Kaizers Orchestra

01-09.09.2023 Kaizers Orchestra (Konserthuset, Stavanger)

Tuesday, September 12th, 2023

OK … I guess I can do one report for the first week of Kaizers concerts. =;-)

I hadn’t planned on writing anything, and to be honest, it felt incredibly good to be at a concert without writing down the setlist and trying to remember everything that happened – and of course, without having to find time the day after to come up with a report.

But then, this WAS the big Kaizers comeback that we all wished and hoped and waited for for the last 10 years, so OF COURSE I have some thoughts about it. And of course I’m gonna write them down. *g*

So, let’s start at the very beginning, with the very first concert, September 1. I had not prepared at all – I hadn’t listened to any of the old albums, I hadn’t re-watched any DVDs, I only had a few plays of the new songs, and I also hadn’t arranged to meet anybody. Because why would I – Kaizers concerts work in the way that you walk in and you see heaps of people you know and want to talk to, right?

Wrong. I walked in, was handed a Kaizers scarf (which could be really nice if I wasn’t so incredibly not interested in football =;-) ), and … didn’t see anybody I knew. When walking into the concert hall I at least ran into one fan I knew (and I’m sure there were more in the front row, of course, but I don’t queue), and then saw a rather poor amount of people in the front and otherwise – emptiness. I’m not sure what I had expected, but that was definitely NOT it. *lol*

Anyway, half a beer and a couple of round trips through the concert place later I had actually found some people I knew, and it started to feel a bit like “old times”. Even though I was totally aware that those old times are in the past, and they won’t come back. But at least, there was a little flare-up of how things used to be. =:-)

And of course, we started to speculate what would happen: Would they start with the Russian Dance? (Common consensus: yes, they really really should!) Which song would they start with? (Full agreement: Dine gamle dager) What would they play? (Common concern: mainly Violeta songs probably …)

((Side note: I just had to look up if it’s spelled Violeta or Violetta. It’s been a while … *lol*))

Right on time at 9 PM, the lights went out and … beware, from here there be spoilers, so don’t read on if you want to be surprised!

No Russian Dance. Instead, we got an intro that reminded me of the DGDEN trailer, with just some sounds, including a helicopter … wait, they aren’t gonna down from the ceiling, are they?! No, they weren’t. Helge came out first, theatrically put on some white gloves, sat down on the pump organ and started with … Ompa til du dør! =:-D

Yay, a perfect start, and completely unexpected! And to be honest, I didn’t get the reference at all until we discussed it a couple of days later. Ompa was the last song they played at Siste Dans, and the first one they came back with. There couldn’t have been a better choice!

I won’t go into the full concert now, just some thoughts. First of all, it REALLY felt like “old times”. So I guess the “dine gamle dager er nå” slogan they have now fits a lot better than the one they had around Siste Dans – “tid kan endre alt”. Because it didn’t feel like any time had passed! It felt like they’d been on stage just yesterday and picked up exactly where they left off.

Of course, the first concert was a little (very little) bit “stiff” and rehearsed. It was clear they had planned everything out in detail, and they did exactly what they had planned. The second show was similar, maybe a little more relaxed. But it wasn’t until the next week that they really loosened up – which I can understand 100%, and the first concerts weren’t bad because of it. They just had to warm up a little to get EVEN better!

Interestingly, there were quite a few wrong notes in the first shows though, which I hadn’t expected. Normally I would think those creep in when the band starts loosening up and maybe concentrating a bit less … but no, that actually got better show by show as well. =:-) Not that it was a problem anyway, it’s not like they were playing badly, and I prefer to have humans on stage rather than robots. =;-)

The setlist was great, with a good mixture of old stuff and Violeta songs. The full Gypsy Finale! =:-D Okay, I don’t really understand why they put Dr. Mowinckel in the middle of it … I mean, I love Dr. Mowinckel, but why not before or after the Gypsy Finale?

At the first show, they played Delikatessen, which was an absolute surprise. They later replaced that with Siste Dans (ok, nice song, but not Delikatessen) and even later with Prosessen (YAY!). Otherwise, no big surprises in my eyes. I’m not the biggest fan of Kvite russer (mainly because it’s really really long and kills your voice …), but the way they’re doing it this time with getting someone up on stage is kinda cute. A bit of a down-time for me at all concerts was the block of Støv & sand (Kaizers’ “Malin” *lol*) and I ett med verden – toilet break, anyone? =;-) And then of course there was Kaleidoskophimmel right before the encore break, which didn’t work at all. People just don’t know the song yet, and … well, it’s a Janove solo song anyway. They played it at the first shows, and people went to get a beer or started talking, and then they took it out of the set. Which is totally fine for me. =;-)

The barrels were of course back, and used for the old songs as usual. Not quite sure why they are now spitting smoke, that’s kinda distracting (and messes up barrel fotos!), but hey – Kaizers up on barrels is what counts! In the intermezzo part in Begravelsespolka, they now get up on the barrels instead of Janove and Helge tap-dancing – not sure why, but it works. What does absolutely NOT work though is the ending of Begravelsespolka where they keep repeating the “bli” over and over again (as usual) but stop before the “bli” in a different key – what the hell?! This is like ending a scale without the last tone, you just DON’T DO THIS!!!1

What else? Oh yeah, there was the scarf stunt at the first two concerts. Everybody had been handed a scarf at the entrance, and then during I ett med verden and later again during Kaleidoskophimmel everyone was supposed to lift them up. Overall, nice idea, and I’m sure it looked good as well, and it reminded me of the “Don’t ever split or quit” sign in Switzerland. =;-) I simply didn’t like the football feel of it all …

The audience was absolutely awesome overall. Pretty much everyone (at least in the front) was singing along with every single song, which isn’t really how it “used to be”. But of course, if it’s that difficult to get tickets, there is a bit of a selection on the audience and the amount of “let’s get drunk and talk through the concert, so I can tell my colleagues tomorrow that I was at a Kaizers concert” people is seriously reduced. Or, actually, I don’t think there were any of those people! Which also meant there were very few drunk people fighting their way to the front (some at the end of the concert maybe, but overall, not too bad).

