Tacheles, Berlin, Germany25th November 2008
Christian Death
If St. Peter would stand at the gates of Gothic Rock Heaven as bouncer you could be sure the man with the white beard and the mild smile would let CHRISTIAN DEATH pass. Contrary to the subtly and reduced aesthetic of British Gothic Bands like JOY DIVISION and BAUHAUS, CHRISTIAN DEATH could never could conceal their American roots and stage themselves with a sure feeling for the great gesture.
In this formation they recorded ‘Catastrophe Ballet’ which was showing the bend in the best time of their career. The rocking energy of early days has been reduced; instead Gitane Demones vocals and horror film synth riffs added new facets to the songs. Rozz Williams shined on the vocals for the last time, before he left the band in 1985 to focus on his projects PREMSTURE EJAVULATION and HELTIR. With ‘The Drowning’, ‘As Evening Falls’ and ‘This Glass House’ they bestowed the Gothic Scene some timeless classics. The anti-religious and political statements decreased with Valor as songwriter starting in 1986 and musically the band walked on harder paths again. Meanwhile the line-up changed once more. Gitane left the band in 1989 to fully dedicate herself to her successful career as Jazz singer.
Beginning of the 90s, the band mostly lived on their reputation as Gothic pioneers while the musical outputs left a lot to be desired and Valor tried to provoke with cover artwork like the one of ‘Sex, Drugs & Jesus Christ’ showing a Jesus injecting himself Heroine. Rozz Williams resurrected CHRISTIAN DEATH in the mid 90s and Valor toured under the same name, leading to countless releases of both artists and even the die hard fans lost track some day. Meanwhile Valor even signed a contract with Century Media and released ‘Amen’ in 1995. It seemed like both still wanted to live on the myth for some time. This changed when the bipolar Rozz Williams committed suicide and the legacy of CHRISTIAN DEATH was being administrated by Valor alone.
On ‘Pornographic Massacre’ both the guitars and the lyrics were equally spot-on and CHRISTIAN DEATH surprised with fresh Punk Rock. But nothing had changed on the clear and provoking gesture in the new millennium at all. ‘Born against Anti Christian’ made the start in 2001 with the Ex-CRADLE OF FILTH and BLOOD DIVINE drummer Was Sarginson and also a couple of other CRADLE OF FILTH members had a guest appearance there.
Besides Valor, singer/bassist Maitri was still in the band and with the help of various guest musicians, they recorded ‘American Inquisition’ for the French label Season of Mist’ in 2007 and in 2008 they return to Germany.
Additional Concert Info
Doors Open: 8:00 PM
Starts: 9:00 PM
Ticket Fee: 13 EUR + Charges (Presale)
Ticket Hotline: +49(0)30-78099810
Tickets are also available online at http://www.trinityconncerts.de/
Source: Press Release
Comments powered by CComment