures, though sound & message would be less broad (and much more heavy) with the other bands.

    Choke Combat from Munich next and they play self-proclaimed Bootboy Hardcore. And seeing their guitar with a Fléau sticker did give me (and one of me mates who loves them French too) almost shivers.

    They kicked off like this:

    Indeed hardcore driven, energetic though throughout the set the guitar – for my liking – remained too low volume. I would have loved a wee bit of a heavier thrust from that side of the stage.

    They send the dancers flying, including a nob that choose not to listen to some behavioral advisory (and encountered a flying fist & removal as a consequence).

    Choke Combat (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.05.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    For me their hard’n’fast’n’short approach worked like a treat, it was all like real and rough. Check out their Demo, it gives a good impression.

    There was also some fun visuals included: The drummer sported a rather outlandish t-shirt and the bass player played plucking style, something i rarely see in the hard’n’fast territory.

    Choke Combat (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.05.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    Great set, justified pit violence for free and a large part of the room moving, i guess i am keen to see them again. To me they somewhat stood out, as much as and musically similar to Complete Loss who played MOi!n It’s Hamburg #7.

    Where Choke Combat to me where a neat surprise, Collaps looked like the headliner to me. I knew there Demo and listened to their LP already online – and the later sounded almost perfect.

    How would they do live and in real? They kicked off like this:

    A sturdy drummer (in a cool shirt), a very capable bass (with another cool shirt) and the most perfect sounding retro powered sandpaper guitar (for a lack of a better description) coming through a dual speaker setup (and, if i saw correct, a tube amp).

    Collaps (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.05.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    Song writing, presentation, musical capabilities – i guess they excelled in all areas and are able to create a distinct, stripped down and bare to the bone Rock’n’Roll sound.

    But they don’t rest there at all, they even take it further into the equivalent of a pop song. Here is the song that gave name to their brand new baby – Getting Used To The Dirt:

    Wow – that take the genre, often categorized as one dimensional, much much wider. The record itself is a rough gem, my loveliest song is Grey Men (a fast forward one more in on the hardcore side).

    Utmost great set, utmost great delivery (setting aside the just a bit too low vocals). Frank, i want more! Well deserved they got the loudest cheers.

    Denim out of Vienna next and with them it got dangerous. First they wanted it dark and got most of the lights switched off and then the singer took residence on the dance floor.

    And the dance floor was then taken over with the somewhat odd (but fitting) berzerk-into-each-other dancing style.

    Denim (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.05.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    It fitted their harsh, primitive and brutal onslaught that somewhat not fully did work for me. Go and check them out for yourself:

    To the overall rooster of the day they though fitted hand-in-glove and many around me seem to take a liking too.

    As always when a band convinces me live i got to score something, here it was clear that i have to take home the Collaps LP (even in case they would have been only half good live).

    Collaps – Getting Used To The Dirt (Primator Crew)

    Great record capturing their live sound almost perfect. Go and score it from our trusted local dealer Sounds Of Subterrania!

    Utmost thanks for Fab for setting this up and i take it helped his recovery (as being a mental uplift on all fronts). From where i sit i simply want more, also because i finally was relieved from palliative care duties by fate (eventually the passing of a relative can be both utmost sad and a relief for all, including said relative).

    Yes Fab – more please!

  • … manahuu Dead Pioneers!

    … manahuu Dead Pioneers!

    I had a somewhat shitty work week and it was eventually crowned on Friday by a shitty away performance of my football team. Largely unhappy i strode into Saturday with some doubts if i could stand unknown mu-sick but the love of my life kicked me out and demanded that i go out and enjoy.

    And right she was. I was not alone, the show was sold out for quite some time and was to be packed. Good for the bands, better for the Hafenklang.

    Support was Bad Assumption from Münster, self proclaimed track suit punks.

    Bad Assumption (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.03.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    I got to a admit that it has been a while that a band was not able to touch me at all. From presentation, to the music itself and even down to the set list … it just did not make click at all.

    Bad Assumption – Setlist (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.03.2026)

    None of their songs worked for me, for some in the audience though it seemed to work. Check them out for yourself, i fear i will not be trying to see them again.

    Next Dead Pioneers out of sunny Denver, Colorado. Sporting a long set list and rumors of a fast set. Would work for me!

    Dead Pioneers – Setlist (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.03.2026)

    They are not your run-of-the-mill hardcore band on Alternative Tentacles, as they came about as a means of supporting an art performance by the lead singer Gregg. He is well known Indigenous artist of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe and wanted some real music to complement a performance piece titled “The Punk Pan-Indian Romantic Comedy”.

    He is known for Graphic and Spoken Word art and the latter is nicely mixed into what is by and large Punk (and when fast Hardcore), with plenty of elements of Rock (of the more modern side).

