And One - Blutengel - Mono Inc. - The Crüxshadows - Stahlzeit - Aesthetic Perfection - Solar Fake - Lord Of The Lost

Project Pitchfork - Combichrist - Conjure - 18 Summers - Coppelius - The Other - Whispers In The Shadow - Schöngeist

Eklipse

Again we were pleased with nice summer weather for the second festival day, which had a lot to offer. Today, the line-up was more electro laden and headliners AND ONE, COMBICHRIST or PROJECT PITCHFORK made people move their feet.

[Kira] :: LORD OF THE LOST :: were the opening act of the day two. Chris Harm, the vocalist of the band, has surely become the new sex-symbol of the dark scene. But isn’t it kind of predictable for the good looking fit young man, the vocalist of the band, who got used to act without shirt? Of course there are hundreds of girls crying and suffering from love to him. In his turn Chris Harms, who is also considered as one of the best vocalists, doesn’t disappoint. He knows perfectly what he is expected to do and how he is expected to act. He works with public pretty good, he sings very well, and he looks damn good. And what else proof of the success of the band is needed, when even around 12:00 there are already lots and lots of people came to the show. Harms also didn’t lose the chance to promote the new album and tour of the band. And as the singer left the stage girls cried. Probably for somebody it was the main act of the festival.
Setlist: Intro, Live Today, Black Lolita, Dry The Rain, Prison, Sex On Legs, This Is The Life (Amy Macdonald cover), Blood For Blood, Break Your Heart

[Kira] Comparing to the previous day, Sunday in Staatenhaus started much calmer - with Munich-based rock band :: SCHÖNGEIST ::. “Schöngeist” means “Beautiful Spirit” and it describes the music of the band fair enough. The violin alone proves it pretty good. But in spite of three guitars, drums, an adorable violin and a nice vocalist there was lack of energy. Guitars were noisy, drums were loud and the vocalist tried his best. But they hardly managed it to make public move itself more than just shaking heads and take pictures. Well, not band’s fault; yesterday was the hard day! However the show itself was very nice, a bit slow and assumed, but a very good start for the second day of this musical day-long-marathon.

[Janine] Sven Friedrich’s project :: SOLAR FAKE :: is one of these acts I looked much forward that weekend. And as I was caught up in traffic hold up on my way to the AMPHI FESTIVAL area, I was afraid of missing it. But I got there just in the moment when Sven sang my absolutely favorite song called Here I Stand. The gig was good and it was incredibly full this “morning” at the Tanzbrunnen in cologne.
Setlist: Under The Skies, No Apologies, Here I Stand, Parasites, More Than This, Reset To Default (New Song), Where Are You, Rising Doubt

[Kira] The show of :: WHISPERS IN THE SHADOW :: was absolutely gloomy and dark just as the show of a gothic-rock band should be. The light on the stage is mostly red and the musicians look like black silhouettes. The musicians surely didn’t do all the things on purpose, but they managed it, that the atmosphere fits maximal. Even if it was already the second show for today in Staatenhaus, there were not many people. But it should be mentioned that at the same time at the main stage Solar Fake was acting, and since Sven is one of the sex-symbols of dark music, no wonder if all the girls were outside and absolutely charmed by him. Still WHISPERS IN THE SHADOW did great job, the sound was quite good and public enjoyed the band.
Setlist: The Rites Of Passage, The Arrival, The Lost Souls, Back To The Wound, Train Damned Nation, Lightbringer, Babylon Rising Part I, Babylon Rising Part 2

[Janine] With :: AESTHETIC PERFECTION :: the AMPHI FESTIVAL offered definitely one of the highlights this year and I’m quite sure there are many others who would agree. The performance was incredibly awesome, the outfit and the front man, too. The crowd had tons of fun and I was happy to do a review, involving this superb gig.
Setlist: All Beauty Destroyed, A Nice Place To Visit, The Devil's In The Details, Inhuman, One And Only, The Siren, The Ones, The Great Depression, Spit It Out

[Janine] The horror punk band :: THE OTHER :: knows how to be make up, but each member differently, namely as a vampire, werewolf, etc. The atmospheric set design consisting of stained glass windows and elements created a cosy feeling and made this set sympathetic. The band members are very close to the people and down to earth.

