It’s summer in the city! 🙂 Not just because the temperatures are rising but also because the Jamaican Legend Jimmy Cliff is in town. He brought 8 musicians with him who started the show at the sold out Volkshaus.
The leader of the band sang the first song of the night and the only lady of the band followed this up with a brilliant version of Dawn Penn’s “You Don’t Love Me”. And finally the legendary Jimmy Cliff walked towards his bongo with a typical Jamaican calmness. Of course “Bongo Man” was his first song and it gave me goosebumps. You have to check out the highlights on my Instagram account. He covered “Rivers of Babylon” which got stuck in my head all night. I loved the vibe of “Love song” and “Treat the youths right”. Lots of people started to whip and even some stood up at the back. It was quite fun to watch how Swiss people dance to Reggae music. Continue reading “From Kingston to Zurich with Jimmy Cliff”→
Nena has been around for ages and is still well known to everyone – especially since she did Sing meinen Song last year. That’s why the Volkshaus’ audience was very divers – Young children with their parents, girls night out or couples enjoying a date night. The sold out Volkshaus was boiling when I walked in to see the support Crimer.
Very Swiss – on time – Crimer started with his mixture of Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys. His dance moves are just incredible and because he was such a fitting support the audience was actually enjoying him and it was already a good atmosphere! I was very happy for him.
Just a little after 9 Nena and her 9 musicians took the stage to an already loud cheer of the audience. She started with “Indianer” and “Ganz oben”. I already realized that this crowd knows the lyrics very well and with “Nur geträumt” I even joined in. Lots of people were already standing and dancing to “Tanz auf dem Vulkan” and “Lass mich dein Pirat sein”. Nena continued her set with songs all the way throughout her career. “Einmal ist keinmal”, “Rette mich” and “Kleine Taschenlampe brenn” was next. This was one of my favourite moments when the people took out their phone and swayed to the song. Continue reading “Nena's Family Affair”→
To be honest with you I was really looking forward to this gig until it was clear that my football team LFC will play on the same date. Thanks to abc production I got to see the incredible Anastacia again (Queen of Sprok) and it was well worth it.
At 8.30 Anastacia took the stage with a huge hit “Left outside Alone”. It became clear that she meant business. 6 musicians and a three story high stage including various light effects supported her amazing voice. As soon as she started I was glad I came and the whole Volkshaus was too. From the first song everyone was singing along and Anastacia loved it. She loves Switzerland and that is no secret.
With her newest single “Caught in the Middle” the set continued. Both songs were very rocky which set the tone for the night. However it wouldn’t be an Anastacia concert if she didn’t have some soul and pop songs. “I can feel you” and “Redlight” were next. As you might know I had slight inflammation in my knee so I couldn’t really dance. But let me tell you already it wasn’t easy! Anastacia’s next song “Sick and Tired” is such a personal song with so much passion. It’s one of my favourite live songs because during the chorus everyone is waving their hands and is enjoying themselves.
Live Music: You watch me, I watch you 🙂
“Before” sounds like a fighting anthem and if you know Anastacia’s history you know why. She is a strong beautiful woman with a brilliant voice you’ll recognize immediately. For the next one she said:
This is a song from the first album. If any of you guys are under 16 you might not know the song but it’s called “Cowboys and Kisses”
The summer feeling continued with “One Day in Your Life”. This song was one of the summer hits in 2009 and is still an amazing song that makes you want to dance right away. While Anastacia left the stage for a costume change the musicians did a great job doing a funk medley including Bruno Mars. With “Nobody loves Me better” she came back with a super sexy outfit. However Anastacia has not only men in her audience. It is a divers mix. Women and men of all ages, in couples or on a ladies night out. I loved the fact that you really couldn’t describe the typical Anastacia fan. At one point she asked how many of you see me for the first time? Half of the Volkshaus raised their hands. So she said:
Where have you been? 🙂
Seriously where have you been? She comes to Switzerland at least once a year and has been around for well over 10 years. However it is fascinating how she gathers new audience every time she is here. But most people are able to singalong and so we supported her during “Pieces of a Dream”. Lots of people were in awe of her beautiful and strong voice – very understandable.
