If you’re used to your guitar heroes being plugged into amplifiers then concerts like this one may well prove to be eye-openers. Ismael de Barcelona and Thomas Monnerjahn presented a lively and dynamic introduction to Flamenco/Gypsy Jazz rhythms in a setting that is rapidly shedding its ‘hidden gem’ status with excellent musicians appearing literally at the drop of a hat – which on Sunday deserved to be filled to its brim with folding money. Welcome to a packed house at Bad Godesberg’s Trinkpavilion
Shock news this week that popular Bonn visitor Layla Zoe has canceled her entire Autumn tour. In the words of Canada’s darling of the Blues:
“I don’t want to write this post today. I feel tired, angry, sad, and frustrated. But I must accept what I can’t change, and that’s the fact that I began having some health issues recently that continue to worsen to the point where I was forced last week to make the very difficult decision of postponing my upcoming fall tour. Since the tour is postponed NOT cancelled that means that most if not all concerts will be rescheduled and my agent and promoters are working on new dates, so you can hold onto your tickets until further announcement.
We really appreciate your patience and understanding at this difficult time. Because of the massive financial loss for myself and my team it would mean so much to me if you could purchase something from my webshop to support me www.layla.ca/shop or make a donation at buymeacoffee.com/laylazoe and/or or reach out to one of the musicians to do online music lessons (Ruben Roeh – guitar, Tim Steiner – bass, Felix Dehmel – drums) to help them with extra income, and/or visit one of the clubs where I was scheduled to play and enjoy another show. Your continued support at this difficult time means the world to me, and I’m never a woman/artist of few words, however I prefer to keep the details of my health situation private at this time. All my love and gratitude for the decades of support I have received from so many of you. See you on stage once my health allows it and I can come back stronger and better than ever”
– Layla
3songs has known Layla for quite a while now. I first met her during a minor crisis that happened whilst she was visiting a concert. Her reaction: she wanted to be on a stage – to sing away her anger. For Layla, singing is a necessity.
What better way for us fans in Bonn to support Layla than purchasing a copy of her latest live CD ‘Into The Blue‘? The disc was actually recorded at the Harmonie!
Give Layla Zoe and her band some support through the difficult times ahead. Knowing Layla, she won’t have taken this decision lightly and she will be back.
All good things must, as they say, come to an end. The Stadtgarten Concert Season did so last Saturday in real style with a double-fluted attack on the senses from Top French duo RoSaWay and local heroes Jin Jim. Even the sun stayed out all evening to celebrate. That green verge opposite the Alter Zoll Beer Garden is going to look gloomily empty until next Summer when the only sound will be the gentle tap of Petanque balls rolling across the dusty ground. But first, let’s enjoy a last evening of music in the sunshine…
Wow! What a veritable smorgasbord of an end to this year’s Stadtgarten Season. Punk, Blues, Flute fuelled rhythms and progressive Jazzrock. And all for FREE!
Let’s make a start then with Friday’s musical offerings. Electric Blues from Baum’s Bluesbenders and Punk music from Eddy Edge. It was Punk that kickstarted the proceedings. Nothing is quite what it seems here though. Punk? Eddie is not one to go pogoing around the stage. For one thing, he’s blind, and for another, his music, at least initially, is restrained as he sings, and strums an acoustic guitar, accompanied at various times by young ladies who join in on the vocals. There is more of the Frank Turner than the Johnny Rotten about him. He is also a Welshman, singing in German, and has a very popular song online at present titled ‘Wir sind die Slytherins’ – yes, Eddy is also a huge fan of Harry Potter.
The light show from Friday’s concert by Schiller brought the 2024 Kunst!Rasen Season to a colorful end and already a round half-dozen concerts are announced for 2025, the most recent being Fury in the Slaughterhouse.
JazzTube2024 is now underway. The first three bands in this year’s friendly competition were to be heard last Friday entertaining travelers and Jazz fans alike. Daniel Manrique-Smith was to be found as a part of the duo Flautronika (with Frank Brempel) at Universität/Markt. If you enjoyed (or missed!) his flute playing then you should head for Stadtgarten on 31 August where Daniel will be fronting the band Jin Jim and joined by another Flute-powered duo: Rosaway from France.
This Friday’s JazzTube:
Details on the remaining JazzTube concerts, and how to vote HERE
Always one of the most interesting of the Stadtgarten evenings, PopCamp on Saturday didn’t disappoint. Thought-provoking songs from Nicholas Müller, Retro Variete/Jazz with Magdalena Ganter and bang up-to-date with Indie-Pop from Juli Gilde who, following two well received EP’s, is just now working on her debut full release.
Saturday (10 August) was presented by popNRW with musicNRWwomen and designated a day when the Ladies would get their chance to shine at the Stadtgarten. Organizer HaJo made the point when introducing the bands that women don’t get the opportunities that male-fronted bands do in the music business. If that’s true then it is certainly at odds with the very top of our current music scene where the ladies seem to be more than well represented with the likes of Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and Adele ruling the current pop charts. There’s always room for more if the quality is good though, and this evening’s two bands set around Cologne’s Annelu and Duisburg’s Stina Holmquist both proved deserving of a place in the spotlight.
