Tag: concert review

Allgemein, Concerts

The Beautiful Trauma Tour Diary – We’re all P!nk on the inside

kekoaskorner

I’m a proud P!NK fan for 18 years and after her two shows at WaldbΓΌhne in Berlin I couldn’t wait for the Beautiful Trauma World Tour. So we decided to do a little German tour ourselves. First up Berlin Olympiastadion, then Waldstadion in Frankfurt, Olympiastadion in Munich twice and finally Zurich at Letzigrund stadion. So here’s my little recap of these awesome different five gigs.

The Support Acts

DJ Kid Cut Up

What an awesome DJ! I’ve seen many many bad ones but this one really knew what he was doing. Mixing so many hits together making us ready to party. He knew how to get the crowd going and was brilliant to have him in-between the two supporting bands. Plus I loved the last 15mins of his set when he literally prepared us for the show with vocal coaching by Freddie Mercury, Hands-up partying with 50 Cent. DJ Kid Cut Up was a lovely addition to the Beautiful Traum Tour and I’d love to see him again.

Bang Bang Romeo

I grew to love Bang Bang Romeo because they’re an incredible powerful band from Yorkshire, England. I love how confident Stars – the lead singer – is. No matter what size you are you should be proud of your body and she definitely oozed body confidence and I love her for that. Every time I couldn’t wait to see what she was wearing! Ross and Rich aren’t shy of colours and glitter either so the three are a match made in heaven. Now let’s talk music. The trio rocked their set. They’ve added two covers – “What’s Up?” by the 4 Non Blondes and “Seven Nation Army” by The White Stripes. So good!!! πŸ™‚

With “Shame on you” and “Chemical” Bang Bang Romeo have two powerful rock songs which totally get stuck in your head! I’m actually hoping that they’re coming back soon for their own headline show! During their 30mins set I got to rock out and by the time we got to the 2nd gig in Munich I was able to singalong too πŸ™‚ And coming to my last point and why I love Bang Bang Romeo even more they are actually answering you on Instagram – which is why I knew that they wouldn’t be performing in Zurich but would still travel along. Such a shame! But I am glad for my four times I did get to see them πŸ™‚

Vance Joy

I was super excited to finally see Vance Joy live and we did get to listen to him for 45mins. He started out with “Mess is Mine” and “Georgia” – a beautiful ballade which I grew to love very much. “Fire and the Flood” got me dancing every time and singing veery highly and loudly haha But what I love about the song are the trumpets and the awesome rhythm! He then asked us if there are some Bruce Springsteen fans? And let me tell you Zurich has the most which made Vance Joy very happy πŸ˜€ “Dancing in the Dark” is also a lovely cover.

The summer vibes were big in the 2nd part of the set – and obviously the Aussie knows how to do that. “We’re going home” started it off and when Vance Joy brought out the little Ukulele for “Saturday Sun” I definitely couldn’t stop dancing! πŸ™‚ “Lay it on me” came before the party really started with a Lionel Richie cover “All Night Long” mixed in with Justin Bieber’s “Sorry. Love love loved it !! And then he finally sang his mega hit “Riptide” and now everyone knew who they were actually seeing haha
I can honestly say I am looking forward to seeing him in a small show here in Zurich. So please Vance Joy come back soon! πŸ™‚

Here I Go Again

The awesome band which I will introduce you later started to walk on stage with a song by Whitesnake called “Here I Go Again” so we all knew it’s about to start! In typical P!NK fashion she flew in on a huge pink chandelier and very obviously started singing “Get the party started”. I loved the start of the show because it meant that we still had two hours of awesomeness to come! πŸ˜€ Now it was time to introduce us to the “Beautiful Trauma” tour and in Munich “Are you ready to sweat with us tonight?!” πŸ˜€

You guys know that I love confetti and fireworks but I absolutely lose it if an artist has a treadmill kinda thing on stage – and of course, P!NK had it! For “Just Like A Pill” which got all the old fans dancing she walked up and down the catwalk on the treadmill thing and started saying hello to the first rows. Another classic is “Who Knew” and I’m soo happy it made the setlist. In Munich on Night 1 it was soo hot that everyone couldn’t really think straight including P!NK πŸ˜€ She started with the 2nd verse and had to stop the song after the first few lines. It was so cute hahaha I don’t know what it was that day but there was a special atmosphere at the Olympiastadion.

Revenge Land

We were shown a short video which introduced us to Revenge Land. You can see the start of it in my Frankfurt highlights on Instagram. But basically, it said what you can do if your sweetie pees in the shower or farts in bed or pukes on you on a roller coaster. Yes, those are all examples from the video and I loved watching the reactions of the crowd since I knew what was coming πŸ˜€

The die-hard P!NK fans knew that “Funhouse” had to come on after this introduction but little did we know that she remixed it with No Doubt’s “Just a Girl”! What an awesome combination!! πŸ˜€ And yes, P!NK we looove Gwen Stefani haha At the end of this song P!NK introduced us to her awesome band and that’s exactly what I’m gonna do now too: Eva Gardner on Bass, Mark Schulman on drums, Stacy Campbell and Jenny singing backing vocals, Justin Derrico aka Spanky on the guitar, Jason Chapman on keys, Jessy Greene on Violin and Cello and Adriana on keys and vocals and guitar. Y’all rock and make this show amazing! THANK YOU πŸ™‚

