Berlin / Heimathafen Neukölln / Anna Calvi

Berlin / Admiralpalast / Iron & Wine + This Is The Kit

Berlin / C-Halle / Black Rebel Motorcycle Club + Transfer

Berlin / Quasimodo / Gary Clark Jr. + Saint Lu

Berlin / Magnet Club / The Sword + Lonely Kamel + Zodiac

Zodiac (7/10)
Start 20:30 / End 21:00
They said 20:30 and 20:30 was. Four german guys playing a good mix of Stoner, Hard Rock and Blues. Really a proper opening band to warm up this -5°C cold evening. Zodiac has nice songs that deserve to be listened! Some of them are blues oriented, other just furious ride and other songs play hard with the 70’s like the long last one. Maybe we’ll see Zodiac again here in Berlin as headliner in some years!

Lonely Kamel (8/10)
Start 21:15 / End 22:00
Again four guys but from Norway this time. Don’t ask me how but even if they have seen max +10°C grad in their life, they can ship you in the middle of the desert with only sand and rocks around you, some cactus, sweated clothes and 45°C grad burning your poor brain. The Lonely Kamel´s “fat” Stoner winds you and let you headbang ´till your neck bleeds.  100 time better live than on album but maybe it depends from the genre: Stoner and Lonely Kamel must be experienced  live. The Kamel will not be lonely anymore if they keep going on this way!!!
           

The Sword (7/ 10)
Start 22:30 / End 23:45
Other four guys (is the number 4 the mystical one in the Stoner world?) but coming from Texas. If you think the Sword are the one that brings you to the desert, you’re wrong: they ship you directly to the outer space with their space Stoner! The Sword played songs picking them from all albums, preferring the last
one as usual. Their music is really great but I was a bit disappointed at the end: I think there was sort of a problem with the voice, sometimes too weak and distant, sometimes too confused between the other instruments. I hope to have soon the possibility to see the Sword live and to appreciate them completely.
One thing to say: Magnet Club elected fucking Stoner venue in Berlin according to the last months gigs!

Venue: Magnet Club
Price: 24,90 € at Koka36
Setlist: The Sword

Berlin, 15.01.13

Berlin / Madame Claude / Mushy + Black Tar Jesus + Mystical Communication Service

Mystical Communication Service (7/10)
Start 22:05 / End 22:45
Instrumental trio playing ethnic jazz flamenco psychedelic blues without drums. A sort of Stinking Lizaveta after a long journey in south Spain. A really interesting trio headed by a long beard guy dressed with an Indian vest. Check Mystical Communication Service’s music here and download it for free, it’s worthwhile I promise!

Black Tar Jesus (5/10)
Start 23:05 / End 23:30
A guy looking like Tarantino playing a sort of intimate garage rock with his electrical guitar. I think he has been penalized by not having his band with him. I would had said 6 but I can’t if I want to be honest with the other bands of the evening. I know Black Tar Jesus would be much better in “normal condition”. Just try to listen something here and you’ll agree with me!

Mushy (7/10)
Start 23:40 / End 24:20
Fog all around you. Darkness. Shadows from moon light moving near you. Echos from far away. Feet stuck in mud. But you don’t have fear, you close your eyes and indulge yourself in this void. Industrial gothic drone dark wave shoegaze. Call it as you want but that it’s what you feel at Mushy’s live experience. The drum machine accompanies you during this adventure simulating your heartbeat. When the drum machine boosts the bpm, you stand upon the fog and you see the dawn in front of you, you see the sun but it’s still cold, you run towards it. You smile and you think you’re feeling good but it’ cold outside and it’s cold inside you because Mushy’s voice is still there freezing you.

Price: Pay at the door with a donation between 1 and 6€
Venue: Madame Claude
Berlin, 11.01.13

Berlin / C-Club / Graveyard + Spiders

Spiders (7/10)
Start 21:00 / End 21:35
Hard Rock Hard Rock Hard Rock! Powerful drums, good riffs and a nice rocking frontgirl to warm up the already almost full venue. Surprise of the evening!

   

   

Graveyard (7/10)
Start 22:15 / End 23:30
Average public age pretty high for a not-that-old band: their sound affected by Hard Rock, Blues and sometimes Stoner derivation should have made this possible. One of the best concert venue in Berlin: big enough to assure a good acustic and view but not so small to make you feel like in the Ring Bahn at 8:00 o’clock. 1 hour and 15 min of great music from great musicians. Really nice the cameos from Spiders members and the final jam session. Nothing to complain indeed. I just think they would be much better if they would increase that nasty and dirty attitude typical of this genre. They are too clean, too perfect. It could have been an higher score…

            

Price: 27,40 € by Koka36
Location: Columbia club (C-club)
Setlist: Graveyard

Berlin, 19.12.12