“Why” of her latest record Evolution followed. I don’t know why but the next song is special because it will get stuck in your head and I love the dance she and the two dancers are doing for “Stupid Little Things”. When the first chords of “Paid my dues” started I couldn’t believe that she was already playing it since it was one of the biggest hits. I checked my watch and I saw that we were coming to an end. The past hour flew by!
A few years back Anastacia released an album where she covered all the classic rock songs… Stones, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, The Foo Fighters and many more. Unfortunately she was not able to tour that album because she was diagnosed with breast cancer for the 2nd time. However she wanted to perform those songs live at least once so on her App we were able to choose which song of that album she would perform tonight. And Led Zeppelin’s “Ramble On” won.
“I Do” and “Boxer” off the new record were the two songs before the musicians left the stage. After minutes of deafening applause and stomping and wooping Anastacia came back on stage with a slow new song called “My Everything”. She told us that we are her everything. She feels so blessed that we still come to see her and support her doing what she loves to do so that’s why she wrote this song – for her Fanily. Her voice gave me goose bumps and it was a very quiet beautiful moment.
For her last song she asked everyone to stand up and everyone obliged. I tried my best to dance with only one leg properly working. So the Volkshaus turned into a club where people had a good time including dancing and singing to “I’m Outta Love”. After an hour and 40 minutes of pure Entertainment from the Master of Sprok Anastacia said Goodbye. I already know that I want to see her again but I really do hope that at least 50% of the people who saw her for the first time that night will come back because she deserves it. Calling on all my Fanily members, please share your experience below.
I was super excited to see Texas tonight even though I was still very sick but thanks to abc production I had wonderful seats on the balcony. I couldn’t wait to hear my favourite song “Summer Son” from way back when I was 8!
The support act was an electro pop band called Hightre – a mix between La Roux and Pet Shop Boys! I really liked their set but unfortunately it was over after just 20 minutes. I would have loved to buy their CD but because Switzerland has those strict customs rules quite a few artists refrain from taking any merch with them. This happened now twice in a row. First JP Cooper and now Texas.
Just before 8.30 Texas played the first chords of “The Conversation” and the tornado of Sharleen Spiteri took the stage. She ran around and animated the crowd to stand up and dance. I was kind of blown away! The atmosphere was brilliant from the start and I gotta say this never happens in the new venues such as Samsung Hall or Halle 622. The Volkshaus guarantees good atmosphere and I can recommend it to anyone! Throughout “Halo” and “Let’s work it out” people clapped and sang and I very much enjoyed watching the people and the band.
Sharleen is one hell of an entertainer! She started to tell stories and jokes! Plus she interacted with the audience in a way which I haven’t seen in a long time. She looked at them and actually spoke with the first few rows and at one point even with a fellow Scottish lady on the balcony. In-between we heard new songs and old songs like “When we are together”, “Tell that Girl”, “Everyday now”. Sharleen also spoke about the Scottish culture and her family life. But the most eye-opening moment was when she said that the band started out 30 years ago! People including me couldn’t believe it 🙂
Sharleen had 5 other musicians on stage but she was clearly the star of the show and filled it like a whirlwind. I thoroughly enjoy the gig – the music – the talking – the atmosphere. LOVED IT! I also liked that the audience were there to enjoy the music. You rarely saw a phone or a camera. It’s probably because most people were around 40-50. Next were the songs called “Thrill has gone”, “For Everything”, “Tired of being alone” and “So called friend”.
I went to the concert because of that one song and I was dying to hear it and finally I heard the chords I knew so well! “Summer Son” was one of my highlights of the evening and I could see the 8 year old me rocking out to this tune. After this Texas played “Midnight” and a beautiful love song called “In Demand” where even the “oldies” got their smartphones out to light up the place. Surprisingly I knew more songs than I thought “I don’t want a lover” is a classic! At one point Texas invited an avid fan on stage to sing a song with Sharleen. Another highlight! “Black Eyed Boy” followed before they played “Say what you want” which is another hit! So before we even knew it they quickly left the stage only to come back for the last two songs.