What amazed me at several of the concerts was the amount of young kids (ok, I’m old by now, so with “kids” I mean like 18-25 =;-) ) that were really really into it. I mean, what other band can play a ballad (Hjerteknuser) and have a bunch of 18-year-old guys get really ecstatic about it?!

And of course, Die Polizei as conclusion to the shows, with the audience singing along and on their own for a really long time after the band went off stage … <3

So overall: Well, that was unexpected. =;-) I did expect to enjoy the concerts, because every time I’ve seen Kaizers after a bit of a break, I didn’t REALLY miss them in between, but once I’ve seen them again I knew what had been missing after all. However, I hadn’t expected the concerts to just feel like before. I’m older, they are older, the audience overall … should have been older but wasn’t really =;-), there’s a lot of things that have happened in the last ten years. But Kaizers live haven’t changed and are still absolutely amazing. =:-D

Looking forward to Oslo, Trondheim and then a bunch of concerts in Europe now!

Ja det var tider det …

Monday, March 9th, 2015

What? A blog post? Here, on this site? 😮

Well, I guess it’s about time to write a bit about my move to Norway. Or to finally blog about my “Concerts 2014”. Or plan the summer festivals for 2015. Or … uhm.
Nope, I wasn’t much into blogging lately. I should pick it up again, and – maybe I will. I think I might. But I’m not promising anything. =;-)

This post, however, is not about any of those topics. It’s about – surprise surprise! -: Kaizers Orchestra. Who woulda thunk? *gg*

I saw the new Kaizers movie yesterday. I really liked it – but then, I don’t think I can really judge it. OF COURSE I liked it, since it is about Kaizers, and it actually contains new interviews and both old and new unseen footage. So it is, without a doubt, a must-see for Kaizer fans.

In one scene in the movie, Helge mentions that towards the end of Kaizers, in the last months and weeks, the friendship and the bonds between the members grew stronger. I found that really interesting, because (in a completely different context) I’ve experienced that once an “end” is decided, everything kind of falls apart, because there is no need to fix things and keep them together anymore. It’s awesome to hear that this worked out so well for Kaizers and they did not break apart in the end.

But it also got me thinking … From a fan perspective, looking back now, I have the feeling that while the bonds in the band apparently grew stronger, the “fan community”, the huge Kaizer family, started falling apart. While there was one group of “Kaizer fans” in the past, it turned more and more into one faction here, one faction there, oldtimers, newbies, Hjerteknuser fans, “everything was better in 2001” fans, …

Of course, this isn’t surprising. The number of fans grew so much that there was just no way to have one family. And just to make that clear right away, I’m not putting the blame on anyone. I’m sure I’m just as much to blame as everyone else. While in my early fan days, I wanted to meet EVERY other Kaizers fans out there, I’ve gotten less and less interested in talking to fourteen-year-olds, I tend to look down on fans that tour for festival shows (why don’t you wait for REAL concerts?!), and I just don’t understand fans that queue hours before a show.

Years ago, there were surely also some fans that kept separate from the rest. But all in all, it felt much more like “family”. I met one of the old DMA family at the screening yesterday, and while we couldn’t even remember the other’s name, we remembered “the old days” right away. Lots of great memories – and I feel that years from now, ALL my Kaizers memories will be from the old days. Violeta? Well, yes, sure. Siste Dans? Yep, I was there. But the good times were back then, long before Violeta.

Lots of people “dropped out” of the Kaizers universe since then. That’s totally fine, everybody got their own reasons for that. I just hope that people will remember the times we had, instead of ridiculing them. Just a short while ago I was told “well, SOME of us are over Kaizers now …” Hmm. Should I congratulate you now? Because you’re over the stupidities of your youth? Or should I rather pity you because it seems you don’t see that even though this part of your life is over, we were part of something huge and we should keep it in our hearts?

OK, I might be getting a bit melodramatic now. 😉 In any case, it’s a fact that for me (other fans might be at different stages in their fandom, of course) the time of one big Kaizers family is over. Finding people to meet up with for Kaizers events is getting harder and harder, and while years ago, I was looking forward to every concert because I knew that – even without arranging anything – I would meet awesome fellow fans, I now hardly care anymore because there are only very few of those people left. And those I can meet without organized events as well.

Of course it was great to see that it’s still possible to “unite” fans without too much effort (with a few kilos of confetti or some hundred balloons – even though nobody knew how that would turn out, almost everyone was in). But there are so many fans by now that there is not one community anymore. But one of oldtimers, one of newbies, one of Hjerteknuser fans, … And I hope that all the “everything was better in 2001” fans will manage to find their way to the cinema in the upcoming weeks, to be reminded of what we had.

It might be over. Life moves on. But I’m still proud and happy about the times we had. Me går langt tilbake til de gamle dager …

Concert summary 2013

Saturday, December 28th, 2013

2013 is almost over – time for the annual look back at the concerts of the year!

Let’s start with the numbers: 55 concerts in total, seven of these were summer festivals. There weren’t really a lot of bands I saw more than once or twice … only Itchy Poopzkid with two concerts and two festivals, I think, and die Ärzte with one concert and two festivals. Oh, and of course this weird Norwegian band that I saw a couple of times this year. =;-)

29 of these concerts were in Germany, the other 26 abroad. Which is a rather strange ratio, I know, but well, I’m a concert junkie. =;-) In addition to the concerts, I attended three WWE events, one musical, one ballet, and one TV award show.

