BODYFEST ROCKED HARD

Front 242 played at the Bodyfest in Stockholm. Jean-Luc de Meyer really kicked ass. The whole band did. It was quite impressive. Photo: NineIZ.

Imagine lots of stomping people in great coloured hair of black, green and red. 50's hairstyle mixed with ordinary people and lots of uniforms, costumes, rocknroll t-shirts, nice dresses and jeans. Add some truly great hard beats of EBM and BODY. And there you are at the synthfestival BODYFEST.

TESTIKELBRAND (No Sleep By The Machine) arranged this big synth party with his friends in Stockholm, Sweden this weekend and it was of great success. All tickets sold out, guards having to move away people that still tried to get in by sneaking behind them walls of steel, 33 Germans arriving only to see the unique gig of Pouppée Fabrikk. The band has not been on stage for many years now, and they did their only gig for this year at Bodyfest. Front 242 on stage as main act. Wonderful energy all over. Never seen a band jumping around that much on stage. It was special.

Stockholm Wrecking Crew performed with Testikelbrand's own band No Sleep By The Machine before an happy audience that really loved their new track Yellow Mica and was totally lyric about the Old Track song that they  knew before. According to Mr Testikelbrand himself it was a splendid feeling all through the gig for the band with a responsive and pleased audience. Me myself had fuked up my time schedule completely and **sighs*** missed it. Shit.....

The General of The Bodyfest Testikelbrand (swedish for TesticleFire) was dressed in orange the day of honour. Here with his band No Sleep by the Machine playing together with the band  Stockholm Wrecking Crew.

Photo: jana. b - www.gungirl.de

Spark did an geat gig too. The drummer was wearing a red kilt and looked cute while he banged the drums with an energy I havent seen since Rammsteins drummer girls back in 2007. I was surprised by the sensitive lyrics though. (This could be I am not used to listen my native language.) But they played the great song ARE YOU READY TO DIE FOR THIS.

Tyske Ludder was like Rambo mixed with GI Joe and camoflauge nets plus camoflauge makeup on stage. The singer with makeup looked cruel as hell. And the band used lots of smoke and was really very much techno synth party.I missed my DocMartins and my long leathercoat so much during this gig.

Tyske Ludder was commando soldiers this evening. The SYNTHTECHNOPARTY was on. Photo: NineIZ

Their gig was truly makin up with the German bad concious about  World War II by telling the audience about todays cruelity towards people in the world. The American Flag was waved around and the movie in the background showed pictures and as if this wasnt enough they even used some masks of pigs and that president you surely know of.

Autodafeh was an experience for sure. I truly like them since before,  when I have heard them on YouTube. They are stompy as hell. But they tried a goth act in the middle of the set and they slapped the audience in some political way I didn't quite get. This confused a bit. But then they went back to ordinary sound and feeling again and all was forgotten after a while.

Autodafeh and the beautiful audience at the Bodyfest. Photo: Nine IZ

Pouppée Fabrikk did a wonderful gig. And they had that busload with Germans in the audience supporting them with great emphasie. The rest of the audience was also stomping and poging and dancing and singing with the band. It was a great athmosphere. They  haven't been on stage for quite some years now, since they all got occupied in other bands, and this was their only gig they plan to do  this year. So people were quite happy to catch them. They made big success in Germany with the song Death once upon the time. As so many swedish bands they got  adopted by them Germans. But they are also big as hell outworld of Sweden and German. Well, you probably know this already.

The Audience was so beautyful, as I mentioned before.They were entertained by DJ:s in the foaje and between the bands in the concert hall.

Among the beautiful audience was Anders Wikholm from the band Moulin Noir. Photo: NineIZ

Out in he foaje there where the merchandice stands, which I call mothership for the bands members. If you dont get backstage for your interview you  just go there and pick them up. I met Patrick Codenys in the foaje at Front 242 merchandice stand and we went backstage for a little talk. There he told me amazing stuff about surround sound that the band is into right now. At WGT (Wave Gotik Treffen) in Leipzig in may and already in  December in  Brussels we get to taste this new way of performing  Front 242. He tells me the concert halls are not built for this kind of equipment with four speakers directing sound to get the sculptural effekte of the music and the bass speaker  and them screens for multimedia pictures so the band will present us this in the foaje of the concert hall. We get Front 242 in  two  ways then.

Patrick Codenys chilling in the foaje with fans. Photo: NineIZ

Patrick Codenys also told me lots of  new stuff about himself as of the La Zampa Dancecompany he make music for as a side project of his own beside the other side project of his with Red Sniper.  He was a really cool person to speak to. So patient and very intense.  It is easy to like them guys of the Front 242. They are just so chilled out and cool.

In the foaje I spoke to  their childhood mate that has been doing their merchandice sale since the start of the band in them 1980's. He told me he wont stop doing that for them ever. He follows them around the world always. I can understand him.

Patrick Codenys tells me that Front 242 is his main project always. The 90's was hard on the band, since the audience couldnt stand their experimental time with the sound, and they split for while but this was not permanent. And now they try to  take back them fans they lost during this hush period by going back to the original sound of the band from the very start on the new album that is released soon.

Front 242 at their merchandice stand in the foaje of Bodyfest. Photo: NineIZ

Well, the audience at Bodyfest acted as if the band never was away. It was cheering and stomping and singing and vawing arms in the air all the time during the concert from an satisfied audience. And we got them old hits with new samplings gently putted into them. It was great!

Nine IZ