Reflections of Darkness - Music Magazine - Dirk Darmstaedter

Details: Written by: Katrin Renner; Published: 02 April 2009

Das Bett, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
29th March 2009
Dirk Darmstaedter

If you were a teenager in the 1980s, you should know DIRK DARMSTAEDTER as the front man and lead singer of the German formation THE JEREMY DAYS. At the end of that decade, the five guys from Hamburg hit the charts with singles such as `Brand New Toy´, `Are you inventive´ and `Rome wasn’t built in a Day´. The passionate musician and talented songwriter DIRK DARMSTAEDTER, who was born in 1965 and grew up in the USA, released his first solo recording `Me and Cassity´ in 1997. In 2002, he founded the label TAPETE RECORDS he also published his upcoming albums at. Since 6th March 2009, his recent long-player `Life is no Movie´ has been available. At the moment, he is on tour through Germany and will introduce his latest piece of work at twelve German clubs. http://www.dirkdarmstaedter.com/

The Frankfurt club “Das Bett” was chosen as the location for the first gig of the `Life is no Movie´-tour that took place last Sunday. I had never been in this venue before and so I hadn’t any notion of it. When I arrived at 8 pm in the district Sachsenhausen, it wasn’t that easy to find the small club. Finally, I got a glimpse of an unimposing house sheltering the tiny hall. When I went inside, I found the smallest club I have ever seen. There was a room that was as big (or small) as my living room, a bar, some chairs placed in a few rows and orange draperies on the ceiling. Yes, the club’s name was well-chosen! I took a seat at the second row and appraised the tiny stage in front of me that was decorated by two acoustic guitars, a ukulele and some amps. Though the ambiance was a bit unusual, I felt comfortable and the expression “Music at your fingertips” came to my mind. The audience consisted of about 40 persons, so the room was filled up.

Music & Performance
To forestall my impressions: I should experience one of the most touching and personal concerts I have ever attended. At 9 pm, DIRK DARMSTAEDTER crossed the room followed by a young woman he introduced as his special guest Miriam. After a warm welcome, he started the concert by intonating the first songs `We beat the Drum´ and `Learn to love what’s killing me´. Accompanying himself by playing the acoustic guitar, he was tapping on the stomp box and playing the harmonica at the same time. Thus, he appeared a bit like a street musician you can meet at the pedestrian area. Mostly, he sang with his eyes closed. Using his expressive and extraordinary voice, he easily built up a direct line to his listeners. In my opinion, it was a kind of meditation listening to the thoughtful lyrics that dealt with interpersonal relationships and conflicts, memories, loss and life in general. Therefore, the stuff he presented was everything but superficial.

The 44-years-old Hamburger admitted to be excited due to the fact that he didn’t know how the new album would work live on stage. Supported by the talented singer Miriam, he performed `Everything Beautiful´, a song, he was able to conquer his attentive audience with again. Though DIRK DARMSTAEDTER often mentioned that he was quite anxious and a little afraid of playing the new stuff, he enthused everybody. When he started to sing `All Summer long´ (No, it wasn’t the Kid Rock song.), a relaxed and melancholic piece about friendship, he gained the gathering’s full attention. Besides the fantastic music, DARMSTAEDTER impressed with some stories concerning the songs. For example, he wrote the stunning ballad `I won’t give up on you´ for his son who needed some consolation after he had lost a tennis match. Furthermore, the singer revealed how to identify Germans at a concert: Just take a look at their clapping.

The catchy up-tempo song `Number One Single´ offered the chance to sing along. When DIRK DARMSTAEDTER intonated `Julie thru the Blinds´, he asked for singing the line „Oh Baby“ and was very satisfied with the guests´ efforts. Again and again, he found thankful and commendatory words for the Frankfurt audience. Of course, a JEREMY DAYS-song shouldn’t be missed: `Rome wasn´t built in a Day´ was one of the encore songs and a nice surprise to me. After almost two concert hours, the extremely likeable singer without airs and graces took the time to have a chat with his listeners. As I was very impressed by the music and his pleasant personality, I bought a sample of `Life is no Movie´ and left the club in a good temper.
It was a special experience beyond the mainstream of concerts I have been at. Nevertheless, it’s absolutely recommendable.

Setlist
01. We beat the Drum
02. Learn to Love what’s killing me
03. Everything beautiful
04. All Summer long
05. Still here now
06. Birds, Bugs and Animals
07. Number One Single
08. Going over Hannover
09. Suitcase Heart
10. My Girl in Paris
11. 1989, Forever
12. I won’t give up on you
13. We are Waves
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14. The Wrong Boy
15. Under the Gun
16. Julie thru the Blinds
17. Appeltown, America
18. In and Out
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19. Won’t die for you
20. Rome wasn’t built in a Day

Rating
Music: 10
Performance: 10
Sound: 9
Light: 2
Total: 8.7 / 10