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  • … 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!

  • Bücher, schnell gelesen: 1.833

    Bücher, schnell gelesen: 1.833

    Ken Jaworowski – What About The Bodies (Pendragon, 2026)

    Gelesen: 29.04. – 06.05.2026 (netto 312 Seiten)

    Aus dem Englischen von Lea Dunkel.

    Willkommen in Locksburg, Pennsylvania. Rust Belt. Small Town.

    Ken Jaworowski schickt 3 Bewohner auf einen Schicksalsweg der ganz wunderbar das Elend von Small Town USA spiegelt: „Glücklich bis ans Lebensende“ erweist sich als ziemlich tödlich.

    Zunächst lernen wir Carla kennen, alleinerziehende Mutter. Ihr Sohn Olly, Student am MIT, hat ihr gerade etwas gestanden, von dem sie ganz sicher nicht will, dass die ganze Welt davon erfährt; nun muss sie ihn beschützen – Koste es was es wolle.

    Als Nächstes tritt Reed auf den Plan – ein fünfzehnjähriger autistischer Junge, dessen Mutter gerade verstorben ist. Sein einziger Beschützer ist nicht mehr da, nun ist er einem Mobbing ausgesetzt, das zehnmal schlimmer ist als alles, was er je zuvor erlebt hat. Doch Reed scheint seiner Mutter etwas versprochen zu haben und begibt sich tapfer auf eine Mission, etwas wiedergutzumachen, das sich ereignet hat, als seine Mutter noch lebte.

    Als drittes Liz, Songwriterin und Musikerin, die gerade ihren Job als ehr erfolglose Barsängerin verloren hat. Zu ihrem Glück erhält sie aus Nashville ein einzigartiges Angebot. Doch ihr Auto hindert sie daran, ihren Traum zu verwirklichen. Ihr Freund Luke macht sie mit einem Mechaniker bekannt, der ein Ex-Sträfling ist. Nachdem das von ihm reparierte Auto in Flammen aufgeht behauptet er, sie stehe bei ihm in der Schuld, und lässt sie die Stadt nicht verlassen, bis sie ihre Schulden beglichen hat.

    Die Erzählperspektive wechselt fortlaufend zwischen den drei Charakteren hin und her, immer aus einer Ich-Perspektive erzählt.

    Die Welt der Drei ist aber eine, in der Gerechtigkeit nicht immer siegt und Glück eine entscheidende Rolle im Leben der Menschen spielt. Small Town USA ist voller Schmerz, Verzweiflung und ohne Hoffnung.

    Ken Jaworowski wirft die Drei ziemlich cool die Treppe runter, als Leser drückt man ihnen irgendwie die Daumen, während diese verzweifelt versuchen, den nächsten Tag zu überstehen.

    Entsprechend endet jedes Kapitel mit einem Cliffhanger.

    Die Spannung, die komplexe Handlung und die kurzen Kapitel geben ein hohes Tempo vor, während Carla, Reed und Liz eine wunderbare down hill Achterbahnfahrt der Nieder-geschlagenheit durchleben.

    ( (c) Pendragon Verlag, 2026)

    Die Geschichten der Drei verlaufen zunächst getrennt voneinander und der Leser fragt sich lange, wie der Autor es hinbekommt die Schicksale zu kreuzen. Der Moment kommt, fällt jedoch weniger schockierend aus, als man es vielleicht erwarten würde.

    Vorher aber ist schon ordentlich Gore dabei, durchgeknallte Kleinstadt-Cops drehen am Rad und das Glück, tja, das hat der, der …

    Perfektes Kleinstadtdrama, gemein und blutig. Ohne Hoffnung. Mit ein wenig Glück.

    Ganz hervorragendes Lesevergnügen!

    Soundtrack dazu: The Pist – Small Town, was sonst?

    PS: Und Ken so?

  • … return of the Punks (May better beware)!

    … return of the Punks (May better beware)!

    When i covered last years edition of Dance into May i left the plea:

    So a great choice for this little fun thingy, lets beg for it being back in 2026, maybe with Demolition Girls. And a surprise.

    Youth Of Altona met that plea in parts: A surprise kicked off the night indeed but Demolition Girls was not on the menue – Part Time Punks graced the Ballroom.

    Andro Dyson & Untamed Tamers. A mouthful of a name. And then 4 distinct different stage personas, from undressed, strange jackets to dressed for the occasion they presented everything (but not a stage uniform).

