St. Patrick's Day on a Saturday!
This calls for a celebration!
For this reason, we found ourselves back at K17 in Berlin after many years. The last time I was there was for Pöbel & Gesocks when they played during the Christmas season.
Not much has changed, except that the bar has disappeared from the concert room and has been relocated to a room behind the hall where the gigs take place. It has become a nice room with a few seating options. It's pleasantly dark, like the whole K17. It should be that way, as K17 is the dark institution in Berlin. However, all kinds of concerts take place in the concert room. On this evening, PIPES & PINTS, AULD CORN BRIGADE, and guests were announced. I’ll skip the guests. An unremarkable band that played unremarkable music and thematically fit the evening as well as Fanta fits with whiskey.
Speaking of whiskey, the bar had a few options, but despite the occasion, the only special was Kilkenny from the bottle. They could have done better, especially since a lot of taps were available. Well, we weren't (just) there to drink, but also to have a nice evening with two folk punk bands.
When AULD CORN BRIGADE started, there was quite a dead dance in the black concert room. Maybe 100 people stood in a room that could hold 400, and which is also quite square. Simply too few to create any atmosphere.
AULD CORN BRIGADE from Nordhausen made an effort to excite a few people and get them dancing. The lyrics were at least appropriate and dealt with Ireland, its struggle for independence, and its folk heroes. The singer looked pretty good in her black and green football outfit. Her voice was also decent. What her bandmates did was not bad either. With banjo, flute, and violin, they included typical folk instruments that gave the music its own sound. Craftsmanship was all good, but it was nothing more. Anyone familiar with a few bands from the genre will not discover anything new with AULD CORN BRIGADE. After half an hour, the band became increasingly boring, even though they continued to try to make an impression. Visually, they also tried, as they were all dressed in black and green, the traditional colors of St. Patrick's Day. Everyone dressed the same creates a certain uniformity that rarely appeals to me. Moreover, it was simply too much. Someone was eager to fulfill the cliché. It matched the music. The will was there…
If all this sounds like a mediocre evening in an empty club, that’s not wrong, but the band that took the stage after the Nordhausen group was the reason why at least half of the approximately 150 people had paid for entry.
PIPES & PINTS from Prague, back together in their old lineup, were announced as the main band. Until now, I had only seen the band in Kreuzberg, mostly at Wild at Heart, and they had simply blown me away there. More punky than Dropkick Murphys and more raucous than The Real McKenzies, the Czechs have a stage energy that is unmatched. Especially singer Syco Mike is a sight to behold. Muscular, covered in tattoos, and with a passion that warms your heart.
It actually got warm, as people started to dance, and everyone wearing a band shirt, which was quite a few, sang along. The band opened their set with their intro “The Geal“. Then Syko jumped on stage, and the gas pedal disappeared into the floor of the vehicle. The band launched into their set with full energy.
The stage at K17, which is man-high, prevented close contact with the audience, as the band had to bend down to sing along with the crowd. For Syko, that was no problem, and for the audience, it wasn't either, as they eagerly moved to the front of the half-full club to sing along enthusiastically. Of course, the intense atmosphere of Wild at Heart didn't quite materialize, but the Czechs clearly showed that they play in a completely different league than the bands that stood on stage that evening. Perfect interplay, energy, and all wrapped up in music that sweeps you away.
The band played almost their entire album “Until we die“. In the last songs, even half of the band jumped down to the audience and danced with them. The band feels most comfortable among their fans. They don't just want audience contact; they need it!
Without an encore, it was over after about 50 minutes, and just in time for the disco to start, the lights came on. The magic of the evening was somewhat killed, but the 50 minutes that belonged to the Czechs were worth the entire evening.
PIPES & PINTS are the folk punk band of the moment. No other band connects punk rock, raucousness, and bagpipes so skillfully.