Monthly Archives: November 2018

People showed up early for the concert by Deer Tick at Privatclub Berlin on this Monday night. As the opening act, Joanna Barbera had the chance to reach quite a few new people. She also had to handle that double-edged sword of a room packed with many people merely waiting around for the main act. Admitting that it was her first time in Berlin, she quipped that “the graffiti is magical”, which got a little more of a response out of the audience than a previous attempt at taking the room’s temperature.

Luckily, this German shyness was not reflective of the attitude of those who had gathered in front of the stage toward her music. It did not take long for the first couple of knees to bend in time, then a few nodding heads followed and I could even spy some shoulder action. Not too bad for a Monday crowd in November.

When she announced the Tom Petty cover “Breakdown”, the crowd was clearly curious. Sounding a little different without the strings she features on her studio version of this track, the song still did not lose any of its catchiness and her distinct personal touch was undiminished. The mere fact that a bigger share of the audience was familiar with this piece definitely helped to break down some of that distance to the stage, even if a noticeable physical gap did not disappear.

Jesus and Jim Morrison

The images Joanna Barbera draws from in her lyrics are commonplace, or to put it another way, familiar. This makes it easy to find your way into them even on the first listen and yet she is somehow able to walk that tightrope and not fall off into cliché and empty meanings in the slightest. Her songs are rich in gems like this one from her latest release called “Sun”:

“In catholic school they taught me how to sin

I couldn’t tell the difference between Jesus and Jim Morrison”

Much of why her lyrics have a way of sticking with you and carry a significant punch is undoubtedly owed to her strong vocal skills that even the burgeoning sore throat could not take away from. Her delivery was sure and made it easy to tune out the background chatter, focusing in on the music alone and even getting a little lost in it. After this very solid opening set for Deer Tick at Privatclub, I am very curious to see and hear her perform with her two violinists backing her up some day.

Going into this show, I was surely hoping for a good opening act that would maybe make me curious enough to check them out some more the next day. Instead, I ended up being just as taken with Joanna Barbera’s music as I was thoroughly entertained by Deer Tick’s powerful headline set that followed.

Deer Tick Take The Stage

The room was packed by the time that the main attraction of this Monday evening stepped up to their instruments. There were no holds barred at this show by Deer Tick at Privatclub. The band made this clear from the very start. “S.M.F.” crossed over seamlessly into “These Old Shoes” and John McCauley then announced “it’s good to be back”, taking a swig from his Pilsner. The Band gleefully tore through their set, continually firing up the crowd and only stopping briefly in between for a quick instrument change or tuning (the perspiration clearly upped the humidity in the room fast).

Especially Dennis Ryan on drums always seemed ready with a story whenever they were forced to bridge a few moments before jumping into the next song. Before playing their recently released song “Hey! Yeah!”, Ryan said his wife had asked him if the song was about her, to which he had to confess that it wasn’t. “It’s actually about LSD. That’s my love song. About psychedelic drugs. She puts up with a lot.” Deer Tick then followed that up with another love song. “My dog’s love song about me, so there’s that”. The crowd loudly sang along to the chorus of “Me And My Man”:

“Me and my man
Me and my main man
Me and my man
Me and my main man
Running fast
Catch us if you can”

Each song played by Deer Tick at Privatclub seemed to amp up the crowd a little bit more. If the cold did not take my voice already, singing along probably would have done the job all by itself. The many guitar and drum solos were welcome respites but even more so a joy to watch.

No Time for Labels, Deer Tick Came to Rock

Notoriously uninterested in how critics label and categorize their music, Deer Tick made quick reference to this announcing they’d play some folk now. “And a bluegrass version of every song we’ve already played”, Ian O’Neill joked as he switched to the Mandolin (lovingly referred to as “the banjo or ukulele or whatever” by McCauley). A handful of people almost appeared to break into an impromptu line dance during “Hope Is Big”, and “Twenty Miles” from their 2010 album “The Black Dirt Sessions” was a real treat:

“Now if I had no boots I’d trek through mud
While mosquitoes are racing to draw the first blood
If you’re running away then I’m looking for you
And if you’ve lost your way I’m seeing you through”

High energy, passionately echoed lyrics – the entire performance of Deer Tick at Privatclub was a fan’s dream come true. The band visibly enjoyed themselves just as much. All seasoned touring musicians, nothing could stop this train. When Ryan’s bass drum pedal disintegrated, nobody on stage was too surprised and they quickly laughed it off. Moving right along into “Wants/Needs”, Ryan decided to call it a song about buying a Volkswagen:

“She want a brand new car
And I need a brand new soul
I pulled the pin of her heart
Sit back and watch her explode”

To close out an incredibly fun night, the encore by Deer Tick at Privatclub blew the roof off with “Jumpstarting”. The band then took it down a notch with a cover of Santo And Johnny’s “Sleep Walk”, and finally a perfectly fit for arms-around-shoulders swaying rendition of “Ashamed”. The band left the stage with big smiles on their faces. McCauley gave a flurry of high-fives, and at least my week had already been made. If you love a good live show, Deer Tick is a sure bet. Hopefully they will be coming back soon enough after “Mayonnaise” releases on February 1^st next year.

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Picture by: Deer Tick

Molly Burch began her show at Privatclub Berlin with three hard-hitting songs off her new record “First Flower”. The first two, “Candy” and “Wild”, also appear in that order on said album and so surely made for a very familiar listening experience for most in the audience. “Dangerous Place” did not mix things up too much there, but made for a great closer to this rather fast-paced triplet that certainly did the job of drawing in the crowd and loosening some limbs.

