'82

Last night I had a real treat. At a vernissage I attended last weekend I was introduced to Max, who it turns out makes electro music. A couple of nights ago i recieved a rather exciting text message from him that said:

ON SUNDAY: Brand new show, brand new tracks: Max Krefeld & guests live @ Club Mama, Alte Schoenhauser Str.39, 10pm. LETS DANCE."

So the gig was last night in Mama's, a sort of venue. Only sort of because the place is actually an apartment that has been fixed up as a performance space. Mattresses are held in place against the window in an attempt at soundproofing, a pole-dancing pole marks the centre of the room, and there are several massive old fashioned televisions set up with Pac-Man, Super Mario and Sonic nintendo games (that you can actually play!). The makeshift bar --serving punch & beer -- the seating area and dj spot take up most corners of the room, and the art fixed to the walls lends the chipped plaster a little dignity. Fearing that the party would be busted up early on and move somewhere else, we arrived on time, the gig was supposed to start at 10pm, so we got to see most of this being put into place. Apparently Mama's was moved to a different venue before and has only returned to take place at the apartment again since about a month ago. The turnout was still pretty good, the room was packed.

The performers arrived late, around midnight, and finally began their set, to everybody's delight. Max makes catchy electro music and last night he had two different vocalists --Mario and Isaac -- singing (live) on his tracks. Mario opened up with his song, "'82" which he wrote himself, and which he told me is a lovesong about travelling back in time. I liked it immediately. Isaac was up next. I remember a line from one of the songs he sang on, "I am so afraid of you / I don't know what to do" repeated over and over. The way he sang, and the lyrics of his songs seemed dark and sinister, in contrast to the blips and beeps and melodic sound of Max's electro beats. Unfortunately only four songs into the set the police arrived, there must have been 15 of them. Only about 40 of us. Really, it was a private party, alot of the people there were friends of the boys doing the show. We were turfed out of Mama's into the freezing cold where the police wouldn't even let us huddle together on the pavement outside the building to wait for everyone else to make it out, and i think they threatened us with some fairly serious charge though my German does not yet extend to angry-german-policeman-vernacular. I wish i had some photographs, alas no. Maybe next time.

Still waiting for the Strokes to announce the date & venue of their "secret" Berlin gig. How secret is it exactly i wonder? It's definitely sometime after December 9th, which is the date in Sweden...and it better be before the 15th, the day i fly home for Christmas.