Is it just me, or are Zappa fans weird ? Or is it just German Zappa fans ? There was weirdness aplenty at Fabrik, for the Frank Zappa tribute band « The Grandmothers of Invention ». Perhaps tribute band sells them a little short. Two of the band members actually did play with Zappa back in the day, and the Grandmothers did so much more than just rehash the material and try to sound just like Zappa.
Sax player Napoleon Murphy Brock leads the Grandmothers, and on this occasion brought them to Hamburg for the « Roxy and Elsewhere and More » tour. Brock has built up what you could call a « concept band », each tour doing one of the Zappa albums on which he played. And there were a few of those. Between 1974 and 1986, Brock played on ten studio albums, probably the better known in Frank Zappa’s extensive discography.
For those who have never been to Astra Stube in Hamburg, the venue is about the size of an airing cupboard and nestles resentfully under a railway bridge in Hamburg. I suppose you could say it’s the troll of all venues.
Local four-piece Kapelle Herrenweide kicked off the evening’s entertainment with their brand of urban folk-rock, for want of a better way to describe it. They combine influences from Finnish humppa music, klezmer, and polka, coupled with German pop and schlager, with lyrics which the band and two or three people in the audience (at this point of the evening I wouldn’t call it a crowd) found hilariously funny.
These youngsters lean heavily on German witticisms and social observations from the Teutonic perspective. The lyrics are of course in German. Their music occasionally runs uncomfortably close to bad cabaret with slight rock influences, a style which is well-liked in Germany but I’m not sure if it could really appeal to non-German punters. I couldn’t understand most of their puns and witty innuendo, so concentrated on the musical side of the performance. After three songs I was on the footpath with the rest of the crowd waiting for the Barons of Tang.
If you thought it was hot inside Astra Stube, the thermostat in the broomcupboard was about to be wound open several notches.
Between festivals, Melbourne’s self-proclaimed Pioneers of Gypsy Deathcore decided to grace Hamburg with their presence. And the Barons were worth the wait.
Combining tango, ska, punk, Balkan and metal influences, just to name a few, this seven piece combo from the Antipodes set the place on fire. Packed like cigarettes the crowd moved shoulder to shoulder as a unit, with just enough space down the front for one white guy with dreadlocks (why is there always one?) to embarass himself and everyone else by dancing like no-one was watching.
The lead singer slapped his double bass to psychobilly speed, with a box full of pedals to stomp on, while the rest of the band kept pace on whatever came to hand. It seemed like every member played at least two instruments, often simultaneously.
From « Villain Stage Left », which combines tango strains with old style ska and wistful jazz refrains, to the sheer musical violence of « Dogs of Rotterdam » and « Even if You’re Missing Fingers You Can Still Make a Fist » the Barons of Tang had us totally under their spell until finally the door opened after the last number and the steam rushed out of the pressure cooker. The band and crowd mingled sweatily on the footpath, gasping like fish and gulping beer.
The Barons formed in 2007 and they’ve risen rapidly. This year they played about 40 dates on a merciless three month tour of North America and Europe. That tour sees them with a berth at no less than ten European festivals, including giants such as Roskilde in Denmark, Sziget in the land of the Magyars and Womad in the UK. Not bad for a band that’s only been around a couple of years.
This is for me one of the best events of the year … yeah!
Since the first time I’ve heard BBP they became for me one of my favorite bands, well with Captain Beefheart, The Plastic People of the Universe and Frank Zappa.
A little short description I found on their page :
“Czech alternative/underground group with roots back to 1982. The original 3 member punk squad has gradually grown into the current 10-14 member underground orchestra with a plastic sound. The lyrics of all the songs – not really optimistic, dark, but quite often featuring a peculiar sense of humor – are written in Czech by the poet Black Otto.”
ZASPH! 