Third Time in Berlin – But a First Headline Show for Molly Burch at Privatclub

Addressing the Berlin crowd for the first time, Molly Burch revealed that she had been in this city twice before, but that this made for her first headline show. Having had the pleasure to see and hear her perform at the 2017 Torstraßenfestival, and enjoyed that very much, this performance still surpassed it in many ways. The audience at Torstraßenfestival had been sitting down on the floor, scattered across the dancefloor, giving it much more of an oversized living room atmosphere. As is always the case with a festival, this would have been the first time they heard her music. The crowd that came to see Molly Burch at Privatclub was standing close to the stage, dancing, and clearly came out with the express purpose of hearing her songs.

The set then continued with the title track of the latest album, “First Flower”, before shifting into “Wrong for You” off her previous one. Both songs were well received and it was hard not to sing along to the chorus during the latter one:

“I know that I am so very wrong for you
And I know that no one really belongs to you
But why do I keep falling for all of these things you do?
Why am I wrong for you?
Why am I wrong for you?
Wrong for you“

There is something about Molly Burch’s delivery that makes her lyrics hit you right at your core, impossible to just casually listen to without paying them any mind at all. That quality only becomes more pronounced in a live setting.

Shifting Gears, But Not Focus

Returning to the newest release, “Good Behavior” slowed things down again. Listening quietly and swaying softly as they did during this song, or dancing freely to “Without You”, which followed next just as it does on the record, the people who came out on this Sunday evening followed wherever Molly Burch chose lead them.

“Next to Me” then reigned the dancers back in a little, only to fire everyone in the room up again with “To the Boys”. The second single off the album (and one with a fantastic stop-motion music video to boot) was clearly a fan favorite at this venue. Happy shouts erupted when Molly Burch announced it and the lyrics could be heard echoed here and there, too:

“I don’t need to scream to get my point across
I don’t need to yell to know that I’m the boss
That is my choice
And this is my voice
You can tell that to the boys
(You can tell that to the boys)
You can tell that to the boys”

The music that Molly Burch creates may be pretty, it may be charming, may even deal with subjects that a thousand songs before have been written about. Most of all, however, it is uniquely her and is therefore absolutely and refreshingly compelling. If you’re not listening to her yet, you are missing out.
Once the applause subsided, and the click track, peeking through every now and then as the guitar strings and cymbals stood still, was quieted, the band resumed their set with “Try” and “True Love”, drawing louder cheers with each one. The fans were pleased and the excitement for Molly Burch at Privatclub grew palpable.

Fan Favorites from the First Record

Riding that growing wave like a pro, Molly Burch then topped it off with “Please Be Mine”, her first album’s title track. Her voice had been impressive throughout the set already, but it really got to shine here. Absolutely captivating, it melted any remaining shred of cool reservation in the room. While I enjoy the studio recorded version of this track a lot already, it doesn’t compare to the experience of hearing it performed live.
Only two songs remained on the regular setlist now. “Every Little Thing” again showcased Molly Burch’s powerful vocals and must have had the entire front row mesmerized, looking like they were hanging on to every single word. Who could blame them? Despite its lyrical content, “Downhearted” then appeared to light up the dance floor with another salvo of enthusiasm:

“I remember recently
That I’ve lost a few of my things
My mind, my heart, my good intentions
And most everything
I know there is much more to me than thinking about you
I’ve got a lot, a lot to give, I know that this is true
I’ve got the moon, the sun, the stars, the night
The sky, the trees, the dark, the light
I’ve got my arms, my legs, my hands, my touch
My eyes, my lips, I guess I don’t need too much
You’ve got me so downhearted
You’ve got me so downhearted”

Not keeping the audience waiting too long for the encore, the band reappeared after having a quick sip just off-stage to play “Nothing to Say”. With this song, Molly Burch and her band closed a very memorable concert. Throughout, the change of pace between songs kept the crowd on their (dancing) toes and maintained a steady curiosity for the next. I was a little speechless after this last song ended, but Molly Burch gave us all much to say. Definitely a Sunday night worth turning out and facing the Berlin winter air for. If she is playing anywhere near you, don’t let that opportunity slip past.

Who is Doris? – A Well-known Unknown Opener in Berlin

A few words should also be said about the opening act of the night. Support for the concert of Molly Burch at Privatclub came from Doris, who put on a very entertaining show. Doris is the name of the solo project by Berlin-based band Gurr’s Andreya Casablanca and also happens to be her middle name, for which she tongue-in-cheek thanked her mother. Offering some German banter in between songs, she joked about Sundays being like New Year’s eve, seeing as the new week will start the next morning, and thanked everyone for coming out. Andreya seemed to approach the gig not unlike one of her headline shows with Gurr, edging the audience on to let loose and dance. She was without question in her element on stage – what more could you want from an opening act?

Doris at Privatclub

Clearly unafraid of more experimental material and some dissonances, this set was full of energetic surprises. The audience received her cover of Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel” very warmly and did heed her calls for some dancing, too. With a driving backing track and a guitar riff that’s catchy from the get-go, her original song billed as “garden 2” on her soundcloud feed was probably my favorite moment. Especially since there aren’t any professional recordings of this project that do the live performance any justice (yet), I highly recommend catching a show if you get the chance.

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Pictures by: Levin Freudenfeld