Gary Numan Berlin Splinter Tour 2014 Review

Gary Numan is someone I have wanted to see for a.g.e.s! so I was pretty excited when a show was announced for here in Berlin.

The gig was at the Imperial Club in Mitte, and underground place in front of the Admiralspalast.

The ticket said entry from 20:00 and the show begins at 21:00. So I was in there just after 20:15 and there were already quite a few people inside. The serious fans were already eagerly up against the stage and the other early birds were at the bar!

Being cold outside but warm in the club, it was necessary to check in your coat (1 Euro). I say necessary, but when I went to get positioned at the stage there were quite a few people still in their jackets. This would have been a mistake for them as I got really hot during the gig (sans coat) and I'm pretty sure those jacket wearing-euro saving individuals were responsible for much of the stank that erupted as the show went on.

So I got myself a good position centre stage and two people back from the front, one tall bloke in the front row but other than that super great views all around - with the stage only two metres away! As we waited for the show to begin I couldn't help but eavesdrop on the conversations going on around me. 

One couple had got VIP tickets to the show (VIP - 108 Euros, normal price 44 Euros) which included a pre-show meet and greet with Gary. Another guy would not stop going on to his female acquaintance (or new crowd friend?) about The Cure, how he caught the 'trilogy' show and then the show in Hamburg where they didn't play ANY of the trilogy songs, so he got the best of it all. That was a 30 minute conversation! From what he said it sounded like there may be a Cure show here in Berlin, which piqued my interest. I checked when I got home - there's no Berlin shows coming up. :(

Anyway, back to the show.

At 21:05, 5 minutes late!! Gary and band came onstage. No warm up band, no 'hi how you doing', just bang into it. I thought this was good, no mucking about with a hit and miss pre-band and then having to wait a second time for the main act to get set up.

Gary's band was just him (vocals and sometimes guitar and keyboards) a drummer (on a conventional kit), a guitarist, bassist and a keyboard player. The sound was great - atmospheric and ferocious. Being nicely positioned in the middle also gave me the best of the sound with some nice stereo effects.

Numan's career started in the late 70's with punk / new wave band 'Tubeway Army' and the songs and commercial success they achieved are what he is most publicly known for. However he has continued with a less high profile and less commercially successful career, yet with a high acclaim amongst contemporary musicians and with a suitably cult like following, making dark atmospheric and industrial music.

This dark industrial music is what the gig was mostly about, particularly given his promotion of the latest album Splinter which is all this heavy stuff.

While I like listening to Gary Numan at home, it's not the same when I have to listen to the music quietly (hey we are in Germany where the neighbours complain if the washing machine is on during midday quiet time and you can't flush the toilet after 10pm) or on headphones just isn't satisfying enough. I liked it when we lived in an apartment where I had big speakers and the neighbours didn't complain.

So needless to say, the music at the gig was loud and it sounded great. The drums were amped up loud, the synth were incredibly bass heavy and the guitar was searing. Gary's voice was the same detuned phased prescence it always has been. It all sounded excellent.

Even though I am not that familiar with the Splinter albumn, I certainly was 'feeling it' with the rest of the crowd. Not being one for dancing, this music is something I can join in with - the solid nodding of the head in time with the industrial drone.

Not all of the material was new stuff, and we were treated to some classics over the course of the set - Metal, Down in the Park, Cars, I Die: You Die and Are 'friends' electric.

As much as I like the old stuff, its the synth driven isolating android / machine emotion of the old stuff that gives me goose bumps. 

Down in the Park is up there as my all time favourite song of his and when they launched into it, this was something I had been waiting to experience for all the years I have been listening to Gary Numan. As they started playing it was great - sounded great and gave me the goosebumps that are so hard to define about why you get them - nostalgia? identification? I certainly wasn't cold!

Then - halfway through the song all the Synths cut out completely (it's a synth based song!) and it sounded like the bass cut out too. The synth player was visibly bewlidered and after shaking a few cords and looking at the back of his rig he was ready to give up. He gave the wave under the chin move (all dead) to the sound engineers and for a moment I thought the gig was over.

It didn't phase Gary though and he kept going. The drummer had never stopped and neither did the guitarist and it was left to the three of them to keep it going, until the bass player decided to join back in as the technicians worked on the synth rig.

Even though the guitar isn't a synth, the guy kept the song structure going and it was a surprisingly good save. No doubt this has happened to them before!

After they finished the song it was looking doubtful whether the synth guy was going to get back up and running. His face and actions imparted no confidence that it was even possible. However, Gary went and chatted with the crew and was positive and laughing so it seemed like at least he thought it was going to be ok.

At this point we had an unscheduled interlude which lasted only a couple of minutes. The guitar guy did a little bit of impromptu guitar work. It would have been a good time for Gary to have a bit of interaction with the crowd but he didn't. It's often mentioned about his undiagnosed Aspergers so I wondered if that's why he didn't talk to us. Eventually he just said into the mic 'He's got a bit of a problem (pointing at synth guy), trying to work it out'.