    Dead Pioneers (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 14.03.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    It did work for me, specifically as it came down hard and fast. And with some clear cut messages (sans preaching).

    And as a devoted fan of the books of Tony Hillerman i understood why Gregg greeted us in his tribe language and why he noted that his ancestors own him. And why he dislikes people noting that he does not look like … an Indianer.

    This is how they finished their set with … the song is called Dead Pioneers:

    It nicely summed up a great set by a great band (a well oiled engine) with a great messenger (aka story teller).

    Once finished they mixed and mingled and where utmost approachable. Genuinely interested in meeting people and getting feedback. Responsive. As such i chatted a bit, continued to be surprised about the audience (very different faces) and had my two post show beers.

    And then i rode home to the love of my life and thanked her for reminding me that #thereaintnuthinbetterthanlivemusic!

  • … R.I.P. Witte!

    … R.I.P. Witte!

    It was a blow to the community last year, when the news crept through social media that Martin Witte passed away. He had his song writing & guitar playing fingers in so many bands plus he also had his fingers on the mixing desk for so many bands.

    In short, he was a mainstay.

    Following a short and intimate farewell at the Pretty Vacant HQ already last year close friends setup a rather big tribute night at The Hafenklang, with 8 bands taking a deep bow.

    And to no surprise it was sold out in record time.

    The audience was greeted by this lovely picture, wall size.

    For me Witte was always up there on stage (or in my record collection). The first time i really took note was when i saw Napalm at the Graffiti on 09.09.1982, supporting The Insane. I already was sold on their “It’s a warning” EP (and i had both the Punkenstein EP and the first Napalm EP with the novelty song “Tolle”).

    And the reason another trustworthy source has determined exactly right:

    Keine andere deutsche Punkband hatte damals den knackigen Gitarrensound der Cockney Rejects so gut drauf wie Napalm. Kein Wunder, dass auch John Peel die zweite EP »It’s a Warning« in seiner Radioendung spielte, wo ich sie praktischerweise auch gleich auf Kassette mitschnitt. Ein Erwerb der Platte war also nicht nötig, sie in die Finger zu bekommen, wäre auch nicht leicht gewesen. Später wurden beide Napalm-Platten teure Sammlerstücke.
    Andreas Michalke

    They sounded so perfect like an English band (though, Lui’s accent on the vocals gives away that they ain’t).

    Over at my other page i have two picture from the show, they look less impressing than i have it in my memory i gotta admit.

    (from www.oldpunks.de)

    Summing all the bands up is too much, from the top of my head i would think of Screamer, Punkenstein, Napalm, Torpedo Moskau, Noise Annoys, Ramones Revival Bands / Ramonez 77 and sure later Razors. And his own venture, Witte XP. I am more than happy to have seen most of these live.

    Out of that rooster of long lasting friends and collaborators both this show and the setup came about, trying to max many sides of music and Witte into a single rooster.

    Tribut to Witte (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 29.01.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    Östro 430 started and gave a short but deep from the heart acoustic set, including a Witte XP cover. Zusy Jones, self proclaimed maritime cartilage core with a geriatric drive, put up a nice out-of-town surprise as the 2nd band.

    But not as big as Yacøpsæ. Their powerviolence/grindcore might have been pain to some ears (that are not accustomed) but boy, did they hit hard. And fast. And precise.

    Also they put a nod forward to Witte, they covered a Torpedo Moskau song and got Stephan and Arne to sing:

    Mahler/Fondermann and The Beast then gave the audience some relaxation with something that ventured more on the Power Pop side than on fast grind. And, surprise, it was their first ever live show. Check them out, next chance is 28.02.2026 at the Cafe Treibeis in Altona.

    C³I grounded it back into clear cut guitar driven Punk and Scholle from Platzangst sang a Torpedo Moskau song with them, a double cool reference to Witte.

    Die Augen next with some Guitar/Vocals Punk covers before Antikörper took the stage for their final ever show, hitting a large part of the audience up for dancing along.

    Blut + Eisen i needed drop in favor for the long ride home, the planed timeline at that point in time was some 30+ minutes behind schedule already.

    It was really cool to see all of the little nods and reference to Witte, he indeed had a lasting impact on many in Hamburg and beyond.

    Here is a great Radio feature on Achim’s London Calling show, it carries plenty of Wittes own words:

    Big thanks to those who made the evening possible (i believe Ritchy Fondermann and Arne Wagner) and provided the opportunity for a very touching farewell. And as ever, we need to keep the names mentioned, then those who left these shores are not yet gone as long as we do.

    I was somewhat lucky to capture the energy in the room on a single picture – click for high-res download:

    nb: My lovelist song with Witte? Thats “Window” by Noise Annoys, for both lyrics and guitar work actually.

    Here is it as great live action – you need to head over to Youtube for that.