    Andro Dyson & Untamed Tamers (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    They claim to deliver raw, electrifying twang and reverb attacks paired with primal Mo Tucker-esque beats. Each song is a testament to their influences while fucking up the boundaries of the garage punk genre (from their webpage).

    Indeed they venture broad, specifically the guy on the electrified guitar (with a neat Pissed Jeans T-Shirt) carried the sound from everywhere to almost anywhere – very gifted guitar work!

    How did it sound? Here is one, more on the Power Pop side of things rather than … Garage.

    It’s called 24/7 Sleeper and it’s from one of their tapes:

    I gotta say i was surprised to the max! Often bands pack too much into their songs/sets and fail – here i really got by far the biggest spread of styles mixed in a while and it worked well. They rightfully got plenty of applause at the end.

    Many of me mates where equally surprised, up to and including feeling the urge to spend hard earned cash (for merch in the form of a tape). I’d like to see them again, definitley!

    Part Time Punks next and immediately i was thinking i knew two of them. Only after the show it did strike me that they did play in Mondial (of Bergedorf and Waterkant Hits fame). Long time no see (on stage)!

    Their opening song, September Part 1 (into on Mating Sounds LP from P&TTB, 1983), hinted already at expert choices for covers. The remainder of the set was equally well chosen but, sorry to say, only more or less well done.

    Part Time Punks (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    Too many breaks between songs (and too many T-Shirt changes by the drummer) and sometimes to weak singing (as in not having enough volume in the voice) made that excellent choice of old favorites less joyful on the receptive side.

    The Hertha BSC shirt of the drummer though sparked the discussion of a footie theorem with a happy birthday Boy from Stuttgart who happend to be next to me:

    Why is it that the other team in the city is always Blue?

    Once discussing, we got damn sure that we were on the path to find a major…

    … conspiracy theory!

    Union Berlin -> Hertha BSC (Blue!)
    FC St. Pauli -> Hamburger SV (Blue!)
    Bayern München -> 1860 München (Blue!)
    VfB Stuttgart -> Kickers Stuttgart (Blue!)
    Wattenscheid 09 – VfL Bochum (Blue!)
    Celtic Glasgow -> Glasgow Rangers (Blue!)
    Liverpool FC -> Everton FC (Blue!)
    United -> City (Blue!)
    Arsenal -> Chelsea (Blue!)
    AC Milan -> Inter Milan (Blue!)
    AS Rom -> Lazio Rom (Blue!)
    … more?

    With that expert discussion out of the way it was time for the hosts of night … who greeted guests on the front door with their typical enthusiastic smile.

    Youth Of Altona (Punk in den Mai #5, Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    But it wasn’t all black’n’bleak, the set list had the outlook of something new: A cover of a Wipers cover and a newly rehearsed song (the closing song from Is This Real?)

    Youth Of Altona – Setlist (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    This time round they kicked off with Over The Edge:

    Sing-a-long galore plus a start-to-finish air guitarist in front of the stage, enjoying it as much as the lot did. And he continued strumming along for the rest of the set, well done!

    The lights this time round where a bit shitty (if you ask me), the sound – as almost all of the time at the Ballroom – was near perfect.

    Youth Of Altona (Marias Ballroom, Hamburg, 30.04.2026)
    (c) gehkacken.de 2026

    Youth Of Altona pushed forward relentlessly, not much fuzz between songs and almost no hickups. From where i stand the most relevant Wipers redemption nowadays you can think off.

    And, for my personal enjoyment, the Karl Alvarez intro also had its heyday:

    And the cover of a Wipers cover? I guess first time ever they did a song in German, covering Kaltfront. Kaltfronts own version of Better Off Dead (from the first Wipers single in 1978) with fitting German lyrics is just class:

    Youth Of Altona kept going, overcame some mishap on the new rehearsed (and complicated) song and just prior to midnight called it a day, to much cheers of the packed Ballroom.

    Perfect night out south of the mighty river Elbe, allowing me to overcome the sorrow of palliative care for a loved one and to have a glass (and two more) with mates from near and far.

    Just Luke’s offer to have another one at his flat i had to let go, Friday was care day again.

    Will there be a 6th edition? I hope so, it is always a cozy and entertaining show down there for us Northerners (that are still afraid of the last train leaving Harburg Station).

    Bring it on!