So after this couple of minutes the band started up again, seemingly before the synth guy was ready. Gary, drums, guitar and bass launched into the next song...and then BAM synth guy was back and the sound was back to its brown note best.

The music was frenzied, intense and great to hear live. 

The band left the stage and came back for one three song encore, which were great renditions of the classics 'I Die: You Die' and 'Are "friends" electric', and then the closer 'My Last Day' from the Splinter album.

Then Gary said 'Thanks' and they all left the stage. The end!

It's always a risk to see established artists when you've crafted an expectation in your mind about what to expect. It's a moth to the flame enticement when you have the chance to see a band or artist you've admired for years and been a important part of your life soundtrack. A few occasions I've seen such artists from my life soundtrack and I really wish I hadn't - legacy ruined :( HOWEVER, I am happy to write that seeing Gary was not one of these instances - he's certainly still feeling the music, putting on a great show and including enough of the classics to keep fans from all the years happy.

I'd love to see him perform again someday.

I took some video at the concert but of course my camera couldn't fully capture the fullness of the music.

Valentines Day 2014

Valentines Day seems to come around every year (that's a joke people!) so of course 2014 is no different. Valentines Day again. For this year we marked our love with a 'love lock', something we haven't done before but seen plenty of on our travels. For me I've always thought, 'Why put a lock on a bridge in some city that has no particular relevance to us...why?'

But this year is different, our second year in Berlin, a second Valentines Day here where our love has grown and our ties to the city have also strengthened. Now is time for a 'love lock'.

So where to put this lock? It's got to be a meaningful location right? I instantly thought of the Oberbaumbrücke

Why? Well we pass over this bridge very frequently as its our best link between our district of Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg (where we do most of our recreating), it's a beautiful bridge that spans over the River Spree, and the U1 U-Bahn travels across it.

Moreso, meaningfully, this used to be a dividing point between East and West Berlin in the times of the Berlin wall - there was a checkpoint here. Now that they wall is down, the bridge is a symbol of Berlin, not only for its impressive architecture but as a symbol of German unity.

Unity and relevance, sounds like a good place for a love lock.  :)

So we stuck it on, and yes it is engraved, just marked over again in black pen for the occasion. When/if the pen weathers away the engraving will still show :)

Once locked onto the bridge, it's customary to throw the key away to seal your love, and so we threw the key into the Spree...

And now our lock is tethered to this bridge and we can visit it on our many trips back and forth :)

Funny thing is though, the lock came with three keys. Two keys sounds sensible, but three? I wasn't going to throw three keys into the river (one key = symbolism, three keys = littering!), so we keep one each. Mine is taking residence on my necklace next to another love token...

Always there as a reminder, next to my heart - and insurance in case things go sour :P so romantic.

Berlinale 2014 The Monuments Men

The Berlin International Film Festival (more commonly called Berlinale) is held every year in February. It is one of the worlds most prestigious film events and caters to a wide range of film making styles. In Berlin it is a popular 10 day event with many locals trying to get tickets to the film showings in which the queues for tickets from the few participating sellers are hours long.

This year we went to see the red carpet arrival of the stars of the film premiere of 'The Monuments Men' - Directed by George Clooney, and starring himself, Bill Murray, Matt Damon, John Goodman and Cate Blanchet. The film was shot in Berlin in March of 2013.

The red carpet event was from 5 to 6:30pm and we arrived around 5:30pm. Much of the area was restricted to 'invited guests' but we got a reasonable standing position amongst the crowd. In front of us was the arrival area where the actors got out of their chauffeured transport, and to our right was a big screen showing what was going on. A large official media pack was also in front of us to our right on a small grandstand which blocked a lot of the view for the people on our side.

I had jokingly said that I would bring a ladder with me, and while I didn't (on this occasion), some people did!

'Stars' were already arriving by the time we got there, but we didn't know who they were!

Soon though we could tell from the crowd reaction that someone important had arrived. It was George Clooney. Always a hit with the ladies, the young girls next to me 'shouted out' to themselves: 'George, you might be 30 years older than me, but I'll still f*&k you!' Classy.

Straight after George arrive, Matt Damon appeared...

Followed by John Goodman...

And Bill Murray...

They all walked around, talking to the fans and the press, spending a lot of time walking along the fences for the 'normal people' and also chatting with the media and posing for photos in the grandstanded area.

The crowd was very excited while this was happening, and every time a star walked into view everyone's cameras shot up - trying to capture the moment.

After quite a long time of spending time with the fans and the media, the main stars of the film gathered around the grandstanded area for the official photos. Unfortunately this view was completely blocked off for us but we could see what was happening on the big screen.

And at 6:30pm they all went inside for the start of the film, leaving the chumps without tickets (like us) to go home! Quite an interesting experience and not any hassle at all to get a glimpse at some major movie stars without having to line up for hours or worm your way into some industry event.