After South by Southwest in March this year, DJ JD Farmhound (Bonnaroo's inside source - http://www.twitter.com/djjdfarmhound )created buzz about a little known Norwegian all-girl four-piece called Katzenjammer. The first time I heard them, I was sitting on my front porch, enjoying the break in winter weather (potentially partaking in the joys of alcohol) and chatting with friends. My boyfriend, the all-knowing, ever searching music lover that he is -- bounded out of the house with the laptop. This began my strange love affair with the cute, dress wearing, multi-instrument, super talented Katzenjammer.
He cued up a video from youtube - a live version of the song "Ain't no Thang" - recorded on a boat (See the video here: Ain't no Thang - Katzenjammer ). It started out fast paced, bluesy, and featured a cookie tin drum kit. Being that I'm a fan of not only blue grass, but Tom Waits and his plethora of odd instruments - I was intrigued. Seventeen seconds later, however, I was floored. As soon as sometime singer, and guitar wielding Marianne Sveen opened her mouth -- I fell in love. Out of this tiny, seemingly sweet girl wearing a floral print dress and a flower in her hair - came a big, loud, full of piss and vinegar voice that sang a "Well, fuck you too" tale that included setting an ex-lover's house on fire, selling his truck, and refusing to pay his bail fees. Anne Marit Bergheim, playing mandolin and getting a very light hearted solo in the middle, offered smiles and spine to the performance. Solveig Heilo, who can make the strangest and most interesting high pitched vocal noises - brought intricate cookie-tin drum beats into the mix. Far from being a token female drummer (who tend to be more looks than talent), she had rhythm, she was good. And Turid Jørgensen laid the foundation of the song playing the oddly shaped balalaika - painted as a jolly looking cat. Everyone in attendance at the impromptu digital show on my front porch loved it. And then, I found out that they would be playing two shows at Bonnaroo.
For those of you that don't know, Bonnaroo is a four day music festival in Manchester, TN. It features over 100 bands playing on multiple stages and spans a myriad of genres from hip hop, blue grass, metal, rock, and anything in between. This was my second year (And the musically eclectic boyfriend's 4th or 5th), and we would never miss it.
Katzenjammer was slated to play at 12pm on Friday on the David Byrne curated 'That Stage'. We left our camp a little after 11am to get closer to the band, being that I had planned to get good pictures and videos for this show. As we were walking along the main road to the entrance of centeroo, we caught a glimpse of the ladies of Katzenjammer heading toward the show. We waved. They waved back. As a fan of theirs already, it was a very cute moment.
We arrived at the stage as planned, with maybe fifty people hanging around waiting for the show. My companions and I talked and joked, took a few pictures of the setup, and watched as each member of the band set up their own instruments. This was a very neat sight - you don't normally see artists tuning and adjusting their own equipment, and all the work that goes into it. After a bite of pizza, the girls launched into the song "Le Pop", a cabaret/circus inspired romp of inebriated proportions. The crowd in attendance, which loosely filled 3/4ths of the tent cheered loudly. Another song was played, 'Der Kapitan', to much fanfare - and Anne Marit riled the crowd with a single note sing along to open 'To the Sea' - which we have conveniently recorded for you here. Turid took center stage to sing 'Mother Superior' next, playing to the crowd with the lines, sang full of shame and regret:
"I'm sober, I'm sober... but I wish I was not..."
By the time I looked back at the crowd, the entire That Tent was filled to capacity, and flowing out into the street. Katzenjammer's sound was drawing in the curious to see the spectacular they were putting on. They're extremely cute - dancing, smiling, making faces and cracking jokes - and all of this served to further entertain (though, the music alone would have sustained most).
Each member is trained on multiple instruments, rotating in an odd way to sing this, or play that -- including the banjo, kazoo, balalaika, piano, ukulele, and a trash drum kit. Each member also sings, and does so beautifully -- having their own songs to showcase their particular talents.
A few more songs were played - including their new single, Demon Kitty Rag -- which sounds like a throwback to when rockabilly was good. And then they busted out the big vocal guns - 'Hey, Ho on the Devil's Back'. When Marianne belted this tune, the entire crowd went nuts - screaming and cheering. Along with another gem, soulful and backed only with an occasional bass drum, God's Great Dust Storm, the sheer harmonizing talent of the group was showcased with much style.
They closed with 'Ain't No Thang' - dancing and jumping around the stage, seemingly driven by the audience's hyper energy. By the end of the show, I couldn't see an end to the crowd where I was -- and the rain drenched muddy lawns received a pounding from the traffic Katzenjammer brought. This was one of the best shows Bonnaroo offered this year.
On an interesting note, after their Saturday Sonic Stage set - their CD sold out in less than 15 minutes after closing another amazing show. Their sales on Amazon went up 8,500% and bumped them into the top 200.
I stepped outside of myself for the giddy fangirl moment, and had my copy of their CD signed by the girls - who were very sweet and gracious - taking time to talk to all of the fans who lined up well out of the venue and into the street to meet them. If ever I get the chance to see them again, I definitely will - and I look forward to upcoming releases.