The smallest concert of all was the Honningbarna concert in Stuttgart: There were ten, maybe fifteen people in the audience. It was great fun, even though I was a bit jetlagged and couldn’t enjoy it as much as I would have a week later. The biggest concert … hmm, not quite sure. Probably Rock’n’Heim festival or the Ärzte concert in Bietigheim-Bissingen. I guess both had an audience of about 20.000.

Die Ärzte … well, no, I guess it’s over. I tried to give them another chance in Bietigheim-Bissingen, but it just was no fun. If you’re at a concert and think that you could just as well be back home on your couch with a good book – there’s no need to be there. And I had a very similar feeling when they played at Taubertal festival and Rock’n’Heim a month later.

The festivals: Interestingly, the festivals that I enjoyed most were Trollrock in Norway and Rock’n’Heim. The first one was tiny but awesome – only a few bands every day, so no “overkill”, and great music, nice people, and good weather. The latter … well, I had expected to HATE it there. Big, new (and therefore unorganized), expensive, my last festival of the year. But I wasn’t “working” at the festival, thus not writing any report or taking photos, so I could just do whatever I wanted, and I really enjoyed it. Plus, it was far from sold out, which means the area wasn’t too crowded. So thumbs up!

Biggest band surprise? Hmm, hard to decide. I LOVED the concerts/festivals with Itchy Poopzkid and Madsen. A perfect mixture and two great bands on stage! Also, I greatly enjoyed the Fozzy concerts I got to see, and I’m looking forward to their next European tour. Beware, I’m coming after you! =;-) And my new discovery of the year is clearly Hoffmaestro – I saw them at some festivals and turned into a fan right away. Their album is just as awesome. The sad part is that they canceled their tour in fall, so I hope I can catch them next year!

And finally, there was … Kaizers Orchestra. 28 concerts this year – three at the opera in Oslo, one in London, one in New York, and finally seven in a row in Stavanger. If I want to list the “traditional” geographical statistics, it’s Kaizers only. Northern-most concert: Kaizers in Trondheim. Eastern-most concert: Kaizers in Vienna. Southern-most concert: Kaizers in Zurich. Western-most concert: Kaizers in New York City.

Yes – New York City. And London. Both in one year – within one month, actually. It’s crazy, but it was soooo worth it. The London trip: an awesome week together with great friends, and not only Kaizers, but also WWE and Fozzy. I can’t even pick the highlight of the week – Kaizers were just one of many highlights. New York City had been on my list of cities to visit for a long time. Still, when the concert was announced, I knew I wouldn’t go there. And at the same time I knew I would … and I did. And just like London, it was a great vacation, and the Kaizers concert (and afterparty) were just … surreal. But an experience that I will never forget. And NYC itself would have been worth the trip even without the concert, so it wasn’t fully crazy. =;-)

Not all Kaizers concerts were amazing this year – I’ve seen them soooo often by now that I know them way too well. What might seem like a great concert to most can be a bit disappointing for me, as I notice if they could do more but just don’t care, like for example at my ten-year anniversary at Ravnefesten in Kristiansand. It was still a great concert, just not as good as it could have been. Still, there’s no concert that I would have wanted to miss. So many memories, so much joy, so much fun. Thank you, Kaizers!

The last week of concerts in Stavanger was a rollercoaster ride – both emotionally and concerning the “work load” (not only caused by Kaizers of course, as I was also doing “real” work remotely, but there was quite some work related to Kaizers). It was a terrific finale though – of course! Followed and finalized by meeting Janove at the airport in Amsterdam the day after the final show … time to really say goodbye.

Or so I thought … Just last month, I went to Norway again to hand out the award for the best live band of the year to the best live band of the year! Another surreal experience, and a great honor.

So this concludes the Kaizers era now. There will surely be less concerts for me next year, and fewer trips to Norway. Skambankt will take over a bit – my first trip to Norway is booked and scheduled already – but I doubt I’ll go there as often as for Kaizers. But we’ll see …

Apart from Skambankt, I’m looking forward to a Fozzy tour, some great concerts with Thees Uhlmann, Wirtz, Hoffmaestro, and of course some nice summer festivals. Taubertal, Mini Rock, maybe Trollrock again – it’s gonna be a fun year, but it will not be as much and as rushed as this year. Which is good, even for a concert junkie like me. =;-)

07.09.2013 – Photos Kaizers Orchestra (DNB Arena, Stavanger)

Sunday, October 27th, 2013
07.09.2013 – Photos Kaizers Orchestra (DNB Arena, Stavanger)

Bigger versions of the photos are available on Facebook!

14.09.2013 Kaizers Orchestra (DNB-Arena, Stavanger)

Saturday, September 14th, 2013

September 14th, the very last “Siste Dans” concert in Stavanger – my 172nd concert and the only one without a real concert report. But a report really isn’t necessary, as the concert is/was streamed live on the internet. And I want to just enjoy the concert without having to take notes and think about what is worth mentioning in the report. However, I’ll append the setlist below after the concert of course – at least if someone writes it down. =;-)

There’s no doubt at all that the last concert will be terrific. Just like we know for sure that in the end, we’ll all be crying our eyes out, arm in arm. And that’s how it must be. You should quit while you’re ahead – even if it hurts.

Thank you so much, dear Kaizers, for ten years filled with fabulous music, awesome concerts and lots of experiences, adventures, and friendships that were all due to you guys. Thanks to everyone who was part of it and who I got to know; no matter if just very briefly here and there at a concert or by mail or again and again for years. Thank you for the amazing friendships that came about – they will persist, for sure!

I wrote down my conclusion and thank you in Stavanger Aftenblad already. I’ll try to translate the article as well within the next weeks. But first, it’s time for the last one.

