The First Concert Review After a Long Lockdown

Another round of COVID restrictions came to an end and finally allowed for concerts to come back as we know and love them - we can stand, sit, dance or lie down (didn’t see anybody do it this time, but technically it was possible, right?) or even hang up-side-down from the ceiling if you are a real bat. So, my first concert after 2.5 months of a break brought me back to Internasjonalen where I’ve been once before - sometime in August when I just arrived in Oslo and happened to see Superlynx there.

I saw Batboner for the first time three months ago at Vaterland (a venue I totally recommend you check out if you like Rock & Metal, and also enjoy good homemade pizza!) – just a couple of weeks before Norway went into another lockdown. Batboner have been around and released songs for a good decade now, their debut album “Batboner” was released just in 2020 via Danse Macabre Records though. – just in time when the pandemic hit and made it almost impossible to play shows for a long, long time. Their music is a very classy, cheeky, wonderful homage to Death Rock with a wink and handful of dancy, gothy vibes.

The evening starts with “Skretch” and “Chrysalis” – chilled, dark vibes, slowly but surely crawling from your ears to your feet. The neon Goth party mood is spreading in every corner of the cosy 2nd floor of Internasjonalen. Couldn’t wait for ‘Boogie Bat’ – somewhere around this time my friend who joined and didn’t know the band before stated slightly surprised – “Did not expect this to be that danceable!” and you could see how the audience got more and more into the vibe. The songs are about very intimate and personal topics as this is quite common for this genre, but paired with danceable riffs and beats they ensure you to have a fun night.

The band’s stage presence is strong – even the smaller stage doesn’t take anything from it, and just intensifies the intimate atmosphere that makes it feel very personal and lively. Front singer Floyd who flew in from Leipzig – a beautiful city in the east of Germany – joined the Oslo based collective for this evening and took over the venue – not only with the remarkable, deep voice, but also the ability to communicate with the audience during and in between the songs. Another friend whom I sent a short video snippet afterwards, commented with “Dark Cabaret!”, and she is right. A concert by Batboner is not just an evening with live music, but feels even more like a theatre or cabaret play. “Long John Blazing” became one of my faves very quickly – the perfect mix of nostalgic, heavy, thoughtful verse suddenly melting into a fast, loud and energetic chorus which keeps building up.

The evening ends with “Strawberry” – taken from the double single “Oberheim/Strawberry” released in 2017 – spooky, sexy and fun! Definitely, a good way to welcome live music back in the venues and in our evening plans.

For more information about the band and concert dates check out Batboner website

Setlist:

01. Skretch

02. Chrysalis

03. Lala Land

04. Itch

05. Boogie Bat

06. Oberheim

07. Flaccid

08. Long John Blazing

09. Dysphoria

10. Void

11. Ikon

12. Stuck

13. Tripping The Rift

14. Strawberry