It’s silly if I say this is highlight because actually the whole show is a highlight but let’s just say I was looking forward to this song a lot. “Hustle” from the new record was already one of my fav songs before the tour but now it deffo is. P!NK said that this song is for everyone who pissed you off. Plus she also taught us a new dance: The Jitterbug

An unbelievable moment we got to enjoy was when P!NK and Khasan did an incredible acrobatic thing during her song “Secrets”. It’s just WOW what these two are doing. I won’t describe it because there are no words. Just have a look in my highlights… Try Zurich πŸ™‚

Nature

All the dancers and P!NK created a beautiful mystical moment during “Try” and in Munich Night 1 the rain started and the thunderstorms in the back added to the magical atmosphere. I will never ever forget this beautiful moment. It kept drizzling throughout the night and the thunderstorms never came but made for a wonderful backdrop. When “Just Give me a Reason” started all the phone lights went up and I had goosebumps all over my body. In every city except Zurich the phone lights made this song very beautiful. Because Zurich started so early it wasn’t dark enough to get the people to take out their phones for this song but wait for it the Swissies are just special! πŸ˜€

Up next is a song by Bishop Briggs called “River”. P!NK covered the song two years ago at WaldbΓΌhne and I fell in love with the song. I am over the moon that she put it back on the setlist. No-one around normally knows this song but it is so powerful and one of my highlights in every city. My Mom filmed the song in Zurich because I could never ever sit still enough to do that. I enjoyed every second of the song and I will post it soon. Now the good news is that if you suffer from the after tour blues as well Bishop Briggs is coming to Europe! Are you joining me??

After water there is fire. “Just like Fire” warmed me up in Berlin and made it even hotter in Frankfurt. Every time I was looking forward where the fire would go off this time. It changed in every city and I loved this surprise moment.

Women are strong

In Berlin we had actual rockets pointing at the sky during “What About Us”. It was so beautiful and so special but unfortunately this only happened in Berlin. It was super emotional for me because only a few meters away P!NK performed the song for the first time two years ago. I felt the tears rising so I started filming and I could prevent me from crying. During the last gig in Zurich I didn’t want to hold back any emotions so I let it out. I was super sad that it was almost over but also super happy that I still got enjoy another hour of the show.

After this emotional song it’s hard to focus on the next song but I am sooo glad that the Swiss audience appreciated “For Now” with lots of phone lights. It was so special because in no other city the lights went up so even P!NK recognized this and said “Thank you, that was beautiful”. Now we got to listen to another song of the new album. “90 days” with Wrabel. A beautiful duet and a moment to be quiet – not everyone respected that….

Time for some alone time with Spanky πŸ˜€ P!NK and Justin sat down and lots of fans threw stuff at her. So many presents cheese, frogs, ducks…! But I want to mention how special this one present is – a mini chandelier with P!NK just like the one from the beginning. So impressive honestly!
“Time After Time” a cover by Cindy Lauper brought out the lights in Frankfurt. The new song “Walk Me Home” we already got to hear in a new version and in Zurich people started clapping which never happened before! Such a great atmosphere! The Swissies are so different haha

The band joined the two at the end of the catwalk stage. We all had a big ol’ party with “I am Here”. What a song! You got the biiig anthem moment and also the party in the middle where the band and some people in the crowd danced. “F**kin’ perfect” finished the Women are strong part.

My Daughter is beautiful

During “Raise your Glass” P!NK introduced us to the amaaaazing dancers and here they are: Reina Hidalgo, Shannon Holtzapffel, Tracy Shibata, Jeremy Hudson, Anthony Westlake, Remi Bakkar, Khasan Brailsford, Loriel Hennington, Madelyne Spang, Justine Lutz
I will also post a video soon with the whole introduction. They deserve all the applause in the world. Y’all are rockstars!
And finally, Willow is coming on stage as well! Another little badass woman in the making! πŸ™‚

The party is on with “Blow Me (one last kiss)” and 90’s remix of “Can We Pretend” which marks the last song of the normal set. Super colourful fireworks and confetti are all over the audience while P!NK slowly descends into the stage floor only to come back with a real bang! The moment everyone has been waiting for.

She’s singing “So What” and actually flies around the stadium! πŸ˜€ It is honestly incredible and I’ve been speaking to people all over and they couldn’t believe what they were seeing. I love the reactions and even if you show videos to people they go: “WOW! Incredible! Unbelievable!” πŸ˜€ If you don’t know what I’m talking about just watch the video on Instagram.

With one last song after the party P!NK comes back on stage to say a quiet Goodbye to us. “Glitter in the Air” is such a beautiful ballade and so fitting because she sings:

Have you ever wished for an endless night?
Lassoed the moon and the stars and pulled that rope tight
Have you ever held your breath and asked yourself
Will it ever get better than tonight?

Glitter in the Air by P!NK

And let me tell you Munich Night 1 and Zurich were exactly one of those nights that you wished wouldn’t stop. I am so happy I got to spend 5 nights with these incredible artists giving their best for us. I will have these memories forever. Thank you!

P!NK proves that she’s currently the best live artist in the world. An energetic heartfelt performance that you will tell your grandchildren about. If you haven’t seen it you missed out and if you’re about to see it you are definitely in luck! πŸ™‚

Allgemein, Concerts

Metallica's WorldWired Tour for all the senses

kekoaskorner

When Metallica announced that they’d be playing in Zurich at Letzigrund I knew I had to try and see them. They are just Legends which you have to see at least once. Last night with their Worldwired tour they started the openair concert season with a bang. 45 000 people were coming to see their favourite band and almost all of them showed up in the right merch!

