A story of a moderate triumph, Reeperbahn Festival is a showcase of stellar creativity. The popular event celebrates its nineteenth year in style as it puts on 480 concerts that feature artists from more than thirty countries.
With no sunshine spared, the warm weather means magnificent conditions for exploring, learning and enjoying art in all forms. On the music side, the lineup highlights a wealth of genre, with something to please every sound palette.
A port linked to the North Sea by the Elbe River, Hamburg benefits from bustling connections to the world. Having the character, the familiarity of a smaller city, its total population of 1.8 million makes it large, the second largest after Berlin.
As stated by hundreds and hundreds of people before, it was critical to the success of The Beatles. To have world expert, historian Mark Lewisohn quoted saying “No Hamburg, no Beatles” most definitely makes it a fact.
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This group is a two to three minute walk from Reeperbahn station where local musician Stefanie Hempel is waiting, she’s ready to give her long-running Beatles themed tour of the St. Pauli area. Walking in their footsteps, mapping key venues and locations of the famous fab four, the ninety-minute walk, joins dots, establishes the connection between the city and the band with precision.
Next up is Clash’s first spot of music discovery reliant on punk quintet BODEGA who play Knust on Thursday night. The American five-piece has melodic moments and attitude. As someone relatively unfamiliar with the group, this is a good opportunity to catch them. With a decent repertoire, they have enough to pick from, and songs like ‘Network’ and ‘Shiny New Model’ sound raw and work in a live setting.
Later that night, also at Knust, is Geordie Greep. The former frontman of rock band Black Midi he shows that he can go it alone. Keeping an experimental foundation, elements of jazz, funk, prog and art rock are uncovered in the set and makes it obvious that Greep is one to watch, as he kickstarts the first chapter of his solo career.
Next day the expansion of our contacts network is taken a step further when we meet another creative local. Solaris, a graphic designer, street artist and DJ, meets us for a burger lunch at Grilly Idol, a restaurant claiming to serve the best hamburgers in town. The competition must be fierce, and the group is seeing enough evidence at this point to place the food quality right up there, among the very best.
What follows next is an expansive walking tour around the St. Pauli area, this time the focus is on street art and graffiti, and Solaris knows his stuff inside out. Because one of his areas of expertise is graffiti, he is able to share numerous tricks of the art form, sole insights of the type it’s impossible to buy. It also helps that he is massive music fan, only enhances the tour.
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The delight does not stop here. It’s time to get to Elbphilharmonie, where electronic music producer, musician and composer Trentemøller is about to give a headline concert. This state of the art, architectural, purpose-built dream of a concert hall impresses from the moment of entry.
Stealing the show in a way that’s hard to grasp Trentemøller, however, delivers a masterclass in polished, striking live production, pristine enough to make everyone gasp for air. A concert affair that ticks boxes, its power makes it a special moment in time. The link between sound, energy and volume intensity is help under the microscope, where loud and quiet, oppositesf such as acoustic versus synth-laden and dark versus light are magnified. A phenomenal sound and visual experience.
Having witnessed lots of greatness in one night, the knowledge of The Lemon Twigs’ appearance at uebel & gefährlich that same night is no bleak prospect. Situated on the renowned Feldstraße, in what seems like a well-kept secret, the atmosphere inside is intimate. On fine form, the New York duo’s pitch perfect show does more than fulfil expectation. A calm, forceful bit of rock mastery, Brian and Michael D ’Addario’s brotherly bond transfers well to the stage. Songs like ‘Church Bells’, ‘A Dream Is All I Know’, ‘The One’ and more sound flawless.
With a number of Danish acts, the geographical connection between Denmark and Germany may have some part to play in it. Back at Reeperbahn where indie dream-pop collective Efterklang are about to play the Mojo Club, there’s a proper buzz. Located underground, the venue is full of fans, excited to see the Copenhagen based band. As friends since childhood, Casper Clausen, Mads Brauer and Rasmus Stolberg are used to spending time together. Over the course of a three decades they achieve so much as a unit. Still excited about playing live, tonight’s no different, they give it everything.
The last day starts with a visit to the St. Pauli Bunker on Feldstraße, where Lemon Twigs played the night before. An effective place to get a view of the skyline, this monumental building offers multiple luxury, hotel stays, fine dining and a rooftop garden. Its past use as a Nazi air defense tower in World War II, a subsequent revamp later sees the centre transformed into a massive culture and leisure complex.
Moving on the St. Pauli Theater is the venue of the Anchor, the international music awards show of the festival. Founded in 2016 it continues to grow, and is an admired player in the industry. This year’s nominees include queer indie-rock artist Beth McCarthy, Munich based, Mongolian singer Enji, German pop singer Kässy, r&b vocalist Milan Ring, who lives in Australia, Kwaito and Afrobeat singer and dancer, South African Moonchild Sanelly and Strongboi, a minimalist, bedroom pop act based in Berlin. An entertaining spectacle, its combined blend of performances, artist stories, glitz and glamour make its reputation well-earned. Strongboi win and walk away with the award.
Almost last, but not least, genre-defiant, creative generator of all things new, it’s time for Master Peace at the legendary Grosse Freiheit 36. His third set today, this is hardly noticeable, he keeps thing fun, with personality and presence. Playing a string of songs, wrapped in hooks, the set provides enough time to become addicted to songs like ‘Veronica’, ‘Los Narcos’, ‘Get Naughty’, honestly, the list doesn’t stop there. A unique artist.
Allowing time for a shift in vibe, Dolores Forever are on a roll. The English-Danish pop duo write catchy, tongue in cheek songs that stay with a listener, long after. The songwriting carries an underlying, inspiring lesson learned about being present, enjoying the here and now, it has universal appeal. Their performance at Molotow Skybar gets a vibrant response, leaving you with a sense this could be the international breakthrough performance they need.
After a few splendid days in Hamburg, with a majority of time dedicated to the St. Pauli area and Reeperbahn a knowledge and understanding of how this city is a natural centre of music deepen. A gateway to the world, its geographical location, infrastructure and accessibility makes it a pivotal, international cross point of culture, art and trade.
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Words: Susan Hansen
Photography: Robin Schmiedebach,
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