Batschkapp, Frankfurt am Main, Germany24th February 2009
Polarkreis 18
Certainly, POLARKREIS 18 is very popular these days. At the moment, the Dresden sestet is on “The Colour of Snow”-tour through Germany, and two weeks ago, the guys finished second the Bundesvision Songcontest. There is no day you can’t listen to their #1 hit ‘Allein Allein’ on the radio. The way from the rehearsal room to the German charts was not that long for the band members who started their career in 1997. It is to be assumed that no one of the involved musicians would have thought of that success. By entering some newcomer contests, the band attracted their today’s management’s interest that led to the signing of their first record contract in 2006. The guys took a lot of credit by releasing their debut album ‘Polarkreis 18’ (2007) that was followed by an extended tour. However, the breakthrough was reached by releasing the second long-player ‘The Colour of Snow’ and the hit-single ‘Allein Allein’ in 2008. http://www.polarkreis18.de/
It was carnival in Frankfurt, when POLARKREIS 18 came to the Batschkapp. The club was surrounded by costumed and hopelessly drunk people. According to the statement of a security member, there would be a festive mood at the venue, too, as the concert was completely sold out. The staff cleared some space by relocating the merchandise stand outside the club. Nevertheless, the hall was packed, as well as the stage: very stylish-looking equipment consisting of white instruments indicated the upcoming show.
Music & Performance
Just in time the concert started around 9 pm. Accompanied by a spherical intro and artificial wafts of mist, the varied audience started to scream when POLARKREIS 18 appeared on stage. The musicians were dressed in white hooded jumpsuits that reminded me a bit of space suits. The opener was the recent single ‘The Colour of Snow’ and a good choice, as the crowd was able to sing along and to dance (as far as it was possible). My first impressions: The band was in a good temper and the sound was pretty clear. The band’s appearance and the performance matched perfectly. The voice of lead singer Felix Räuber sounded exactly the same as on the albums, though he mentioned that he had suffered from a cold.
Regarding the setlist it was obvious that many people associated POLARKREIS 18 with the single ‘Allein Allein’, as they seemed to be pleased primarily by the pieces taken from the recent album. Anyhow, the older songs, for example ‘Somedays Sundays’, ‘Crystal Lake’, ‘Comes Around’ or ‘Dreamdancer’, were well received, even though less frenetically. The pompous soundscape was exceptional due to the complex structures which made it difficult to pigeonhole the band’s style. Is it Synth-Pop? Yes, it is. Is it Electronic? Yes, it is. What about Pop? Yes, of course. And is it Electro-Rock? Yes, in parts. In my opinion, the sound was sometimes a kind of balancing act between pretentious kitsch and a sophisticated stroke of genius. For example, the elegiac ballad ‘River loves the Ocean’ was presented in a very emotive, playful way that left a mark of being a bit overproduced. I enjoyed the up-tempo anthems ‘Crystal Lake’ and ‘Dreamdancer’, as they were definitely danceable and catchy.
Felix Räuber’s voice is a matter of taste. His clear falsetto conjured up images of Jimmy Somerville, Morten Harket (A-HA) and - partly - Chris Martin (COLDPLAY). In the length of time, I assessed it as a bit enervating. Nevertheless, the singer did a great job concerning his voice’s quality and the performance: Always smiling and with robot-like movements, he animated the crowd to sing along. His band mates were not only extras in the background, as they played their instruments with a lot of energy and passion. I would like to highlight the fantastic light show, I have never seen this dark venue bathed in such a bright and colourful light.
The eagerly awaited ‘Allein Allein’ made the audience going wild. Certainly, it was a nice moment for the band to watch a packed hall shouting the chorus. It was a bit surprising to me that so many people left the venue after that, because the concert was not over. They missed the two encores, the well-done TALK TALK cover ‘Such a Shame’ and ‘Look’. To sum up, I got the impression of a talented band with a knack for complex melodies that are catchy and opulent at the same time. All in all, a lot of drama and an affinity for the a bit overproduced soundscape could not decrease my positive impression.
Setlist
01. Intro
02. The Colour of Snow
03. 130/07
04. Crystal Lake
05. Tourist
06. Somedays Sundays
07. Prisoner
08. Comes around
09. River loves the Ocean
10. Dreamdancer
11. Name on my ID
12. Allein Allein
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13. Such a Shame
14. Look
Rating
Music: 7
Performance: 9
Sound: 8
Light: 9
Total: 8.1 / 10
All pictures by Katrin Renner (http://www.creavision-webdesign.de)
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