When the ticket prices were announced I knew I had to try to pull a Guns ‘N Roses again. Luckily a friend of mine from a fellow blog called BΓ€ckstage helped me out a lot and landed me a front of stage ticket! Which meant that I was super close to the stage and saw how Metallica interacted with their fans. Let me tell you I thought they were super cute. Not a word I thought I would use to describe Metallica haha But they really were. All of them were actually looking at us, talking and miming stuff. It was just really cool to see.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Just after 8 Ennio Morricone’s “Ecstasy of Gold” started to ring around the Letzigrund and the huge screnes showed some scenes from the movie. The amosphere was already great with the 95% male voices singing to the score. The four guys – James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo – stepped on stage to perform the title track “Hardwired” of their newest record. I was fascinated. Kirk and Robert walked around the whole stage and said hello to the front rows. But what struck me the most is that you could actually feel the music in your stomache! It’s like loud fireworks πŸ˜€ Because it was so loud your whole body experienced the music in a different way. I loved it!

Continue reading “Metallica's WorldWired Tour for all the senses” →
Allgemein, Concerts

Mumford and Sons Delta Tour in Basel

kekoaskorner

Kekoas Korner got to travel to Basel to see Mumford and Sons at St. Jakobshalle on Sunday. I’ve never been to the venue and I have never seen them live so I was pretty excited. I heard only great things about their live performances and I’ve seen them on TV a few times so I was expecting a lot. Surprisingly the stage on the Delta Tour was set in the middle of venue which I already liked. So here’s a little more how the evening went:

Gang of Youths got the moves

The support act Gang of Youths is an Australian indie rock band from Sydney. Unfortunately I was quite distracted because I couldn’t find my phone and I thought I’d lost it. However, silly me, I put in my boots just minutes ago – which I always do when I have my boots on but I completely forgot. So the first 3 songs were kind of a blur. After huge waves of relief were flooding through me I could finally focus on Gang of Youths. Oh boy, David – the lead singer – can dance. Those moving hips were another distraction. He looked like the dancers on Let’s Dance Germany haha

Continue reading “Mumford and Sons Delta Tour in Basel” →
Allgemein, Concerts

Daddy Savoretti is singing to strangers around the world

kekoaskorner

A week ago I published the New Music post about Jack Savoretti where I told you guys that I’d be so excited to see him play and I was very curious. Well fast forward a week and here we are at Volkshaus in front row waiting to see if Jack Savoretti would fullfil my expectations. But I might have been even more excited to see his support act called Ward Thomas.

Ward Thomas – Voices from heaven

At 7.30 the two sisters Lizzie and Catherine took the stage accompanied by their two musicians. I saw the two girls at the C2C Songwriter Sessions in London and I fell in love with their voices. Unfortunately they only performed one song “Cartwheels” because they were actually just surprise guests winning the CMA Jeff Walker Global Artist Achievement Award! How cool is that?!

Continue reading “Daddy Savoretti is singing to strangers around the world” →
Allgemein, Concerts

Zurich loves Dean Lewis

kekoaskorner

I was super excited to see Noah Kahan and Dean Lewis on April 7th at Kaufleuten ZΓΌrich. I’ve only heard good things about both of them and I guess I wasn’t the only one. When we started queuing an hour and half before doors opened we never expected so many people already there. By the time the doors actually opened people queued around the block! I don’t think I’ve ever seen this at this venue before.

Noah Kahan

We managed to get a good spot in front row and now it was time to wait. Luckily when you are in good company time flies. At 8 o’clock Noah Kahan and his band mates came on stage. The wooping and clapping was already unusally loud. Not only did we get to experience very good songs we enjoyed Noah’s funny stories as well. The guys started with “Passenger” and “False Confidence”. I love when artists crack a joke or tell us the stories behind the songs and Noah Kahan did just that. The set continued with “Carlo’s song” and “Mess”.

But here it is. The song that everyone knows and can singalong to. It’s been on the radio for weeks and the Swiss audience surprised Noah by singing loudly along to “Hurt Somebody”. Noah and his band are incredible musicians and I would have loved to hear more of them but he’s “Only” the warm-up so unfortunately after just a few songs they had to leave the stage. They finished the set with “Young Blood” and I hope they are coming back for a headlining show soon!

Dean Lewis

Holy smokes! Wow! The Swiss audience screamed their lungs out when Dean Lewis took the stage at 9pm. I think I’ve never needed my earplugs more haha
Dean Lewis started his set with “Hold of me” and the Swiss crowd knew every single lyrics. I was super suprised and so was Dean. I think this was one of the loudest singing crowd’s I’ve experienced. “Need you now” and “Place we knew” were next and the singing never stopped. A very emotional song for everyone was “Stay Awake” and I think this totally overwhelmed Dean Lewis. He said that he’s never heard a crowd sing this song as loudly as we did. You could tell by his smile that he loved this show and he loved the Swiss audience.

“Chemicals” and “lose my mind” followed this lovely moment and when he sat down to play a song by himself on his key board he was literally in front of me. And the funniest thing was he actually asked me and the girls how we were and if we’re good. Of course we were and I did my famous two thumbs up haha. With “Half a man” he enchanted Kaufleuten. His beautiful voice, the thoughtful lyrics and his piano skills was all it took to shut the usually chatty Kaufleuten crowd up. I loved it! What a great night it was πŸ™‚

The band came back for “Time to go” and “Don’t hold me”. Back at the piano Dean Lewis performed his biggest hit “Be Alright” and the crowd’s singing got even louder! A magic moment with all the camera lights in the air swaying to the song. Check out my highlights on IG to get a little glimpse of that special moment. A lovely girl in the front row thought of something really cool. She printed out loads of A4 paper with “We won’t stop loving you! <3” on them. During “7 Minutes” we were suppose to hold it up. And our moment came now. A sea of white paper swaying along to the full song and the reaction to this was priceless. First Dean Lewis looked confused and then he read what was written on them and the biggest smile appeared.

