Just before moving to Berlin we had bought tickets to two concerts. These were for two bands that we (I) have been following for years - Die Toten Hosen and Die Ärzte. These bands are two of the biggest bands in Germany.
We weren't able to pay for the tickets from overseas, so the very first real purchase we made once moving to Berlin was to pick up these tickets from koka36 (ticket shop) in Kreuzberg (the day after we got here).
Each band has been going since 1982, and with Die Toten Hosen from Dusseldorf and Die Ärzte from here in Berlin, there has been quite a rivalry throughout their careers. In an unprecedented move, both bands were scheduled to play the same venue over the weekend of August 9 to 11. Die Toten Hosen were playing one show on the Friday, and Die Ärzte would play a show on both Saturday and Sunday night. We went to the Friday and Sunday shows. We have been fortunate to see Die Toten Hosen play once before in Christmas in Cologne 1998 - so it's been a while between concerts but this would the first time seeing Die Ärzte
The venue for the concerts was the famous Tempelhof airport and these gigs were to be the biggest ever staged there.
With the concerts so big, and Tempelhof so big, it was an amazing sight to arrive at the Tempelhof S-Bahn station and make the long walk to the concert area. So many people, so much rubbish!
The tickets said 'doors' open at 2pm, but the concert wouldn't start until 6pm.
With two support bands scheduled to play we for there a bit later in time to grab a 'small' beer at 4 euros + 2 euro pfand...rip! (or 10 Euros for 1 litre).
We had to walk around a bit but there were just no real good vantage points left. There were SO many people already there and the mosh area was full and a grandstand area was reserved for who knows who.
We had to walk around a bit to get somewhere in order to see the stage and also have a good view of the big screens. We were quite far away from the stage and behind us the mass of people appeared to go for hundreds of metres more. I found out later that 50,000 people were there that night.
By the time we settled on an okay spot the second support band came on to play. These guys were called KraftKlub and were really good.
After a long break (why is it always so long? so people can buy more beer?) Die Toten Hosen finally came on - at about 8:45 pm. The sun was setting behind the stage and with the sea of people it was quite a magical experience.
They opened up with a track from their new album and played many of the old songs that we and everyone else is so familiar with. The Germans really get into the whole thing and frantically sing along with all of the songs. The band is fully aware of the fanaticism of the crowd and often incorporate 'sing alongs' into the sets. This is what makes these gigs so great as it's not just hearing the music live from the stage, but a full immersion of everyone around you singing with such conviction.
My only gripe was that we were so far back that we spent more time watching the big screen than the stage - but all big concerts are like that. Unless you are prepared to get there super early or be an asshole and aggressively and undeservedly push you way to the front, then a long way back is where you are going to be!
The concert went for just over two hours, 33 songs and three encores.
We had the long walk back to the train station and there were just people everywhere.
Despite the huge amount of people leaving at the same time we were able to get on the first train. So Berlin!
We weren't able to pay for the tickets from overseas, so the very first real purchase we made once moving to Berlin was to pick up these tickets from koka36 (ticket shop) in Kreuzberg (the day after we got here).
Each band has been going since 1982, and with Die Toten Hosen from Dusseldorf and Die Ärzte from here in Berlin, there has been quite a rivalry throughout their careers. In an unprecedented move, both bands were scheduled to play the same venue over the weekend of August 9 to 11. Die Toten Hosen were playing one show on the Friday, and Die Ärzte would play a show on both Saturday and Sunday night. We went to the Friday and Sunday shows. We have been fortunate to see Die Toten Hosen play once before in Christmas in Cologne 1998 - so it's been a while between concerts but this would the first time seeing Die Ärzte
The venue for the concerts was the famous Tempelhof airport and these gigs were to be the biggest ever staged there.
With the concerts so big, and Tempelhof so big, it was an amazing sight to arrive at the Tempelhof S-Bahn station and make the long walk to the concert area. So many people, so much rubbish!
The tickets said 'doors' open at 2pm, but the concert wouldn't start until 6pm.
With two support bands scheduled to play we for there a bit later in time to grab a 'small' beer at 4 euros + 2 euro pfand...rip! (or 10 Euros for 1 litre).
We had to walk around a bit but there were just no real good vantage points left. There were SO many people already there and the mosh area was full and a grandstand area was reserved for who knows who.
We had to walk around a bit to get somewhere in order to see the stage and also have a good view of the big screens. We were quite far away from the stage and behind us the mass of people appeared to go for hundreds of metres more. I found out later that 50,000 people were there that night.
By the time we settled on an okay spot the second support band came on to play. These guys were called KraftKlub and were really good.
After a long break (why is it always so long? so people can buy more beer?) Die Toten Hosen finally came on - at about 8:45 pm. The sun was setting behind the stage and with the sea of people it was quite a magical experience.
They opened up with a track from their new album and played many of the old songs that we and everyone else is so familiar with. The Germans really get into the whole thing and frantically sing along with all of the songs. The band is fully aware of the fanaticism of the crowd and often incorporate 'sing alongs' into the sets. This is what makes these gigs so great as it's not just hearing the music live from the stage, but a full immersion of everyone around you singing with such conviction.
