The contrast couldn't have been more stark: one minute we were on Privatclub's cosy sofa, listening to the innocent songs of Waxahatchee, the next, we were at West Germany with a room full of snotty punks, rocking out to Destruction Unit. The nights out that we have in this town.
What were all the punk rockers doing there anyway? When we climbed the stairs to the second floor, I was transported back into my teenage years and the HC punk shows that I went to on any given night of the week. Punks were lingering on the steps to West Germany, smoking and drinking; the room was filled with leather jackets and extrovert haircuts. Visually, I was loving this, however, it did make me wonder whether I had got Destruction Unit all wrong. Though Spotify lists Ty Segall and Japanther as "related artists" and there is a distinct punk rock element to their sound, DU add clear wave and psychedelic elements to their songs that I would have not thought would appeal to this particular crowd. There is as much prog rock in there as there is a rebellious energy.
True enough, once the band were starting to drag out their songs with long guitar loop parts, the crowd got restless. We were positioned near the back of the room and people were just walking in and out as if they all had ADS and were on speed. The distraction could not stop me loving this band. DU rocked so hard, the sound was good and helped the band to blast their crushing dark numbers at us. With every song, we were getting more into it.
The music stood out. This group puts no effort in focussing on the individuals behind the songs. You are being encompassed in their well-crafted noise, you can practically close your eyes while you dance away. I could not even tell you what the band looked like, right after the gig, I could not tell you.
What a great show. It's a shame the audience could maybe not quite enjoy it for what it was, desperate to make this a punk show with all the trimmings, but no matter.
Destruction Unit are back in Berlin on Saturday, 16 November at Auster Club. I for one will be there.
Count me in!
Pole began to play and I have to say that it did not take long for his music to really get to me. It was bass-line driven and experimental electronic music with very strong dub influences. So even though it was something completely different in it's form, the music itself wasn't that far away from what Om do. Additionally I found the combination of these artists really interesting. Letting an electro-musician play before a band with a doom metal/stoner background might be challenging for some, and quite a few people in fact left the room during Pole's set, but it's definitely way more interesting than just add another "heavy" or "rock" act to the line-up. Pole's set was very diversified and I have to say that in total it was a very positive surprise and positive experience for me. Musically it was a great mixture of minimalistic and repetitive dub-bass lines with ambient sounds and elements of electro-acoustic experimental music. The sound was really great and intense, you could hear every small click and crack and the deep bass sounded pretty massive and good. Pole played for around an hour I guess and the only annoying thing during his set were the few people in front of us chatting loudly, not even stopping when they were asked to. So even though Pole wasn't that interesting to watch - I mean he was a guy behind a laptop and mixer - he was even more exciting to listen to.
For starters, we got Jackson Scott. With influences ranging from Syd Barrett's psychedelic endeavours to early Weezer's alt-rock, this quirky kid manages to create a sound that is truly his own. And when it comes to the stage presence, he's a natural too. He engaged with the audience after almost every song with funny, personal comments. All in all, it felt as though the audience were just some of his friends he invited over for a gig in his living room to check out some new songs that he had written. He even didn't have a problem with leaving the stage for a second during one of the songs (a cover of "Interstellar Overdrive" by Pink Floyd) to go to the bathroom and take a quick pee. So effortless!
The main course of the evening was served by Jacuzzi Boys. You can read a review of their previous gig in Berlin here.