We knew it right from the beginning: “Some day all of this will be over …” Of course I’d hope that this day was still in the far future. But it’s not. So we’ll cry together tonight and say good bye, before we start looking forward to the new projects that are coming. And – even though it might be years away – to a reunion concert.

We’ll meet again, don’t know where, don’t know when – but I know we’ll meet again some sunny day!

Thanks to Greg for the setlist!

1. Aldri Vodka Violeta
2. Siste Dans
3. Bøn Fra Helvete
4. Tusen Dråper Regn
5. En For Orgelet, En For Meg
6. Diamant Til Kull
7. Støv og Sand
8. I ett Med Verden
9. Tokyo Ice Til Clementine
10. Kontroll På Kontinentet
11. Evig Pint
12. KGB
13. Dr. Mowinckel
14. Bris
15. Bak et Hallelujah
16. Salt og Pepper
17. Drøm Videre, Violeta
18. Forloveren
19. Mr. Kaizer (Hans Constanze og Meg)
20. Svarte Katter og Flosshatter
21. Dieter Meyers Inst.
22. Hjerteknuser

23. Begravelsespolka
24. Resistansen
25. 170

26. Maestro
27. Die Polizei
28. Ompa Til Du Dør

13.09.2013 Kaizers Orchestra (DNB-Arena, Stavanger)

Saturday, September 14th, 2013

I guess I’ll just skip the introductory sentence today – “now it was time for the second-to-last concert” just sounds way too depressing …

But we got another amazing show! I heard differing opinions, but I thought the show was even better than the one on Thursday. The setlist was maybe a tiny little bit weaker, but then I thought the atmosphere was better. And I was in a much better mood. =:-)

It seems like the crew is starting to have their “final concert” fun now – the concert actually started with a (play) fight at the side of the stage while the band played Aldri vodka. The next songs were as usual, no surprises there. In the introduction in Forloveren, Janove got the audience to do “czk czk” again, like he did on the last European tour. Followed up with: “That sounds a bit like jazz! Let’s not do too much of it …” And Omen was actually playing on the “organ, keyboard, piano, and toilet paper” today – ’cause he was busy cleaning his helmet during the introduction.

For some reason that I didn’t catch, Killmaster invited us all backstage after the show – or actually into “his backstage”. And he gave us his number so we could call him to get in. =;-)

In Kontroll på kontinentet, we got a crew jury verdict again – but this time, the White Russian went for the “10” right away instead for the “OK”. So consequently, “the guy with the 6.2” was fired …

They get lots of song wished, from fans and friends and family – yes, even aunts and uncles! But the best wish they got was for a demo version, specifically, of an Evig Pint song – yep, we got Salt & Pepper again, yippie! =:-) And in the middle of the song, the Jackal pointed out: “And remember, this is just a demo!”

Kaizers actually discussed on stage whether the concert was better than yesterday’s, and the conclusion was that it was – because Hellraizer had bought some deodorant today …

Next it was time for the song that can only be started by jumping off a barrel. So I had my phone out already to write Hjerte… – but no! Wrong! Whut?! That’s not Hjerteknuser, but De Involverte! Also a song I love, because they played it so much early in their career … awesome. And quite surprising after that misleading introduction. *g*

Then there was some talk about what a nostalgic person the Jackal is – but then, everything that’s happening now will be in the past 10 minutes from now, so that’s nostalgia in the making! And next, only the Jackal and “han med barten” (“he with the beard”) would sing a song for us … well, these two and 5000 others, of course. =;-) Because the song was Kvite russer, and everyone was singing along.

The Jackal wondered if we all knew each other at the concert – well, almost, I would say … it’s the Kaizerfamily after all! And then “han med barten” started playing again. Jackal: “Oh gosh, that sounds sad! The guy with the beard is in a bad mood again …”

After Dieter Meyers, the Jackal thanked the crew and the support bands. And also us in the audience: “Thank you for allowing us to play for you for 15 years. And for becoming more and more! We started with 11 people in the audience at Cementen, and now it’s 5000 here. And we’re still 6 people in the band …”

Then it was actually time for Hjerteknuser – the song that can only start when a crystal glass breaks on the floor. And again, half of the splinters went into the aisle. Well, it might be a nice effect to start the song like that, but it’s definitely a dangerous thing to do …

Lots of activity in the aisle before the encores started (while the audience was singing White Stripes?!). They brought in another barrel (in the aisle), half of the crew was there, and the photographers gathered again – huh?! Turned out that the Jackal sang the whole first part of the song (before the tap dancing part) in the audience! Moving from the stage to the FOH. Okay, of course it was quite hard to see from the floor, but it was a nice little extra – and probably the time of their lives for those people who stood in the center of the action. =:-)

Then during the tap dance part, the Jackal suddenly got out of step – which really surprised me ’cause I hadn’t seen that happen before. A second later I realized though how that came about: parts of the crew were in the aisle, dancing along. *rofl*

Resistansen was as awesome as always; the Jackal maybe dragged it out a bit more than at the last concerts. First, the audience was showing the band how to do it, and then we got the Kaizers vs. floor vs. stands again. But actually slowing down in the end this time, not speeding up.

