We were there at the first of the two gigs in Berlin. Click here for the report and photos.
The Doctors are currently playing a club tour through Germany and will be stopping at Berlin’s Columbiahalle on September 13th and 14th. ME author and photographer Désirée Pezzetta was there for you on the first evening.
On August 20th, Die Ärzte surprisingly announced a club tour called “Autumn of Life”. The pre-sale started a day later and was over as quickly as it had started, as all the tickets were gone after just a few minutes. Long faces among the fans who left empty-handed, unbridled joy among those who were able to get a ticket for one of the concerts. According to the best band in the world, you can look forward to a show that is “better than on the record” and “this time without dogs and horses”.
After the first concerts, including in Potsdam and Offenbach, the praise for the live performances and set list was overwhelming. “They’re really up for it!” is what people whisper to each other on social media. On the first evening of the double party in the capital, the Berlin audience is excited to see what the trio will come up with this time.
Start with obstacles
The curtain falls sharply at 8 p.m. – or does it? The heavy piece of material doesn’t want to reveal the stars and, in keeping with the motto “attract attention by not falling”, it has to be helped manually with a courageous tug. But then the one true God appears – BelaFarinRod. Rodrigo González, as always, in a fine thread, Farin Urlaub casual with black jeans and an equally colorful shirt and Bela B in a black and white suit with sewn-on messages. At the beginning, each of the musicians is illuminated from above by just one office lamp, before the stage light changes and the light man sets off a real firework display – always in keeping with the mood.
As usual, the three chat with the guests in the Columbiahalle close to the audience, have fun with their fans’ whims and incorporate them directly into their performance. Of course, direct comparisons with the audience from the neighboring city of Potsdam cannot be missed, which are commented on with loud boos from those present. In addition to some squabbles within the band, the crowd is also not spared the musicians’ arbitrariness. Farin Urlaub has a lot of fun when he tells the Columbiahalle to chant barely imitable tonal sequences and start Laola waves on “Office!”.
Anecdotes like the story behind the Tinder song “Anastasia” aren’t skimped on either. Whether truth or fiction – it doesn’t matter, because you could listen to these gentlemen for hours. You have to, because experience shows that a Die Ärzte concert lasts at least three hours.
Three hours of live fireworks
So a lot of time for a lot of songs! And the setlist has it all. In addition to live classics like “Unrockbar” and “Is that Still Punk Rock,” fans today also get to hear rarities like “Aehrung Bielefeld,” “El Cattivo” and “Trick 17 ms.” The 90s-heavy live rocket takes off and flies towards the ceiling at supersonic speed, which is now dripping heavily on the sweating crowd due to the tropical temperatures. But that’s just a drop on the hot audience, who never tire of exhausting themselves in endless mosh pits. To make the celebration perfect, the front row also has confetti, which they happily throw into the air while listening to the 2000 hit “Herrliche Jahr”.
Additions from bright to cloudy
A bit of calm returns during the first encore. Farin Urlaub performs “Life After Death” alone and acoustically and while some people in the audience have to shed a tear, Urlaub struggles with the smell of the sparklers that were lit by fans. After successfully extinguishing the fire, Farin can finish the profound song in the light of countless cell phone flashlights.
In the second block of encores, Bela B. first enters the stage alone, but with a colorful sequin hat, a silver cup and a guitar that was actually built for Michael Schenker. He briefly goes over his pop culture educational mission when he wants to explain the spheres of activity of the Schenker brothers to the rather uninterested audience. Quickly back to the core competence of “music” with the title “The Count”, audience favorite “Himmelblau” and “Hurrah”.
The fact that after around 1000 shows the band still mocks their instrumental and vocal inadequacies makes them fundamentally likeable, but the band from Berlin (ouch Berlin!) certainly doesn’t have to hide. But even the most entertaining evening comes to an end at some point and the group ends the concert brilliantly with what is probably their most important song “Scream for Love” from the 90s album “The Beast in Human Shape”.
Not boring at all
Even after more than 30 years, the doctors are not at all boring and are still very busy. They owe their exemplary career not only to their feel for big hits, but also to their impeccable attitude and mischievous humor. Thanks to the best band in the world for a blissful evening in a family atmosphere.