Again we were told how cool and awesome of an audience we are and I think he really meant it. Because it really was true. The girls in the first rows were incredibly loud and knew every song. It gives me goosebumps just thinking about it now.
Now this made me like Dean Lewis even more. He said that this band made him want to be a musician and of course he’s talking about the incredible Oasis! (Last year I got to see Liam Gallagher live, read more here) I loved Dean Lewis’ rendition of “Don’t look back in Anger”. Since the Manchester attack at the Ariana Grande gig this song means even more to me than before.

“For the last time” which reminded me a bit of the Script’s “For the first time” – just because I’m a bit obsessed with them as you know – was the last song before the encore. I think the people weren’t ready to let Dean Lewis go. With a deafening applause the Swiss crowd wanted him back on stage and of course they got their wish. “Straight back down” and his first single which got him known in Australia “Waves” were his last two songs of the night. Just after 10 Dean Lewis was finished and I think everyone in the crowd loved this amazing gig. A few of us stayed a bit longer and we were rewarded with an unplugged rendition of “Be Alright” on the streets of Zurich. I’ve never seen an artist come out and instead of taking pics and giving autographs he gave us a little private concert. I loved it and again it was such a special way to finish the night.

Dean Lewis and Noah Kahan treated us with a special night of great voices, great music and amazing lyrics to singalong to. I hope they both will be back very soon! πŸ™‚

Allgemein, Concerts

00s Throwback with Alien Ant Farm and P.O.D

kekoaskorner
On Sunday night Goodnews Productions made it possible for Kekoas Korner to watch Alien Ant Farm and P.O.D. in Zurich at Dynamo. It was a major throwback to when MTV still played videos like Dryden Mitchell said.

I really didn’t know what to expect from this night because – obviouslyΒ – it isn’t the kind of music I usually listen to. However, I was super excited to cross some more “teen years” bands of my bucket list. The 68’s were up first, so early that we didn’t manage to catch them because our belly needed fuel for the night πŸ™‚

Alien Ant Farm – back when MTV still played videos

Three huge Alien Ant Farm logos were put on stage. The third one was printed on a backdrop with a beautiful earth – Obviously the view of an alien. Colour, neon lights made the stage perfect! Who needs more? πŸ™‚
The four lads from California took the stage with “Bad Morning”, “What I feel” and “Movies”. I loved the atmosphere already. People were really enjoying themselves and when Dryden announced the following it was time to freak out:

Back when MTV still played videos and not Jersey Shore etc. we had the pleasure of shooting this amazing video on top of the Masonic Temple. Who remembers it?

And with that “These days” started. I felt like 12 again and I knew exactly what they were talking about. What an iconic video and that song was one of my favs back then.

Dedication to our Mom’s and Chester Bennington

“Rubber Mallet”, “Wish”, “Neverment” followed this early highlight. Dryden Mitchell surprised me with his next dedication. He said that the next song is his Mom’s favourite and he literally just got off the phone with her. So let’s dedicate the next song to all the Moms because who doesn’t love their Mom’s. “Attitude” was another person’s favourite: Chester Bennington from Linkin Park. Alien Ant Farm dedicated “Attitude” to all the Moms and Chester Bennington. What a lovely unexpected touch.

“Courage”, “Lord Knows” and a cover by Bad Brains were next. Someone shouted “Smooth Criminal” and Dryden replied not yet first we do this cover is that OK? πŸ™‚ I’m really glad that this person shouted it because it meant that I wasn’t the only one waiting for that song either. “Sticks and “Stones” came on before Alien Ant Farm had to say “Goodbye” already. The hour-long set was over sooo quickly. But then finally the lights went red and the telltale chords started. Everyone whooped and started singing:

Annie are you OK? Are you OK, Annie?

I loved it! πŸ˜€ And with that I knew I had to get an Alien Ant Farm shirt. I thought that a black shirt with a white logo would be amazing but unfortunately, they didn’t have it. However, they had a preeeetty sick shirt instead which was just as nice – reasonably priced as well. Happy camper over here!

P. O. D – Rockin’ with the Best

At around 9.30 the four guys from P.O.D took the stage and the atmosphere was amazing from the start. The energy was rad and the moshpits started to form already with “BOOM”, “Rock the Party” and “Will you”. When Sonny asked us to put our hands up and bounce everyone – seriously everyone – did it. What an atmosphere. I love those Nu Metal, Punk, Rock gigs. Honestly, their gigs usually have one of the best atmospheres. And with that Sonny already jumped into the crowd and said hi.

“Panic Attack”, “Rocking with the Best” and “Soundboy Killa” was next. After thanking both the 68’s and Alien Ant Farm for opening the show and warming up the crowd, P.O.D as well dedicated a song to Chester Bennington – their buddy who will be missed. Sometimes you forget that Linkin Park was actually a Metal band because their songs became so mainstream. I thought the dedication was a nice touch. One band that will forever be on my bucket list to watch – May he rest in peace.