During Maestro, the Jackal changed the lyrics into “Sving din hammer – Stavanger!” and proclaimed: “Let’s go for the kill, boys!” Guess we were easy prey …

Ompa after Die Polizei worked a bit better for me tonight, because the Jackal had the audience sing all alone until the chorus. That was quite awesome! And after they were done, the Jackal first presented all of the band members to the audience separately before the others had to basically drag him to the front to also get a little bit of attention from the audience. =;-) Which he seemed to like quite good – so then he didn’t want to leave the stage. But Killmaster solved that problem quickly by grabbing him and just carrying him off. *g*

As I wrote in the beginning – I loved the show, and I thought it was even better than the one on Thursday. So let’s see what we’ll get at the final show … =:-/

The setlist:

  • Aldri vodka, Violeta
  • Siste dans
  • Bøn fra helvete
  • Tusen dråper regn
  • En for orgelet, en for meg
  • Forloveren
  • Knekker deg til sist
  • Delikatessen
  • Blitzregn Baby
  • Tokyo Ice til Clementine
  • Kontroll på kontinentet
  • Evig pint
  • KGB
  • Djevelens orkester
  • Salt og pepper
  • Drøm videre, Violeta
  • De involverte
  • Min kvite russer
  • Svarte katter & flosshatter
  • Dieter Meyers Inst.
  • Hjerteknuser
    ————
  • Begravelsespolka
  • Resistansen
  • 170
    ————
  • Maestro
  • Die Polizei
  • Ompa til du dør

12.09.2013 Kaizers Orchestra (DNB-Arena, Stavanger)

Friday, September 13th, 2013

First one of the last set of concerts … I was in a slightly weird mood, so this report might sound a bit strange, sorry for that. The concert was splendid, the setlist was amazing, but the ending with first Die Polizei and then Ompa til du dør just doesn’t work for me. It’s way too emotional, I can’t enjoy Ompa, and so I just felt terrible afterwards – which isn’t necessarily the best way to end a concert. =:-(

Still, this was just awesome. We got Salt & Pepper! A song I’ve longed for for years … and now they finally played it again, while I was there, and we were standing in the front and went crazy. So yes, we did have an awesome time at the concert … and it’ll be really hard for Kaizers to top this one!

There wasn’t really a lot of talking. The first that I noted down was that during the introduction in Forloveren, Helge was introduced as “on the piano, organ, accordion, and peanuts”. *gg* And there was a lot of confetti during the song again – seems we really started a trend in London! =;-)

Then the Jackal announced that today, everything goes. Hits, album songs, B sides – so we got Medisin & Psykiatri, Kavaler, and Tokyo Ice. Yay! Just awesome, and it’s been a while since I heard anything from Våre Demoner live. The atmosphere was just awesome – even though it was obvious that some people in the audience had never heard these songs before. =;-)

After Philemon Arthur & the Dung, thus the 15th (!) song, the Jackal asked if we were satisfied with the opening of the concert. *rofl* Oh yes, definitely! Especially since he then continued to explain that the next song had been requested by a whole lot of people, especially someone who sent in a mail some months ago (no, that wasn’t me, by the way *g*) – and then we got Salt & Pepper. And that’s basically where this report could end, because after that, it couldn’t get any better anymore for me … =:-D

I still liked their remark that the next day, they would not play the same songs again (except for Salt & Pepper again, maybe?? *g*). “No, tomorrow we’ll play all cover songs!” *rofl* And then we got a tiny bit Metallica. =;-)

Another nice surprise in the setlist was Den andre er meg – including Ragnhild on vocals. Svarte katter was impressive as always; Omen played a bit with this soap bubbles again, and after it was over, he thanked the crowd. Or actually, he sat at his organ, not moving, while the Jackal translated what he was saying. *gg*

Then the Jackal got his acoustic guitar and started explaining what usually happens when the singer brings out his acoustic guitar – the intro always sounds the same. But then he wouldn’t know how to continue, because it’s just not his style.

Before Hjerteknuser, the Jackal asked for a crystal glass. Someone in the crew, please? Magnus? Fritz? Stein Cato? Of course he got one, thanked Stein Cato =;-), and took a sip of the wine – “Damn, that’s good!” So then he was explaining a bit about … uh, don’t remember. *g* Always interrupted by a sip and “damn, that’s good!” Until Hellraizer walked up to him and wanted to try the wine as well – and obviously it WAS good, because he didn’t give back the glass until he had finished the wine. =;-) Jackal: “Argh, those guitar players! In my next band, I won’t have guitar players!” And then the talking continued, while Hellraizer and Killmaster started a discussion in the background. The Jackal asked what this was about – “oh, nothing really. We just decided that in our next band, we won’t have a singer!”

Then we got some talk about Bryne vs. Viking, even though they had been told by the management to NOT do that, but well … you gotta take some booohs as well once in a while. =;-)

Finally, we got some really intense encores – started by Omen standing at the microphone stand and breathing into the mike, but not saying anything (and the Jackal wasn’t on stage yet to translate *g*), and then Hellraizer actually breaking the crowbar during 170.

And then, as final conclusion, another beautiful version of Die Polizei followed by Ompa til du dør. As mentioned above, it doesn’t work for me because I cannot enjoy Ompa after Die Polizei, but still – and awesome show.

The full setlist:

  • Aldri vodka, Violeta
  • Siste dans
  • Bøn fra helvete
  • Tusen dråper regn
  • En for orgelet, en for meg
  • Forloveren
  • Medisin & psykiatri
  • Kavaler
  • Enden av november
  • Tokyo Ice til Clementine
  • Kontroll på kontinentet
  • Evig pint
  • Støv og sand
  • KGB
  • Philemon Arthur & the Dung
  • Salt og pepper
  • Drøm videre, Violeta
  • Den andre er meg
  • Svarte katter & flosshatter
  • Dieter Meyers Inst.
  • Hjerteknuser
    ————
  • Begravelsespolka
  • Resistansen
  • 170
    ————
  • Maestro
  • Die Polizei
  • Ompa til du dør

11.09.2013 Kaizers Orchestra (DNB-Arena, Stavanger)

Wednesday, September 11th, 2013

Originally, this concert was planned as a closed event without any tickets on sale. But at some point, someone realized that it wouldn’t make sense to play in front of a basically empty arena, so they did start to sell some tickets. When I arrived just before the support band was supposed to start, there were maybe a few hundred people in the whole arena. When Kaizers started, it was still quite empty – well, they started at 7 pm already! It did fill up a bit throughout the concert, but there were still a lot of empty seats …

Honestly, I didn’t expect anything from the concert. Of course they’d play the festival setlist without huge surprises – and they did. They wouldn’t play two and a half hours – and they didn’t. But almost two, which surprised me. And there would hardly be any talking in between the songs – WRONG.

