Klaus Joann Grobe
– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER –
I’ve never looked at someone and thought ‘definite Klaus Johann Grobe’ fan but tonight I’m surrounded by people eulogising about their supposedly intense live show.
A band from Switzerland with a German name, nothing really makes sense about this band as Kraftwerk sounds merge with disco and straight out indie pop to make a unique sound.
Within minutes of the band coming on stage the floor feels like a pothole filled road, bumping with every note. The singing drummer, Anderson Paak style, shouts what sounds like ‘dance dance dance’ in a thumping climax and we reciprocate his every word.
Duties then switch over to the keyboardist, who is just as effective when he sings a chorus more defined than the previous track infecting us all with some undiagnosable fever.
A more discursive turn comes with the next song, but it is just as enjoyable and the reckless abandon of tonight becomes clear when beer floods the floor and people simply slide and cavort like in the times talcom powder covered Manchester’s wooden floors.
Then the baselines take over, with one song beginning with an Arctic Monkeysesque throbber as Klaus Johann Grobe dip into their indie reference book before a bombastic baseline overtakes all inside during the next song.
As the performance comes to a euphoric end, the only comparison left is Hot Chip as the enjoyment felt at one of their shows is no less than this. That’s some complement and two hours passes before I even consider going home. Let this night never end.
Hi all, my name is Paddy and I have a love for everything from African music to indie to house (basically anything other than heavy metal). Gigging and listening to albums are genuinely the things I most value and love doing.