So-Cali in my Head

I really loved the variety in P.O.D’s set as well. From the really hard metal to rap to reggae – they had everything! The new spring weather we experience already made my day and if you are looking for your next summer hit, don’t go too far: “Always Southern California” is the perfect song! Another new song “Circles” followed but the crowd was in full voice again! Big thumbs up for the Swiss crowd and even P.O.D saw that! They said:

You guys go crazy on a Sunday Night!

“Satellite”, “Southtown” and “Murdered Love” were up next. I felt like the crowd got even louder! The sold-out Dynamo definitely peaked when the next song started. The phones went up, the moshpits opened up and we were ready to sing “Youth of the Nation”. Check out my story highlights on IG to get a feel of what I mean. Another song I never expected to hear at a punk gig: A very beautiful ballad called “Beautiful”. I was swaying from side to side and enjoyed it very much.

“On the Radio” got us back on the expected track. With “Aliiiiiiiiiive” the audience was in full voice again and after 90mins we were “Listening for the Silence”. The lights came on and the music started but I think P.O.D had such a great time that they just decided to come back and play 3 more songs! They said we will play until they kick us out! πŸ˜€ They really did play until 11 o’clock when they had to stop because of the curfew. Everyone walked out with a smile on their face.

Alien Ant Farm and P.O.D rocked the sold-out Dynamo crowd and more than once we had a throwback feeling back to the good old days when MTV still played music videos. What a fantastic Metal, Punk, Rock evening and another very early highlight of 2019!

Allgemein, Concerts

Savage Night Part 2 with Declan Greene, Saarloos and Gavin James

kekoaskorner

Last year in June at Amboss Rampe I got to see Declan Greene, Saarloos and Gavin James. Fast forward 8 months and Gavin James is back at Dynamo selling out an even bigger venue after playing at Energy Air and getting some major airplay time. What changed? He’s brought a whole band with him on stage.

Declan Greene

Declan Greene is Gavin James’ first support act and what a start it was. Standing alone on stage without any music he sings a very powerful song. What a voice. He then grabs his guitar and we got to experience half a comedy show and half a very brill musical performance. Declan Greene also covered Lady Gaga’s and Bradley Coopers “Shallow” midway through his set and many of the people in the crowd sang along. “River” a song dedicated to his fellow mate and part of Saarloos was next. His unfortunately short set ended with “Stay”. The whole crowd helped him out singing along and we experienced already a great atmosphere! Declan Greene really warmed up the crowd.

Saarloos

From last year’s gig I knew I loved the harmonies Craig and Brian create together and I wasn’t disappointed this year. The three lads came on stage and now the stage was big enough for Andy not to be hiding in the back ground πŸ˜€ “Feisty” being a cool uptempo song which got the crowd going and I think many of us must have seen them before. The lads were overwhelmed by the crowd’s cheers and singalong support! I loved to see their surprised and happy faces when they earned themselves our support. Unfortunately it was time for a sad song although they weren’t feeling too sad right now.


For the next song “Trust in Me” the crowd again was their backing choir singing “Don’t loose faith” while they sang over it. Such a great atmosphere I have to say it again. No-one wanted the set to end but with “Changes” it did. However the song was another highlight from the Saarloos set. If you don’t know them you really should check out their music! They are freaking awesome! πŸ™‚

Gavin James

At 9 pm it was time for the main act Gavin James to come on stage. I was expecting another one man show which I adored the last time but I got surprised. Gavin James brought a bass player, a drum player and Jeff his piano player along. I wasn’t sure what to make of that and when they started with “Til the sun comes up” I was still processing. “Coming home” and “Faces” followed quickly and I missed Gavin James short stories between songs. If I hadn’t been to his last gig I think I would have loved it! The songs are still great and Gavin James’ voice is still angelic but it kinda felt like it got commercialised.

“Tired”, “Glow” and “Start again” where next. Everyone around me seemed to be singing along and enjoying it while I spent the songs looking around processing. I remembered “The Middle” from last time and I slowly was getting used to this new Gavin James. For “22” it was just him and Jeff at keys playing and I was loving it! But my favourite song of the night and my highlight yesterday was “Nervous”. Gavin James with his guitar and his voice only. Such a beautiful song and I remembered closing my eyes during the last gig and swaying to the tunes.

After this highlight Gavin James was looking to come closer to his audience in the back. He stepped down and parted the crowds like Moses until he was in the middle of the room where he covered a Ray Charles song. Everyone was quiet! In general the people were very quiet tonight which is a stark contrast to last year’s gig. Either the music got louder which it deffo did but the audience got quieter and listened more as well. “Easy” and “Bitter Pill” were next and both songs I liked in the full band version. Am I getting used to the band? πŸ˜€

Gavin James’ uber hit “Always” was followed. He sat at the piano and performed the very beautiful ballade while the audience filmed it and sang along to it. I love the fact that he chose to sing this song somewhere in the middle of the set. It just proves that he thinks that this is not his biggest songs and all of his songs are equal. The set continued with “Cigarette Break” and “Two hearts”. And finally my absolute favourite song by Gavin James “Hearts on fire” came on. How different this version was with the full band. It still got the crowd going and of course we had to all kneel down in the middle of the song only to jump up for the chorus while confetti rained down on us! I love confetti and I loved that moment. You can check it out in my stories on Instagram.