It seems like the event was for a German company – not quite sure. But Kaizers had been told (or at least they said they had been told … you know to take everything they say with a pinch of salt *g*) that half of the audience was German. So they started speaking English instead of Norwegian when explaining that Susanne Sundfør had unfortunately canceled but Hellraizer was prepared to take her part – after all, he’s got years of experience in show business, can sing, dance, everything! Then the Jackal noticed he was speaking English and explained why. “So, can all you foreigners make some noise? Oh wait, that’s only six or seven of you!” Back to Norwegian then. “But who said we should speak English??” Hellraizer explained – it was just a practical joke …

But then, the Jackal had actually practiced the next song in German for the occasion! So we got “Eins für die Orgel und eins für mich” as next song, and he consistently used the German title. *g*

Before the “blues songs”, the Jackal explained that they are six men in Kaizers that like very different genres and styles and … whatever. I couldn’t really concentrate on what he was talking about, because … well, after he mentioned that they are six people, Omen started counting, using his fingers, and NEVER getting it right. *rofl* And after he was done with that, he got his crowbar and a hammer and went to work on opening his water bottle. Which he kept trying throughout the whole concert – and when he finally made it, he got quite some cheers. =;-) (Though honestly – I really felt like telling one of the others “go help that poor guy!!!” *g*)

At some point in time the Jackal told us that they came prepared and actually had a translator behind the stage, as they were told there were so many Germans in the audience. It was the front man of Rammstein! But for only six people it was not worth to bring him out …

Next up was the only surprise in the setlist – Enden av November. A song before its time, because well … it’s only the middle of September.

Then it was time to admire Hellraizer’s guitar, which he bought in LA. There was quite some talk about what songs you are allowed to play in a music store when you buy a guitar, and that not everybody gets to buy a guitar everywhere! But hey, Hellraizer was actually allowed to buy this guitar in LA! Then Killmaster walked up to the Jackal, wanting to talk about his guitar. “Uh, sure … where did you buy that one? Klepp?” *rofl* They took up the subject later again, discussing how many people have played Metallica songs when buying a guitar in Stavanger, which lead to “… and James Hetfield is here tonight! Thanks for all your inspiration!” *gg* Yes, they were in a quite talkative mood. =;-)

In Kontroll på kontinentet, we got the jury voting again; but before that, it was the war of guitar players with the Jackal trying to keep them separated. *g* Guys, your acting is great, you just might want to add a REASON why you are mad at each other to the act. =;-)

As at the last concerts, we got a competition between Kaizers, floor, and stands in Resistansen again. Except that this time, it was Kaizers, floor, and “Germans”. Because Kaizers decided that the stands were full of Germans that payed double price for the seated tickets. So we competed again who was the loudest – until the Jackal concluded: “Kaizers are the loudest. Thank you, everyone, and good night.” And off they went. =:-O OK, only for a few seconds, then they gave us a second chance. Namely to hold one tone – but no, it didn’t work. Someone was singing wrong! And that is really NOT acceptable. So we were supposed to really make sure that we sing correctly, so we don’t ruin it for everybody. And everyone who’s singing wrong will be kicked out!

It worked fine – “everyone from Norway managed it! Now the Germans on the stands …” And then the Jackal explained that he would direct the tone, starting on one side on the stands and going round to the other side. Which worked just perfectly! And after you invent a “hold the tone” la ola, you play with it, of course, so he was just going back and forth and from one side to the other, and the “Germans” played along. Awesome! Why do I have the feeling that we’ll get to see that again? =;-)

After Svarte katter, the Jackal thanked Omen, very politely, explaining all the great things that Omen gave to the band and how much that helped and how nice that is of him – while Omen was polishing his finger nails. *g*

For some reason, Hellraizer announced Hjerteknuser backwards – but for a change, we did not get any kind of “and when this thing drops the song starts”. =;-) And before the reprise, the Jackal managed to get all the “Germans” on the stands to get up and wave their arms as well.

Then it was time for the encores. Hellraizer had lost his bet – we wanted more than just one song. “No, I didn’t lose! The Germans don’t want more!” But they managed to convince him, so we got both Drøm videre Violeta and Maestro – the latter dedicated to the people that are in the front row every day.

All in all, a concert with a LOT of talking – but that is definitely not a bad thing! The setlist was a typical festival show, the concert was over at 9 pm, but it was a really entertaining show. And I guess I won’t get that close to the stage with such little hassling in the crowd at any of the remaining concerts …

The setlist:

  • Aldri vodka, Violeta
  • Siste dans
  • Tusen dråper regn
  • Din kjole lukter bensin, mor
  • En for orgelet, en for meg
  • Ompa til du dør
  • Støv og sand
  • I ett med verden
  • KGB
  • Enden av november
  • Kontroll på kontinentet
  • Resistansen
  • Svarte katter & flosshatter
  • Hjerteknuser
    ————
  • Begravelsespolka
  • Drøm videre, Violeta
  • Maestro

07.09.2013 Kaizers Orchestra (DNB-Arena, Stavanger)

Monday, September 9th, 2013
07.09.2013 – Photos Kaizers Orchestra (DNB Arena, Stavanger)

Saturday’s show was the first one that had been sold out quite a while in advance – however, when I entered the arena, it didn’t look like it at all. A few fans in the very front, but the rest seemed to still enjoy their vorspiel at home … very weird. And actually not true, but due to the fact that the ticket scanners did not work and there were huge queues outside in the rain. =:-/ But after a while, things were sorted out and the hall started to fill up.