Although the band is a 5 piece, it is only the lead singer (Campino) that talks to the crowd. These 'conversation' breaks were frequent, mostly humorous, often having a go at the rivalry between football sides or Die Ärzte and sometimes more serious like politics or when he stopped the show because someone had collapsed in the front area (a fan was once killed at a show of theirs so naturally they are wary of this happening again). Another song was stopped midway through after Campino jumped in the crowd and squashed someones head with his 'Arsch' (as he said).
Midway through the show it was announced that it was the birthday of the drummers son's girlfriend 'Meg'. she came out with the son and together they played two songs. They were okay, but were were here to see the band and while everyone was politely 'into' the youngsters we couldn't wait for the Hosen to get back to it.
Once the Hosen were back into it they launched into an English song of theirs 'Pushed Again', then a cover of a Die Ärzte song 'Schrei nach Liebe' in which they really do a fantastic job. The rest of the set was all killer with some of the most classic Hosen songs and then brought to an end (before the encores) with their newest anthemic song from the latest album 'Tage wie diese. The encores followed and it was a fantastic concert.
The concert went for just over two hours, 33 songs and three encores.
We had the long walk back to the train station and there were just people everywhere.
It was an exhausting day, with all the standing and bopping around. We had a day off on Saturday and then went to do it all again on Sunday.
We had decided we would go a bit later to this gig, but still arrived around the same time as when we had got to the Die Toten Hosen gig. I was expecting this gig to be a bit more raucous as this was local heroes on home turf.
Even from the train as we approached Tempelhof we could see that things weren't as busy as the previous concert. We again made the big walk from the station to the stage area and there were much fewer people around (but still busy).
As we got closer I could hear that the band was already on stage.
We had missed the support acts and the start of the gig. Shit! However it turned out that we had only missed three songs - but still this was three songs we had paid for!! haha.
The crowd was much smaller and with only the previous attendance of 50,000 to compare it with I would have thought that there would have been about 35,000 people. With 120,000 tickets sold for the weekend I would think this would be a pretty much spot on estimate.
This was immediately deflating, we'd missed the 'anticipation' phase of the gig, missed some songs and by comparison with the previous gig had the sense that already this wasn't going to be as good. With the band starting so early (maybe because it was Sunday) they played half of the gig in late evening daylight which also took aware the mystique of opening to a sunset as the Hosen had done before them.
We walked around a bit to look for a good spot but it was still hard to get a closer vantage point that we had before so we went nearby to where we had been before as this was the best we could get without jumping over people.
The concert kept going and I was wondering when all the real atmosphere would kick in. I looked around at lot and people WERE singing every word and dancing like crazy but it just seemed much more subdued than the Hosen fans.
It is my understanding that just like people decided whether you liked the Beatles or the Stones, same thing in Germany - you gotta pick - Hosen or Ärzte. I don't want to have to choose, but I did realise that night that Die Toten Hosen have got a special emotional place in my soul that Die Ärzte don't inhabit.
Now I am pretty familiar with Die Ärzte songs, or so I thought, as the setlist was not one which I readily identified with. My experience with Die Ärzte is pretty much being a fan in a vacuum. Before moving to Berlin I didn't know anyone who had even heard of the band. My enjoyment of their music has been a solitary one, devoid of the political and cultural changes that people often associate the 'soundtrack of their lives' with. The songs I like the most didn't even get played at the gig!
Despite all that whinge, the band was great. These guys are a three piece and they constantly are mucking around on stage, all are lead singers of certain songs and often change instruments. They are a lot less serious compared to the Hosen in the live setting. Their music runs everything from the moronic to serious political statements.
As the sun went down the band played 'Schrei nach liebe', of which the Hosen had covered the night before, and I couldn't say this publicly in Berlin, but I think Die Toten Hosen did it better! Die Toten hosen have an extra guitarist on stage which amongst other things gives a fuller sound. It didn't help that Ärzte guitarist Farin Urlaub blew the last notes of the 'Schrei nach liebe' solo!
One of the last songs to be played was 'Zu Spät' and this one really resounded with the crowd and particularly the couples around us. The song, from a 1984 album, was completely lost on us for its couple significance but you can imagine that over the last 30 years this song has been played at these peoples high schools, on the radio, at University, parties etc and etched a emotional link that we have simply missed out on. It would be like playing Cold Chisel's 'Khe Sanh' to the Germans. No way they would sing the lyrics so loudly and incorrectly as we do and still felt it meant something to them :)
The concert finished after just over two hours, 36 songs and also 3 encores.
Although we enjoyed the music, we both just didn't feel connected to this one - a combination of missing the start of the gig, not knowing the setlist well enough and being spoilt by the excellent concert just two days before. I so badly wanted to add this one to the list of 'best concerts ever been to' but unfortunately it's just going on the 'concerts went to' list. I'm still a fan for sure, so I really hope we'll get a chance to see them in a smaller setting one day soon.
Had a listen to some Toten.
ReplyDeleteThey're no Stems!!