Gavin James quickly left the stage only to come back out of his hiding for the encore. I remember it so vividly back at Amboss Rampe he hid behind the curtain πŸ˜€ “Book of Love” and “Only ticket home” finished the set. The latter is supposed to be played at 4 am in Dublin Pub because everyone can sing along to no matter how drunk they are. It goes “Hey La La La” πŸ˜€ and another set of confetti finished the night! πŸ™‚

Gavin James evolved into an artist with a band. I am still not sure how I feel about this. However I do loved his show including the support acts Declan Greene and Saarloos.

Allgemein, Concerts

Can you feel the Zurich Love Rudimental?

kekoaskorner

Rudimental has been one of my fav artists to dance to for years. All I needed to like a party is a song by Rudimental haha From UK fans I heard that their live show is freaking amazing so when Gadget finally announced a Rudimental gig I was over the moon!

I think Rudimental is one of the most underrated artists in Switzerland just like The Script. These guys fill stadiums and over here they struggle. I really don’t understand it but your loss is my gain. At a little after 8 I walked in and managed to score a 2nd row spot right in the middle. I was so much looking forward to this gig and the energy. I was super giddy and my expectations were super high.

At 9 pm the lights went out and everyone was ready to party! The stage filled with 9 musicians during a short intro and off it went with “Right Here”! The energy Locksmith & Co. brought on stage was incredible! The atmosphere was amazing and literally everyone was dancing! What I loved is that you actually had space to dance! And with Rudimental songs you really need space because you go mental without even knowing it haha

“Not Giving in”, “Summer Love” and the title track of their brand new album “Toast to our Differences” were next. With Rudimental it’s hit after hit after hit. No wonder Locksmith is drinking grey goose vodka on stage toasting to our differences πŸ˜€ At this point I really want to point out the amazing musicians Rudimental got on stage. The two female and 1 male singers replace BIG names such as Rita Ora, James Arthur, Ed Sheeran, Emeli Sande and you actually do not miss them at all. They are incredible singers doing an amazing job! But of course their brass section is brilliant too! I still got the sound of the trumpet in my head!

Afronaut Zu literally blew me away with his voice. James Arthur you may or may not like him but his voice is super special and brilliant live. But Afronaut Zu made “Sun Comes Up” to his own song. I bet it would’ve become a hit even with him singing it. Then the stage turned red and with the first chords of “Bloodstream” I couldn’t stop moving! I remember it so vividly last summer when Ed Sheeran performed it. The energy of this song is sooo gripping. I think you just have to dance! πŸ˜€ And wow it really kicked in just have a look in my IG stories.

With “Walk Alone” we calmed down a little until Locksmith asked the guys on the balcony to stand up. I loved that haha I was like okay what song is next that we need to get prepared to get mental. It was “Let me Live” which I’ve also heard last summer performed by Anne-Marie. SURPRISE SURPRISE MAKE SOME NOISE FOR ANNE-MARIE!! YES, freaking Anne-Marie was there! She performed her song live for us and not only that. She stayed on as a 3rd backing singer. So now you got 10 musicians on stage for 50 francs?! Yes, this time I paid for my ticket and I would do it again. They all deserved my money. They worked hard, put on an amazing show and they love what they are doing plus they appreciate us coming to the show!

“Lay it all on me” from their 2nd record We The Generation was next. And again what A tune! “Run” and “They don’t care about us” followed. DJ Locksmith asked us then: “Do you want to feel free with Rudimental?” A roar he got as an answer! I Loooooove “Free” which Emeli Sande also sang at her last gig and again I wasn’t disappointed by the live vocals tonight. Just On Point!

During “Go Far” Rudimental recreated the famous Daft Punk video “Around the world” where they moved in a circle around the centre. I love the rhythm and the throwback moment. For “Rumour Mill” Anne-Marie sang her part again! πŸ™‚ Usually those surprise performances only happen in the UK or the US. So thanks Rudimental for flying her in! The guys performed their only cover of the night “Human” by Rag’n’Bone man. The brill voice by Afronaut Zu took centre stage again.

As East-Londoners they love to rave so we all went on a little rave (That kinda rave I even love :D) with “Trouble” which turned into “Feel the Love”. Of course we felt the love and the energy in the room so when Rudimental left the stage the whole Halle 622 sang the chorus:

You know I said it’s true
I can feel the love
Can you feel it too
I can feel it ah-ah
I can feel it ah-ah

We were still singing when the Rudimental returned with “These Days” and finally my all-time favourite party hit “Waiting all Night”! And with those two Uber-Hits they let a very happy energetic crowd into the night. And we literally were in a party mood because when Earth, Wind & Fire’s hit “September” came through the speakers everyone continued dancing until we were ushered out by the party poopers πŸ˜‰ While we got some water into our systems some people were still shouting “Oh oh oh” to the tunes of Seven Nation Army.

Rudimental just gave me one of my highlight gigs in 2019 and we are just 32 days into the new year. I am dying to see if anyone can beat their energy, their hits and their brilliant musical performance including a surprise guest!

Check out my latest gigs: Snow Patrol, Jacob Banks, Black Eyed Peas

Allgemein, Concerts

Is it okay to stand up during a concert?

kekoaskorner

I’ve been going to concerts for years now and at each gig I fear that we will miss out on good dancing songs because the people behind me are not standing up to dance as well. It’s the same old story every time so here’s my advice to you guys.

Stand up if you feel like it!

You paid to have a good time so you better make sure that you have the best time ever! These days concert ticket prizes are super high so if don’t have a good time because you worry about people around you it’s on you!