I had brought my camera to this concert, so I was a bit distracted throughout the show. Pictures will be up after I get back home though, so don’t expect them in the next couple of days. =;-)

The night started with Geoff Berner warming up – according to his words he’s been “the spiritual leader for the Kaizers” for the last ten years. Unfortunately, the crowd wasn’t very interested, so the response to his songs was rather quiet. Except when he got everyone to shout “Fuck the police” – much to the chagrin of the police officers that were present, uhem …

Kaizers started out as usual (again, they went on stage at 8:30 already, because they were allowed to play till 11 pm only). Aldri vodka, Siste Dans, Bøn fra helvete – the latter with Tore Renberg watching from the aisle in front of the stage and Hellraizer and the Jackal falling in love with one other. *g* In En for orgelet, the Jackal’s microphone cable got caught in Hellraizer’s guitar, and since Hellraizer couldn’t free himself while playing, he had to wait for the Jackal to help him out.

The first surprise: Mann mot mann! No maracas, but fun nevertheless, with both guitar players up on the barrels. And then the Jackal set the tone of the night: “If I say something and you agree, you say YAY! And you always agree!” After the song, the Jackal asked if it was hot already. Oh yes! But good … “after all, it’s not a Coldplay concert … did you get that? COLDplay?” *g*

In Kontroll på kontinentet, the Jackal asked Killmaster if he was satisfied with his solo. “Or wait, who else would be able to judge that better than our crew?” – so the crew, which had lined up at the back of the stage already, held up signs with scores. *rofl* The White Russian actually had just an “OK” sign – Killmaster: “Han der med hvit dress får sparken!” (“The guy in the white suit is fired!”). But then he quickly turned around his sign to reveal the “10” instead of the “OK” and things were fine. =;-) At least on that side of the stage … Jackal to Hellraizer: “So what are YOU laughing about? It’s your turn next to play a solo!” *gg*

The second big surprise – well, actually not a huge and unexpected surprise because you could see the marimba on stage, but awesome nevertheless – was Maskineri. The Jackal said they hadn’t played it for quite a while because it was just too difficult; but they managed it just fine, and it was great to get to hear it again. They just forgot to do the turn in the middle. =;-)

Then it was time for Hellraizer’s solo – which seemed to surprise him. But the Jackal admitted that, strictly speaking, it’s not REALLY a solo of course, because he isn’t playing on just one string, but on many.

Do we want more? Is it fun to be here? The audience responded with a loud “JJJJAAAAAA” – fortunately. The Jackal admitted that this is the first thing they teach you in band school – never ask if people actually want to be there. What if they say no?? *lol*

When it was time for Hjerteknuser, the Jackal asked for a scarf again – and got it before he even finished asking. “Oh, have you seen us before? Do you know that part? Well, then let’s do something else. Anybody got a glass of champagne?” So he took the glass, got up on the barrel, downed it (“Takk for alle de årene!”) , and – since the band did not start when he was done – threw it high in the air, and the song started when it hit the stage floor.

Time for the encores – and in Resistansen, we got the competition between the audience and the band again. Except that the audience didn’t care much about what the Jackal was directing; they always cheered after the band played, even if the Jackal wanted the band to play twice. =;-) So he explained it thoroughly, though without a microphone (which actually worked! =:-o In a 5500-people hall!): “You are too early!!” So after a few tries (and the obligatory idiot who spoils it for the others *g*), we got it right. =;-)

Before they played 170, Omen had to empty his helmet first – he had used it as vase for the flowers again. And by the way, he had been busy eating peanuts all night. Including throwing them up in the air and trying to catch them. *lol*

When they came back for the second encore and Omen slowly entered the stage, Killmaster came from behind and pushed him in his place by the organ – looks like they were really running out of time. But we did get another awesome version of Die Polizei again, followed by Ompa til du dør and then the goodbyes. During those, Killmaster actually pulled a rabbit out of a hat. =;-)

Another awesome concert, maybe even better than the one before. Can’t wait until next week!

The setlist:

  • Aldri vodka, Violeta
  • Siste dans
  • Bøn fra helvete
  • Tusen dråper regn
  • En for orgelet, en for meg
  • Forloveren
  • Mann mot mann
  • Katastrofen
  • Sigøynerblod
  • Tokyo Ice til Clementine
  • Kontroll på kontinentet
  • Evig pint
  • Støv og sand
  • KGB
  • Maskineri
  • Prosessen
  • Apokalyps meg
  • Drøm videre, Violeta
  • Svarte katter & flosshatter
  • Dieter Meyers Inst.
  • Hjerteknuser
    ————
  • Begravelsespolka
  • Resistansen
  • 170
    ————
  • Maestro
  • Die Polizei
  • Ompa til du dør

06.09.2013 Kaizers Orchestra (DNB-Arena, Stavanger)

Saturday, September 7th, 2013

Next day, next concert – and this one was the first REAL Siste Dans concert in Stavanger! I had planned to be there a bit earlier this time to get a chance to really see all the action that was going on in the foyer, and also the photo exhibition upstairs, but as it started pouring (and no, I don’t mean “raining”, that would be such an understatement!) just before the doors opened and didn’t stop for about an hour, we didn’t make our way out until around 7 pm after all. So we missed Geoff Berner playing in the foyer, and I still didn’t get to try the “Siste Dans” beer. =;-)

However, I got to admire the arena – the stage side of it was all dressed in red velvet, with three big screens and two round, mirror-like, smaller screens. The screens show the usual movie clips as well as live footage from the cameras – pretty awesome! Sometimes funny though, like when both screens show Killmaster from different angles, apparently having a conversation with himself. *lol* Really awesome also the part in Svarte katter, when Omen’s shadow is right in the center screen. =:-)

The ceiling of the hall is covered with a net with small lights, and there are some huge chandeliers hanging down. And – very important, though hard to notice if you don’t know – all the huge advertising signs (it’s an ice hockey arena, after all!) are covered up with gray cloth.