When Texas started to play “Inner Circle” I couldn’t believe it! I knew that song too because of the movie Bend it like Beckham. I seriously didn’t know that this song was by Texas so obviously I stood up again and sang along. Sharleen introduced the last song like this:
If you don’t know this song within the first 3 chords, LEAVE!
Again the whole crowd was laughing and at the same time everyone was a bit sad because this was the last song called “Suspicious Minds”. After two hours of entertainment everyone left the Volkshaus happy. We all enjoyed an amazing night of good music and good fun – the Irish would say good craic! 😉 Have you seen Texas live? Please share your experience in the comments below or on my Twitter, Facebook or Instagram account.
One Direction went into hiatus just a little over a year ago after Zayn left the group to pursue his solo career. Officially they were on a break until March 17 but yes we are in July and they are all pursuing solo careers now. So let’s have a look on all their projects. Zayn Malik
He was the first one to release solo material. With “Pillowtalk” he landed a huge hit. Was it because the song was good or was it because the video included his new girlfriend Gigi Hadid or because he was the first of the group to release a song? I am not so sure which one it is. This song was also the soundtrack to the movie fifty shades darker which helped to make it successful too. Don’t get me wrong I like his voice but I don’t like the image he has at the moment. The only single who could match that success was a collaboration with Taylor Swift. All other singles weren’t that successful. He is not on tour at the moment. Click here to get album via iTunes or Apple Music. Niall Horan
Niall released two singles. “This Town” about a year ago and “Slow Hands” in May. I didn’t know his first single but it was one of the most special moments of the Summertime Ball at Wembley this year. 80’000 people lit up the stadium and where waving their lights to that song – just beautiful. His 2nd song “Slow Hands” is super catchy and it’s been stuck in my head for days. I like it a lot. It’s sounds really innocent but have a look at the lyrics it is everything but innocent 🙂 Kind of like Milow’s “Ayo Technology”. And you know that I have thing for Irish musicians so I would never thrash him. Niall is on tour soon. He will play in Ireland, UK, Sweden, Australia, Mexico, Brazil and the US. Click here to get to his his homepage to get more info and tickets.
Harry Styles
Harry took his time to work on his album and you can really hear it. His first single “Sign of Times” is still constantly played on the radio and it is a beautiful soulful song. I listened to his album “Harry Styles” and I am quite surprised. It sounds like a real musician has produced it. Besides making a good album he has been acting in the recently released movie “Dunkirk”. He will also be on a huge world tour next year. Click here to get more details on dates and tickets. Switzerland, March 11th. Germany, March 24th-27th. US, June 5th- Jul 14th. Australia, April 21st-28th. Click here to buy the album via iTunes or Apple Music.
The two last ones were busy starting their own families. Liam Payne
Liam surprisingly started dating Cheryl Cole (or whatever her name is at the moment) and this lead to their first son Bear Payne (I know what a name!). Probably almost at the same time he release his first single “Strip that Down”. He performed his only song at this year’s Capital Summertime Ball and who would have thought that Liam can dance like that?! I also have to admit that I love the Chorus because it’s very catchy and you can dance to it. The single also made it as MTV’s cover of the month and this guy has literally stripped it down to a guitar and his voice. I love this version and if you watch the video until the end it will surprise 🙂 On his official website are no live shows scheduled for the moment.
Louis Tomlinson
The first 1D baby is Freddie and he’s already a year old so his daddy Louis was able to record his first solo single “Back to you” featuring Bebe Rexha. I don’t like her voice and I think she is screaming instead of singing so I don’t agree with her in the first place. Plus this song sounds like a million other songs various DJ’s produce but worse. I really hate to say this since he is my favourite of the group but he either should stick with being a dad or look for some good producers to help him make better song choices.
So all the boys have released new music and let’s see who will make it as a solo artist and will still be here in a few years. Judging by their first attempts it has to be Harry. But who knows the other boys might work with better producers and make a great record. Only time will tell… Who is your favourite 1D boy and how do you like their solo stuff? Comment below I’d love to hear your opinion or message me on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Photo credit: https://www.thecut.com/2015/05/there-is-only-one-direction.html