I’m usually super considerate but during gigs I don’t understand people who are ruining the fun of other people. When I was little during my 2nd P!nk concert a “Lady” probably more like tramp tipped my shoulders and said would you please sit down. I thought to myself seriously?! P!nk just asked everyone to stand up and dance and she asked me to sit down. Who do you think you are lady… that’s what I should have said but of course my shy me didn’t. And no I didn’t sit down either. That’s the story that stuck with me for years and I swore to myself I’d be never like that.

So each time I go to a gig and even if I don’t really feel the music at the exact moment but someone in front of me does I tell them to stand up. If you feel it, stand up and dance! Lots of times I see people half dancing on their chairs because they are too afraid to stand up from their seats and that’s when I know that I have to tell them to get up. Each time I get a super grateful smile and then they are having the best time.

So whenever I stand up I try to see if I can get out of people’s stage sight but if not possible it’s their choice to stand up as well or stay seated and look around me. It’s not like I’m 10 feet tall and you won’t be able to see anything at all. If I want to see the stage again properly I stand up if someone’s dancing in front of me. That’s the beauty of a seating ticket. You can actually see the stage and no-one is right in front of you. You have options to do something about it unless the peeps down in the standing area.

So is it okay to stand up during a concert? Heck yes!! Have the best time of your life! Enjoy the music, the show, the dancing and the moment because there is nothing better than a good gig and those moment you cannot buy with any money in the world πŸ™‚

Allgemein, Concerts

Concert Highlights 2018

kekoaskorner

2018 was a year with lots of good concerts but also a few bad ones which usually doesn’t happen a lot! So unlike 2017Β this year is pretty easy picking my highlights. Of course I can’t name just one but let me highlight a few for you.

The Script gigs:


Like I already warned you in 2017 this year would be a very scripty year. But it ended up to be quite different than expected. First up was 3rd Night in Dublin which obviously was a highlight. Seeing a band in their hometown is always special. Read more here.
A month later the lads should have played the Hallenstadion in Zurich…. the important word here is SHOULD. Unfortunately Danny got a chest infection and wasn’t able to sing at all plus Glen felt slightly under the weather as well. So in 10 years of The Script this was only the 2nd time they had to cancel a show. We were all gutted but read some more of my thoughts here.
With that I was travelling to Milano where I learned that the gig was cancelled too. But hey, we still had a great night out.
Luckily 10 days later Danny and Glen were back and Amsterdam gig could go ahead as well as the Paddy’s day gig in Brussels. Unfortunately I couldn’t get around to write down those memories yet but let me tell you not only The Script had a magical night but also Ella Eyre. She spent the whole gig with technical problems only to have a complete shutdown during her song “Answerphone”. We all got our phones out and lit up the stage. It was magical. I still get goosebumps thinking about it πŸ™‚
Lastly I thought the Caribana gig was the last one on this tour. It really would have been a great end. Read more here.
But thanks to a lucky draw from my friends at Loads of Music we got to see the lads on their final gig of the Freedom Child tour at the Moon and Stars Festival.

The hottest gig: 2 nights of Ed Sheeran

2018-08-03 22.06.55
The two nights with Ed Sheeran, Anne Marie and Jamie Lawson at Stadion Letzigrund were unforgettable. Not only because it was one of the hottest outside gigs I’ve ever witnessed but also because all of them are incredible musicians! But you can read some more right here.
If you want to reminisce in 2019 you can since Jamie Lawson and Anne Marie are back in Zurich! Get your tix via Starticket.ch.
Jamie Lawson 13.4.19 at Plaza
Anne Marie 2.5.19 at Halle 622

The woodiest gig: Justin Timberlake


Justin Timberlake transported us into the Woods and it was incredible – Just like I imagined. I had this vision of how he started and finished plus I had a few deja vu’s from the last time. It was perfect. Plus having my two friends from Loads of Music front row across the room was even more special! You were actually rooting for them to see the Man of the Woods very much up close and they did. Read more here.

The wow gig: Katy Perry


Katy Perry’s show was incredible! I remember her playing Volkshaus and even then the shows were great. Flying planets, huge mosquitos, a basketball court, a huge mouth, a flying clock…. I could go on and on. Try to top that! I had an amazing time. I was dancing and singing and being blown away by her show. But look at some more pics here.

The two biggest surprises:
Jason Derulo


I’ve seen a few of his gigs on TV and I always thought he was dancing more than singing or talking. I guess it must have been the TV’s cut. Jason Derulo is a great singer and entertainer but most importantly he appreciates his fans and the money they spend on him. He tries to give us more than 100% of his energy and that laid back super cool energy infected the Hallenstadion. People were dancing and singing and having a ball. Read more here.

Charlie Winston


Charlie Winston has been around for ages. 10 years ago he sang one of my fav songs of the year “Like a hobo”. For some reason I thought he’d be a singer songwriter who puts up a very thoughtful slow song show to enjoy to listen to but not dance to. I couldn’t have been any more wrong. His energy that came on stage with him infected the whole room. Within seconds people were dancing and clapping and having an amazing time. Shirley from Loads of Music described the gig exactly like I would have done so have a read here. I think this really has been on of my top highlights this year. I walked out with aΒ huge smile and that’s always a success.

Crazy is good: Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats


I saw Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats before so I knew I had to go there and I wanted to be front row however I didn’t know how crazy it got being front row at Nathaniel Rateliff gig! If you want to know have a look at my review: click here.