I’m not 100% sure what happened before the concert, but something didn’t work out as planned – my guess is that Kaizers learned about an hour before the show that the curfew was at 11, not at midnight, as they had planned. So there was quite some stress and rushing, and Kaizers went on stage half an hour earlier than planned. And no, not as usual with the Russian Dance! Instead, the Jackal grabbed the megaphone, started singing Resistansen (leading the audience in singing along, of course), and came to the stage through the audience, from the back of the arena. Wow! Quite a surprise, and an awesome start to the show!

Then they continued as “usual”, without much talk in between the songs (they had little time, after all …), but with huge energy. I wasn’t as lucky picking my spot in the audience this time as I was on the first day; right after the start, we were surrounded by a group of drunk kids. *argh* Well, you gotta love the Norwegian audiences … *uhem* So for the first few songs, I had a hard time enjoying the show, but fortunately that changed quickly.

They did NOT play Din kjole lukter bensin mor – a sign that yes, we’d get the Siste Dans setlist. =;-) And we did! Suddenly, they dug out Hevnervalsen again – a song that they’ve played very very often in Europe, but it seemed like I hadn’t heard it forever, and it was so awesome to get to hear it again! The audience went crazy, and the Jackal went crowdsurfing for the first time in Stavanger. =:-) Seems like the aisle between stage and audience is a bit too wide though, so he couldn’t stagedive, but well; down in the aisle and up again is fine as well.

Next up was Container – also a song they haven’t played in a while. I was waiting for the spot where the Jackal lifts up his shirt and the audience screams – but he forgot about it!! Or so I thought. Actually, he only does it the second time, and of course he did it then. *g*

De grind concluded the series of old classics, and the Jackal proclaimed that the atmosphere was just terrific. “But well, that’s just what I expected! It’s Friday, it’s Stavanger, and it’s a Kaizers show!” But if we liked the opening of the show, we would be surprised about the middle part now – which is the hardest! – because that would be even better.

Hellraizer agreed, but he also noted that both Kaizers and the audience could give even more and had yet another gear. But well, you have to slowly raise the bar throughout the concert, right?

Before they played Sigøynerblod, the guitar players got up on each their barrel – or actually, the Jackal had to help Hellraizer up on his. “He’s an old man … actually, he turns 40 TODAY!” So he got his birthday song, of course. (Even though that one actually went out to the Brit in the front – happy birthday!! *g*)

When introducing Bak et halleluja, the Jackal pointed out that that song works especially well abroad – mostly because the major part of it consists of “na na na”. *g* And we got to sing that part of course – with the Jackal up on the barrel, directing us like in old times, one side softer, one side louder, get it down, get it up, stop, start again …. hach!! =:-D

Had we been waiting for this evening as long as Kaizers had? For half a year, or even a year? No way! “Eg har lengta lenger etter deg enn du har lengta etter meg”, the Jackal stated. “I have longed for you much longer than you have longed for me.” So true. =:-)

During Dieter Meyers Inst., when we were singing the “legg meg IIIIIINN” part, the Jackal had to stop us. “Wait, no, you misunderstood. You are NOT supposed to sing nicely. You’re supposed to SCREAM!” So we did. *g* And throughout the concert we were taught that if we agree with what the Jackal says, we should not say “Ja”. But instead we should scream “YAY!”

We also got some of the same things again that we got yesterday. Of course, the Jackal asked for a scarf from the audience again to start Hjerteknuser. Except that this time, people just threw scarfs at him until he screamed “no, stop, enough!” *lol* Then we had to repeat after him again (think I forgot to mention that yesterday) – “Thank you Ida for the scarf! Janove will throw it in the air now, and when it turns in the air and falls down again, the song will start. Are you looking forward, Ida?” But then he added: “Don’t worry, Ida. You don’t need to be afraid of them. They are not dangerous – just a bit crazy …”

Also, we got the competition in Resistansen again – Kaizers vs. the stands vs. the floor. Just awesome! The Jackal concluded that even the people that were sitting are definitely into the concert. “Or wait, you are actually standing! OK, you may stand as well!”

And in Maestro, we also got the “How much do you like me now” part again. And honestly – as much as I’m sick of that song and don’t care for it at concerts – it was great fun this time, because of the incredible energy on stage …

In general, the encores were just awesome … before Maestro, Omen had to chase the crew off stage, then Thunder came and told Omen to get back at his organ. *g* And after Maestro, they played Die Polizei – which was just beautiful. Blue lighting, thousands of stars from the mirror balls, and hundreds of people with lighters and mobiles in the air … incredibly gorgeous. And melancholic. So I see why they don’t want to end on this note, but concluded with Ompa til du dør. It makes perfect sence, but it didn’t really work for me. Klump i halsen …

Still, a perfect concert… =:-) After the lights went on, a brass band suddenly started playing up in the stands. *lol* Well, nobody really cared for it, but I thought it was a nice surprise. *g*

The full setlist:

  • Aldri vodka, Violeta
  • Siste dans
  • Bøn fra helvete
  • Tusen dråper regn
  • En for orgelet, en for meg
  • Forloveren
  • Hevnervals
  • Container
  • Di grind
  • Tokyo Ice til Clementine
  • Kontroll på kontinentet
  • Evig pint
  • Støv og sand
  • KGB
  • Sigøynerblod
  • Bak et halleluja
  • Prosessen
  • Drøm videre, Violeta
  • Svarte katter & flosshatter
  • Dieter Meyers Inst.
  • Hjerteknuser
    ————
  • Begravelsespolka
  • Resistansen
  • 170
    ————
  • Maestro
  • Die Polizei
  • Ompa til du dør