[Kira] OK. Now tell me, how many times you wanted to visit a Rammstein concert, but saved money once you realized, that the concert is sold out? Well, I would be happy to say, that with the tribute band :: STAHLZEIT :: this is in the past, but I can’t. The band sounds terribly, especially if you compare it to Rammstein. The show isn’t even close to the original, music is far away from the original, vocals are far, far, far, away from the original. But what happens on the stage and what the band does to the public is absolutely adorable! The main mistake which people can do watching this show is taking it too serious. This is a big Rammstein tribute party. You come with your friends and sing the songs you love. If you only saw how happy people were as they heard the first accords of their favorite songs! Everybody knows the songs, and everybody catches it up and sings along. They repeat the sound poor enough - but here it doesn’t matter, since the public shouts louder than the band. But to try to repeat the visual show on the small stage with low budget is a real mistake. It looks good with fire, but guys should think about their own show in limits of their possibilities. Then it will be interesting and original in a way. In general there is so much fun! So, my advice, buy tickets to their concert, before it is sold out!
Setlist: Links 2, 3, 4, Sehnsucht, Asche Zu Asche, Mein Teil, Du Riechst So Gut, Feuer Frei, Du Hast, Sonne, Ich Will, Engel

[Janine] Pleasing for the eye were the band :: COPPELIUS :: Many people hurried to the Staatenhaus to see them. I am not a big fan but I have to say: That was fun. Armed with clarinet and cello you can really say this is a band with classical instruments and heavy metal influences.
Setlist: Intro, Der Advokat, To My Creator, Risiko, Gumbagubanga, Nachtwache, But, Escapade II, Murders In The Rue Morgue (Iron Maiden cover), Running Free (Iron Maiden cover), Der Handschuh

[Janine] I highly expected :: THE CRÜXSHADOWS :: that weekend. And I got entertained on high level. The singer climbed up the traverses and sang along with the thousands of fans in front of the main stage. We also got to hear a new song called Invisible (from the upcoming album As the Dark Against My Halo). As I noticed on my way to the Staatenhaus - the live set ended with Happy Birthday. Other songs that were played were i.e. And I Believe, Halo, Angelus Everlasting or Winter Born (This Sacrifice).

[Kira] Lately there are more and more musicians who try to interpret modern songs in classical manner. Of course the first band which associated with this is the Finnish Apocalyptica. But even their cello interpretations were pretty boring before they invited the drummer. Or the Royal Philarmonic Orchestra, but this is a real big deal. And both variants are far away from :: EKLIPSE :: These four girls with violins and a cello remind rather on “Twilight Saga” than on a band playing popular music. The theatre is the right place for such a band, if they try no to introduce the hits of alternative and pop music, but simply play them boring. So if they don’t want to stay in between four walls of a theatre, they should realize that it is not enough just to be able to set melody on the violins. Maybe they should look at some real bands with classical instruments, which still make big shows.

[Janine] :: 18SUMMERS :: I love this project with mastermind Felix Flaucher as much as I loved Silke Bischoff. Some of you might know songs like On the Other Side, or Under Your Skin. Felix played both of them. I thank god I was there. I also got to hear some songs of their new album The Magic Circus which I really suggest anyone to buy. But I missed the dancing people and got a feeling that they were sleeping instead of listening to this wonderful music. What a pity! That was the poorest audience I ever experienced – seriously. Felix you and your band were really awesome – don’t mind that.

[Kira] As far as I know :: MONO INC. :: tries to cover every festival and to give as much concerts as they can. Knowing this I would think they could be pretty boring because of this, but they collected a great public nevertheless. It is also possible that exactly the frequency of the live shows reflected on the reaction of fans in a way that everybody recognizes the songs from the very first accords and sings along. The communication between the band and the public was fantastic; they understand each other with just a half of the word. The reaction of the public was great, and people enjoyed the show.
Setlist: This Is The Day, Temple Of The Torn, After The War (Gary Moore cover), Comedown, Viva Hades, Arabia, The Passenger (Iggy Pop cover), Drum Solo (Katha Mia's drum session), Revenge, Voices Of Doom, Get Some Sleep

[Janine] :: CONJURE ONE :: – the calm before the storm. They played a good special set and I liked the lights and the LED animation in the background. I adored the songs Silence and After All, which were originally from Delerium. The guest vocalist did a good job and I got a good place directly in front of the stage and had time to prepare me for the next top act at this weekend - Combichrist