The king/queen of ballades: Sam Smith


Sam Smith was actually another surprise. He’s hands down one of the best ballade singers but his gig wasn’t all sad gloomy at all. We were actually dancing a lot which I loved – even though I was a bit handicapped at the time. He might not be top of mind if I think of gigs 2018 but he sure deserved a mention in my highlights blog post! Read more about this surprising gig here.

The punkiest gig: Billy Talent


Like Charlie Winston Billy Talent have been around for a long time so when I finally got to see them at the Winterthurer Musikfestwochen my 15 year old self was very very happy. πŸ˜€ I was so surprised that I actually knew almost every song… I guess I really like them so please read more here.

Getting my rock on: Foo Fighters


Since I saw Dave Grohl hosting the EMA’s and after I watched the documentaries I knew I needed to see the Foo Fighters live. And they didn’t disappoint – over two hours of guitar riffs, drum solos and loud screams. It was amazing and well worth the money. I do hope I get to see them again sometime. But read more of this amazing legendary rock gig here.

Behind the Scenes with Saint City Orchestra


Seeing them at the Caribana as a warm up for The Script was perfect. As it happens sometimes I was able to shadow them for their gig at Rock the Ring in Hinwil. It was pretty cool being backstage with a band the first time. A new view of the tour life that I haven’t actually seen like that before. The lads of Saint City Orchestra were super welcoming and we had such a good time there. If you don’t know please check them out. They’re a great band from Switzerland and if you wan’t know more have a look at my review.

The tric-iest gig: Kate Voegele and Tyler Hilton


While I was about to fly back to Zurich from my trip to Wilmington I learned that Mia Catalano and Chris Keller aka Kate Voegele and Tyler Hilton are coming back to Zurich. I was over the moon and I couldn’t believe the coincidence! So of course I got home and bought myself a ticket. Nothing can beat the feeling of being in your favourite series whilst you’ve actually visited the set – or what’s left of it – a few months back. When they started “When the stars go blue” I could actually see myself in Tric rocking out to it πŸ˜€ #fangirling I know…. if you are ok with that read more here.

The Swiss love Aussies: Sons of the East


I haven’t heard of them before but thanks to Loads of Music I got to meet the three lads from Sons of the East before the interview. They were pretty laid back, nice and funny just how you imagine Aussie guys no? πŸ˜€ It was also a super hot summer day so it all fit together. Dynamo was like an oven and we got enjoy a summery show but read some more here.

Getting my Country on: Country Night Gstaad


I got very lucky this year I found someone actually two people who are as obsessed with country music as I am. So finally we were able to go to our first Country Night Gstaad. Midland, Maddie & Tae and Brett Young were the artists playing this year. Little did I know that we’d be screaming like crazy because apparently Brett Young is a huge Gavin DeGraw πŸ˜‰ Yes, country and pop music go together! Read some more of our Country adventure here. Oh and stay tuned for our C2C weekend in London in March! πŸ™‚

The cool Germans:
Max Giesinger


Max Giesinger is cool dude. He’s super down to earth and sooo funny! His music is great and I love to listen to it live. His gigs are always a mix between enjoying good music and trying not to pee yourself because you have to laugh so much πŸ˜€ I don’t know why but each time I walk out of his gigs I’m a little bit in love with this guy. But I guess this is a very good thing and I bet I’m not the only one who feels like that. He’s back in March but unfortunately I just realized that I’ll be getting my country fix in London. So really bad timing Max! πŸ˜‰
Read more of his last gig here.

Nico Santos


I had the pleasure to interview Nico Santos who sang one of my fav songs of 2018 “Rooftop”. He’s such a cool down to earth guy. Read more of our interview here. I can’t wait to see him live on May 3rd at X-tra. Get your tix now: ticketcorner.chΒ 

The funniest gig: Lewis Capaldi


Let’s face it Lewis Capaldi should be a Comedian but then again the music industry would love an amazing voice so why not combine those two features into one show. That’s what Lewis Capaldi did. Seeing him supporting Sam Smith was a joy especially since we discovered that we never ever do any exercise because it will kill us haha. I immediately knew this guy needs backing so when he announced his headlining show I was in – little did I know that he apparently reached some more couch potatoes. Lewis Capaldi’s show was sold out! But this guy doesn’t seem to tire because he’s supporting Bastille next year and tix are still available: starticket.ch

The gig from the future: Black Eyed Peas


The Black Eyed Peas are back and celebrating their 20 year existence. They’ve evolved quite a bit from their first record. Taboo, Apl.de.ap and Will.i.am are three childhood friends making music. Even if they don’t fill the big stadiums anymore you can see and feel that they enjoy what they do. The guys are musicians through and through and that’s what I like to see. In addition to this they’ve not been bitter about people having phones at their gigs but actually thought about it and come up with an idea how to involve the phone in the gig. It was one hell of an experience actually sending big hearts to the stage! So much fun! Read some more here.

The good and now the bad ones…

Unfortunately this year we had a few very bad ones like I mentioned at the beginning. I’d like to name them quickly here. Nena, Billy Idol, Kim Wilde, Lily Allen and Hozier were all very disappointing. They didn’t spread good energy and I didn’t leave with a smile on my face. However in all of those gigs some people enjoyed it. It just wasn’t for me.

But I want to end my last blog post of 2018 on a good note. I am so grateful to have spend so many hours with lovely new and old concert buddies sharing what we love – Music. Being able to see my favourite artists is a blessing. Moments like we’ve had this year at gigs are unforgettable and will stay with you forever. So if you see an artist you like is coming to town go and support him – it’s worth it πŸ™‚