Some thoughts on yesterday's show in garden shed in Berlin:
CRACK CRYPT CRUCIFIXION: two guys with a modular setup and another with a laptop. Highly dynamic and syncopated set. Sometimes falling completely silent, just to burst out again in full swing. This style could've benefitted from vocals? Now I felt hard to get 'into'.
.PK. + Bootycall: more straightforward pedal noise with constant bass roaring and ravishing high swirls. One of the girls was using wood saw to generate chaos.
Imminent Death: Probably the highlight of the evening. Room was very dark, sound was heavy, atmosphere was on point. Maybe no full stop after tracks would have been better? Vocals were also way to quiet in the mix. Anyway great gig despite hearing there were issues.
EDIT: completely forgot Michael Barthel, but he was an excellent surprise! Alternating between dadaist sound poetry and minimal noise with spoken word/samples accompanied by a slide show with old school slide projector. Highly conceptual performance about the disturbing psychology of war. Set was short but powerful and heartfelt.
Vomir: First time for me. Missed out on receiving a bag so just closed my eyes for a while. Impairing vision definitely improves the experience, so there is more to the whole 'bag on the head' thing than just a stunt.
Tower Transmissions really deserves long form coverage but here are some quick impressions from 2 weeks ago:
first day
Robert Revell: I don't know if his debut performance was a disappointment, because I had no real expectations? Either way I didn't really like it. It felt like the Californian version of TxRxP with death metal growl. I think it was a big miscalculation to put him as opener of the first day. Revell seemed to desperately seek validation from the audience instead of focussing on delivering good music. In the end, his attempts to shock the audience just fell flat. I will probably see him again in Wroclaw and with his father too at some point, so let's see if he improves.
Green Army Fraction: I lost interest in this project after hearing Norrlandsvisor, which frankly I just found ridiculous. This set however showed class and imo would've been the perfect opener. Good build up & timing, sincere, no pretentions (unlike Revell).
Darja Kazimira & Zura Makharadze: Biggest surprise of the festival. Surely not everyone's cup of tea. Maybe video background was bordering on obscenity without clear context. Regardless the dedication deserves recognition, especially the unnamed male member who was almost knocking himself out on stage. Seeing him in the moshpit later with his swollen face makes you rethink what 'dedication to the craft' means. Vocals by Darja were very beautiful as well, ranging from enchanting mantra's to hysterical witch yelping.
Pain Appendix: I think the way he approached it was actually quite fitting for the larger venue, I could be wrong because this is the first time seeing him. Immersive set of pure noise oppression. Lighting enhancing the sound. Only point of criticism is that the excessive bass was definitely drowning other elements of the mix, but on the other hand made the set more monolithic and immersive.
Bomb the Daynursery: Intimate setting with darkend room was a masterstroke by Karmanik. He simply delivered a master class in classic swedish death industrial style: gritty, apathetic and meditative. I agree that maybe dance beats at the end were a bit out of place, but at the same time they fit the old school character of the project. Was great to see him on the last edition of TT.
Prurient: I think I am, like some other European guys here, not a huge Prurient fan, however this was simply a brilliant set. Fernow knows how to control your attention with tension and doesn't let go of his grip until the very last moment. All the chaos in the mosh pit might've clouded my recollection of the set a bit, but made for a great live experience. I will just say that with Home Invasion Fernow really is the only guy who can pull off a typical Tomorrowland cliché style 'beat drop' at TT haha! Goosebumps when B. Moloch and W. Herich got on stage, I cannot remember if they performed a track from the new Ke/Hil + Prurient EP? For sure they performed Pro Serial Killer from Carte Blanche.
second day
Anna Gardeck: Great opener. I already liked their studio work. Stage antics were good, so was the background projection, I liked the occasional bits of classical thrown inbetween the heavy electronics. I had no idea that was the guy from Wappenbund until after the festival. Set ended with some kind of ambigous statement when the female member veiled herself with a large sheet.
AntiValium: is the kind of sterile IDM music, that while technically impressive, ultimately leaves me cold. The two guys were wrestling with their gear throughout the set, but it was more amusing to see rather than bothering.
Galerie Schallschutz: prototypical Tesco german power electronics. Live definitely heavier than on record and reminding me quite a bit of Operation Cleansweep. I am a fan of this project. There is not really much more one can expect from this project live than what they delivered. Class act.
Ke/Hil: As mentioned by others, these guys with their decades of experience simply own the stage to such a degree, one cannot find anything to criticize them on. We got once more a highly conceptual set of the most sophisticaed power electronics Germany has to offer. Sound was loud with vocals very present in the mix, but like the studio material the sound definitely leaned more towards oppressive and eerie side rather than aggression. Personal highlights were a skincrawling version of Adrenaline (with perfectly fitting background projection I may add) and a personal favourite Children of Devolution. With Ke/Hil, the guys from Mannheim always find interesting angles to approach social questions within Germany (and by expansion the West) that really sets them apart from other PE acts and leave plenty of food for thought.
IMO, this show did feel a lot heavier than the Anenzephalia one 2 weeks earlier, because the PA at Rituals is simply whispering compared to the one in Dresden haha!
Dernière Volonté: By the looks of it, easily the most devisive act of the festival. Also looking behind me mid-show and seeing only half the venue full already gave me an idea. One can't argue that DV did give 'variety' to the line up, this I do consider a hallmark of TT festival. Of course it is simply a matter of taste. As far as I am concerned, I absolutely love DV and was very much looking forward to seeing his show. Maybe for people more acquainted with French culture, it is easier to understand the appeal of DV? Anyway I find it hard to describe my appeal for DV, but I guess it can be compared to Death in June?
Geoffroy D. did play it on the safe side with performing a lot of older songs from Les Blessures d'Ombre and Devant le Mirroir, which suits me fine, but unsure how much of his latest material he performed? As I only bought the new album at the festival and afterwards it's hard to tell. Only thing I was a bit disappointed by was that his trademark voice seemed to have deteriorated a bit with age and some high notes were a bit embarrassing.
Funny how many people got offended by his dance moves, haha! Have people lost their sense of humour?
Linekraft: Not gonna waste too many words on Linekraft, as he was arguably the most discussed and revered act on the festival. Simply his unrelenting dedication and sincerity is infectuous. What better way to end TT than with Linekraft?
