06 December 2022 (gig)
07 December 2022
Tradition has it that Nikolaus Tag is a day of exchanging gifts in return for performance.
Tonight, the gift is the performance, as Italian composer and multi-instrumentalist Teho Teardo and Blixa Bargeld, leader of Einstürzende Neubauten and former Bad Seed, gave their Sonic Morgue audience a treat.
It’s a rare opportunity to see the pair revisit songs from their collaborations, 2016’s Nerissimo and Still Smiling (2013). In a concrete cellar, in the grounds of a former crematorium in Berlin’s Wedding district, no less.
With Laura Bisceglia on cello and Gabriele Coen on bass clarinet, as well as a string quartet, the stage at this underground venue is filled to the brim. Not to mention Bargeld‘s own stage presence and – by no means on a level with the vast amount in use at an Einstürzende Neubauten gig – Teardo’s percussion instruments and stack. Teardo plays bells and guitar simultaneously; his use of an EBow aligns his red Fender beautifully with Bisceglia’s warming cello on Nirgendheim.
To his left, and even when downstage technical issues cause a restart, Bargeld is on top form, switching between high-pitched screeches, howls, growls and whispers. His tales of Berlin’s Italian community, as well as his time in Rome, punctuate tonight’s set list. It’s a highly versatile, chameleon-like performance that cheers this Berlin crowd.
Perhaps joking, perhaps not, Bargeld introduces Mi Scusi as having ranked ninth in the best 100 songs of the past 20 years by an Italian music magazine. The song is a comical plea for forgiveness for his Italian language level but on tonight’s evidence, linguistic skills aren’t in short supply.
In a black feathered shawl, Bargeld returns for an encore of Tiger Lillies cover, Alone With The Moon, and A Quiet Life, written for Claudio Cupellini’s 2012 film, Una Vita Tranquilla. Closing the evening is Defenestrazioni, with its pre-recorded clips of an Italian political rally and an interviewer with “stupid questions to ask” on playback. It’s a powerful yet fragile and delicate piece, a fitting end to the evening.
More gifts are on the way from Bargeld and Teardo, with a third album from the duo in the works for 2023.
Pic: Russ Handy
