The Sunday at the Hafenklang with Good Riddance was pleasant and warm, that hydrogenic ball out there though decided to heat things up for The Drowns: It was a very sunny and very hot day, well over 30 degrees. Walking along the banks of the mighty river Elbe towards the Hafenklang was – where it lacked tree cover – a damn hot exercise.
Arriving early it was time to get rid of water and get some fresh one, booze was not the right choice for the day. And somewhat – given the weather – i was happy to see the show was moved from upstairs (that is damn hot due to the windows) to downstairs in the the larger space (that is a tad bit colder and gives more space to breathe).
But weather was not the reason, it was presales going well (and remember kids, Clubs and Bands these days need presales!) and a decent turnout was expected.
School Drugs (indeed a cool band name) kicked it off and i was keen to see them, i did read some good references but shied away from checking their mu-sick-al output to have an unbiased live experience.
They turned out a five piece, with 5 different stage personas. Most notably the singer, who went wild roaming from the start.
School Drugs (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 01.07.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
And from the start it was clear that the well filled Hafenklang was facing a more than decent set. They where tight, excellent on their instruments, together and still delivered an energetic show (without being bogus showmen).
How did it sound and look like? Like this:
A very 80s and a very East Coast approach that worked more than well for me (and also for many around me). They also threw in enough variations (including an instrumental) to keep the audience on their toes.
Here is the same song from the record – class one!
Perfect and some of the guitar work in my simple mu-sick-al head triggers Clowns, not the worst reference for me.
School Drugs (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 01.07.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
Great hard & fast set and already getting some of the crowd going. They actually bragged from the stage to get married in order to get a Green Card for Germany, they seemed to dig it here (understandably). Lovely!
They also had some merch, in hindsight i regret to not have scored these 4 beauties.
I gave them a decent listen via Bandcamp and they are a great quartet. Perfect from sound to visual, wow. Now my greedy record collector scum self needs to go hunting.
Great start and by the time The Drowns came on condensing water/sweat came already dripping from the ceiling.
And this is how The Drowns took ownership of the stage:
They followed right where their friends School Dogs left it, hard & fast but less hardcore – more rock (as in Punk Rock).
I missed them every time they graced Hamburg before though many of me mates put more than good words forward (only one outsider claimed “too much of a rock show for me”).
Whilst i can hear the claim towards “rock” i could not make out the “show” element. They are humble, outspoken and real. And emit a shitload of positive energy down from the stage.
The Drowns (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 01.07.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
Their main asset next to drive & speed is their multi vocal singing, this both adds to the choruses but also the needed variations for the songs.
The Drowns (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 01.07.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
And, as a bonus, they can even tone and slow it down a bit and still deliver a punchy message.
What also caught my ear and eye was the fact that they where fucking loud (even with ear protection) and that somewhat the audience did shrink, i guess either people gasping for air or just being forced out by volume.
Those who stayed in front of the stage though slowly lost the nordic reseved style and to the end turned into a surprisingly big and dancing pit.
The Drowns (Hafenklang, Hamburg, 01.07.2025)
(c) gehkacken.de 2025
They finished it off with some extras and for the start had the perfect sing-a-long from that little green island:
Ever since 1980, when SLF played for my 16th birthday at the Markthalle, i can sing-a-long to that one:
And they say they’re a part of you
And that’s not true, you know
They say they’ve got control of you
And that’s a lie, you know
They say you will never be free
Free
Free
Splendid!
Here is what the set plan looked like:
They played about an hour and where totally done after it (though they had the hindsight of arriving to Hamburg and the start of the tour a day early to be able to shed off the jetlag easier) – as much as the audience was.
Sauna feeling included for free!
For me it was two bands i have not seen prior and both where great in their own way. Bonus: Both together worked well. Strange though that somewhat less people stayed for The Drowns…no clue why.
Luckily there is cooling down ahead, on stage hopefully it remains loud and wild!