[Kira] Even if the show of Conjure One was magical and charming, part of fans didn’t stay till the end of the show and moved to the main stage, where :: BLUTENGEL :: started their show. It was surely one of the most expected shows of the festival. As always it was worth to see. As always it fascinated with the whole attitude of the band to their work. Even if it was strange to see vampires in the daylight, still the public was hypnotized by the theatrical show full of emotions and passion with dancers and actors. Charming Chris Pohl was very chatty and told to public after each song. It is quite understandable why the band has such a strong fanbase and why the fans stay devoted to this band through years.
Setlist: Intro, Children Of The Night, Über Den Horizont, Soul Of Ice, Lucifer, Anders Sein, Vampire Romance Part I, Nachtbringer, The Lost Children, Bloody Pleasures, Love Killer, Behind The Mirror, Engelsblut, Reich Mir Die Hand

[Janine] Oh wow, wow, wow… I learned to love :: COMBICHRIST :: at the live performances and I can say this one was absolutely one of the best live experiences ever so far. Total escalation right from the beginning. I remember that Andy and his band entered the stage with sugar-sweet carnival costumes. And then… I thought I have to struggle for life. There was a pogo dance which caught me and I tried so hardly to survive. You can imagine I was successful even if you’re reading my review. As I found a place to concentrate on the show I saw Joe damaging the equipment. That’s quite normal on COMBICHRIST shows but this time he had so much fun in annoying the poor boy (he obviously don’t got what was happening with him), who had to replace the drums etc. This show was dominated by flying drums and one poor creeping stage hand. All the members had fun and as far as I noticed everyone else in front of the stage had fun, too. I loved this kind of entertainment. Thank you guys, thank you poor stage hand guy.
Setlist: Intro, What The Fuck Is Wrong With You?, Blut Royale, Deathbed, Get Your Body Eat, Electrohead, Shut Up And Swallow, Fuck That Shit, Get Out Of My Head, Scarred, Just Like Me, Follow The Trail Of Blood, Throat Full Of Glass, Never Surrender

[Janine] Steve Naghavi and :: AND ONE :: were honored to end the successful festival on the main stage. Now grown to a quartet, the boys played tracks from their latest album STOP and of course many classics. Rick Shah (keyboards), Nico Wieditz (keyboards), Joke Jay (drums, backing vocals) and a flu-sick Steve Naghavi served a mix of EBM and synth pop. This band has been a visitor magnet from the very start.
Setlist: Back Home, Zerstörer, Wasted/Personal Jesus (Depeche Mode Cover), Wasted, Stand The Pain, Love You To The End, Metalhammer, Timekiller (Project Pitchfork Cover), Traumfrau, Deutschmaschine, Seven, The Walk (The Cure Cover), High (feat. Joke), Sometimes, Für, Zugabe (World Premier), Techno Man, Get You Closer, Military Fashion Show, Shouts Of Joy, So Klingt Liebe (Piano Version)

[Kira] It was the closing act of AMPHI 2012, so all the guests should come to the Staatenhaus. By default the :: PROJECT PITCHFORK :: show was great. The band has the great fan base, and on their concerts it is possible to feel each soul out there who is listening to it, even if they aren’t here physically. The volume of Spilles’s creativity amazes. The public was great as well. It was the end of the second day as people danced under the merciless sun twelve hours in succession. And here as the last spurt. Forget the tiredness, don’t think of burnt skin, chafed feet and pushing corsets and just dance in this one impulse, united thousands of people. Beautiful moment, do not pass away!
Setlist: Intro, Continuum, Existence, Run For Cover, Timekiller, Conjure, Lament, IO, Endless Infinity, K.N.K.A., Freeze In Silence, Beholder, Steelrose, Fire And Ice // Souls

Pictures by
Simon Hönscheid: 18 Summers, Aesthetic Perfection, And One, Blutengel, Combichrist, Coppelius, The Crüxshadows, Mono Inc., Solar Fake, Stahlzeit, The Other
Claudia Schöne: Conjure One
Mandy Privenau: Lord Of The Lost
Kai Bimber: Project Pitchfork, Whispers In The Shadow
Martin Black: Eklipse, Schöngeist