Stadtpark, Hamburg, Germany
12th to 13th July 2013
Nordstern Festival 2013 Day 2: Aesthetic Perfection, NamNamBulu, Zeromancer, De/Vision, Diary of Dreams, Camouflage
The second festival day started rather relaxed with sleeping long and having an extended breakfast. Since the doors opened at 14:00, there was enough time to prepare for a hot day. When we arrived at the open air stage at Stadtpark, the sun was already high and not a single cloud was visible. The stage and the area were really appealing and cosy. Opposite the stage behind a ring of hedges, there were several stand with food, beverages and merchandise, enough to spend the time in-between the bands.
At 15:00, the first band of the day, AESTHETIC PERFECTION, entered the stage. The band is a very good choice for any club, on the big stage of the Stadtpark, they were a little lost. But still, Daniel Graves, Tim van Horn and Elliott Berlin set the audience on fire. But there was something missing at the beginning… melody and rhythm were there, but the vocals were too low. But as this problem was solved and Daniel was running across the stage like a mad Roadrunner, the party got started. His white face with the black hand print on it was grimacing like a madman and increased the listening pleasure. 
The day started electronically, and in the same way it went on with the next band, NAMNAMBULU. The duo was gone for several years but since the beginning of the year, Henrik Iversen and Vasi Vallis are back. The band is playing concerts again and works also on new material. In Hamburg, they presented – besides several well-known old tracks (sounding nowadays just like Vasi’s other project FROZEN PLASMA) – two new songs. First one of them was called ‘Damals’ and I must say that my face must have lost shape. It reminded me a lot of Schlager music in the means of Dieter Bohlen, without heart and mind. The melody was bubbling in a trivial way so you just wanted to skip the track. Second new song was called ‘Sorry’ and was closer to the NAMNAMBULU style and was well received by the audience.
short before tea time, finally “real” instruments were built up at stage. A white feather with the band name ZEROMANCER on the big backdrop was announcing the following band. Norwegian Synth Rockers were already entering the stage two weeks ago at Blackfield festival and were surely one of the highlights at Nordstern. The Blackfield show already was great, but with their own equipment, the band even topped it in Hamburg. Since 1999, Alex Møklebust, Kim Ljung, Noralf Ronthi, Dan Heide (since 2003) and Lorry Kristiansen (since 2003) are rocking the stages. With the last album ‘Bye Bye Borderline’ today they nearly fit into the Metal genre. ZEROMANCER are just made for open air shows or the big festival stages. Their show was thrilling and rousing from beginning to the end. Setlist: 1. Sinners International / 2. Doppelgänger / 3. Neo Geisha / 4. Auf Wiedersehen Boy / 5. Hate Alphabet / 6. Tortured Artist / 7. Photographic (Depeche Mode Cover) / 8. Clone your Lover / 9. Dr Online / 10. Ammonite
The instruments were put away again, just a keyboard and a drum set remained on stage. DE/VISION have enriched their electronic set by drums again, making good stuff even better when it comes to the live feeling of the songs. Since their album ‘Popgefahr’, being released 2010 on the own label, Steffen Keth and Thomas Adam have gained lots of power and also gathered new fans. With the live drums, the songs even got a good portion of more power. The audience danced and loudly sang along while Steffen was moving across the stage in his unmistakable dancing style. Setlist: 1. Binary soldier / 2. mAndroids / 3. I regret / 4. What’s love all about / 5. Time to be alive / 6. Try to forget / 7. Rage / 8. Your hands on my skin / 9. Brothers In Arms (new Single) / 10. Flavour of the week
The sun was sinking deeper and just as it was directly shining onto stage, the four guys of DIARY OF DREAMS were appearing. Yes, it was only four people. You might be surprised! Adrian Hates, GaunA, Dejan and Flex had to do without Taste on keys. There were some technical issues during sound check, but the finally seemed to be solved when the goose bump causing ‘Ego:X’ intro , spoken by Martin Kessler, finally allayed the audience’s anticipation. Adrian entered the stage with cool sun glases and in his stylish suit he would have perfectly fitted into the Matrix universe. Just as the first chords of ‘The Wedding’ were sounding through the PA, GaunA was storming from stage, leaving the rest of the band alone – who in the meantime did a great job. As we learned later, a string of his guitar was broken and so he had to attach a new one. Worst case scenario for any guitarist, and it happens exactly then when you have no spare guitar with you. The rest of the show went smoothly and the audience really enjoyed the show. Setlist: 1. Intro / 2. The Wedding / 3. Chemicals / 4. Butterlfy:Dance! / 5. Lebenslang / 6. MeinEid / 7. MenschFeind / 8. King of Nowhere / 9. Undividable / 10. The Curse / 11. Kindrom
With a headliner, already my parents had listened to, the evening ended. Most people probably will link CAMOUFLAGE with ‘The Great Commandment’ or ‘Love is a Shield’. 1987, the band already released the first song, making Marcus Meyn & co immortal and being covered numerous times. Until 1997, seven album and lots of singles were released. Then it became calmer around the band, the obligatory best of album followed, and finally 2003 saw the release of ‘Sensor’. The so far last album, a re-release of ‘Spice Crackers’, was out in 2009, but the band did not reach old fame anymore. In a shiny white suit and in best mood, Marcus and his band mates were entering the stage. Mostly the aged audience was celebrating the show with old favourites, but there were also younger people being caught by the catchy Synth Pop tunes. And even though some people were already leaving the area, the rest celebrated until the encore. Setlist: 1. We Are Lovers / 2. Dreaming / 3. Perfect / 4. I'll Follow Behind / 5. That Smiling Face / 6. You Turn / 7. Neighbours / 8. I Can't Feel You / 9. Misery / 10. Suspicious Love / 11. Me and You / 12. Love Is a Shield / 13. Shine / 14. The Great Commandment / Encore: 15. One Fine Day
And so, the Nordstern festival 2013 found its end at an early time. It had to be silent in the park at 22:00 so the residents had no reason to argue. To sum the whole festival up: the far biggest party with the best mood was celebrated on Friday evening during the NEUROTICFISH show and on Saturday with ZEROMANCER. On both days, the headliners were left standing. Two hot days with great music, friendly people and musical variety were over. For me and lots of other people one thing was sure: we would come back to Hamburg for a 2014 edition of Nordstern festival!
All pictures by Daniela Vorndran (http://www.vorndranphotography.com / http://www.black-cat-net.de/ / http://www.facebook.com/blackcatnet)
Written by Ben Blaschke & Daniela Vorndran (Translation)
Comments powered by CComment