The Malay Mail
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DYNAMIC PERFORMERS: Tokio Hotel exuded pure energy on the stage and the fans felt every beat —
HAILING from the same country as Rammstein and the Scorpions, Tokio Hotel is in no hurry to compare themselves to these legends, citing a difference in music direction and appealing to different age groups.Parents who thought they would be having a relaxed Labour Day got it wrong when many of them had to chaperone their kids to watch Germany’s biggest band, ‘live’, at One Utama on May 1.
Meeting the four-piece band right before the concert under the watchful eyes of two very huge and expressionless bodyguards, this writer initially thought it was going to be tough speaking to the band members.
It turned out, however, the four are just regular boys (if you don’t take into account lead singer Bill Kaulitz’s androgynous fashion choices) who enjoy poking fun at each other and making music together while on the road. There are practically no secrets between them.
“He’s messy, lazy, and always late,” said guitarist Tom Kaulitz, who also happens to be Bill’s twin, giving a sly look at bassist Georg Listing. Backing his brother up, Bill agrees with the statement with a cheeky grin.
“That’s not true,” replied Listing, who later got his chance for revenge when asked how he would describe Bill. “Egoistic.”
“That’s the wrong word for it,” laughs Bill. “Not,” replied Listing.
While all three of them chattered away (especially Bill, who seem to fit in quite well as the perky lead singer) and replied our questions, drummer Gustav Schafer was quiet for most of the interview, although we were forewarned by the other three that he can be quite bitchy.“Careful what you ask, it may very well be your last question,” laughed Bill and Tom.
Good-natured ribbing is very much a norm with the boys, and it shouldn’t have come as a surprise, really, especially since they have been together for 10 long years.
Starting out with the name ‘Devilish’, Listing and Schafer (they were 14 and 13 respectively at the time) had known each other from music school. After both watched Bill and Tom perform a live show in 2001, they met up and formed another band together.
In 2003, after Bill had gained publicity taking part in a children’s Star Search at the age of 13, the band changed their name to Tokio Hotel. The name came up because of their love for Tokyo (Tokio is the German spelling for the city) and because they are constantly touring and staying in hotels.
While many may envy them for the opportunity of staying in nice hotels, there are times when the boys wished that they were at home instead.
“Sometimes we feel like lying in our own beds and sometimes we get tired of the schedule. But at the end of the day, we are aware that this is our dream. We get to travel to far away places and we are always excited to meet fans,’ said Bill.
Being in Asia alone is something that Tokio Hotel still finds hard to believe. They had never once thought that there were Tokio Hotel fans in the region. The boys of course, had underestimated their music and charm.
Reminiscing their first gig in a small village in Germany in 2005, Tokio Hotel had been booked to perform at a small festival half a year before their first single was released. What they didn’t expect, was the huge success that followed. The venue, which was meant to accomodate at least 2,000 people, was suddenly packed with thouHotelsands of fans who flooded in to watch Tokio Hotel perform.
“It was just crazy and out of control. No one expected so many fans. There was no way at all to reach the stage,“ said Bill.
They could only stay in the car while the fans surrounded the vehicle and would not stop hitting it. Finally reaching the stage, things fell apart after they performed two songs. It was lucky that no one was hurt.
On that note, the band also spoke about another close call they experienced back in 2008, during their ‘1000 Hotels’ European tour. Bill strained his voice after performing 43 concerts with no rest. The rest of the tour had to be cancelled when a cyst was found in his vocal chords. This placed a dark cloud on the band as they didn’t know what to do.
“I was just sitting in my hotel room and couldn’t do anything. I could only watch while the fans cried. It was unexpected and one of the hardest moments the band had to go through. I was afraid I couldn’t sing anymore.”
Lucky for Tokio Hotel and Malaysian fans, Bill recovered. Delivering a steady 14 songs on the night of the showcase, Tokio Hotel whipped fans into a frenzy.
While the crowd was excited with opening acts Pop Shuvit and Bunkface’s performances, they were impatient for Tokio Hotel to be on stage.
Starting at a late 9.15pm, the band delivered a great audio experience, which was good, as the media sitting at the back had trouble catching a glimpse of the stage with the many heads bobbing to the music in front of us.
Bill’s vocals showed no signs of having been under a surgical knife before and delivered crowd favourites such as Automatic and World Behind My Wall.
Taking the stage, it was a completely different persona that dominated, compared to the more playful/reserved (this would be Schafer) Tokio Hotel we had met earlier. It was pure energy on stage and the crowd could feel it.
As fans sang along to every song, everyone was sorely aware that the one song they were waiting for had yet to be performed. When Tokio Hotel left the stage, the crowd chanted for the song they were dying to hear — Monsoon. The screams went up a notch as the band reappeared and gave us the German rendition of the song Durch Den Monsun.
After one hour of jumping around on stage, Tokio Hotel finally retired for the night. While fans were left feeling sorry that it was over, the announcement that the band will soon be back in Malaysia for an MTV event brought their spirits up.
This will definitely not be the last Malaysia has seen of Tokio Hotel.
HAILING from the same country as Rammstein and the Scorpions, Tokio Hotel is in no hurry to compare themselves to these legends, citing a difference in music direction and appealing to different age groups.Parents who thought they would be having a relaxed Labour Day got it wrong when many of them had to chaperone their kids to watch Germany’s biggest band, ‘live’, at One Utama on May 1.
Meeting the four-piece band right before the concert under the watchful eyes of two very huge and expressionless bodyguards, this writer initially thought it was going to be tough speaking to the band members.
It turned out, however, the four are just regular boys (if you don’t take into account lead singer Bill Kaulitz’s androgynous fashion choices) who enjoy poking fun at each other and making music together while on the road. There are practically no secrets between them.
“He’s messy, lazy, and always late,” said guitarist Tom Kaulitz, who also happens to be Bill’s twin, giving a sly look at bassist Georg Listing. Backing his brother up, Bill agrees with the statement with a cheeky grin.
“That’s not true,” replied Listing, who later got his chance for revenge when asked how he would describe Bill. “Egoistic.”
“That’s the wrong word for it,” laughs Bill. “Not,” replied Listing.
While all three of them chattered away (especially Bill, who seem to fit in quite well as the perky lead singer) and replied our questions, drummer Gustav Schafer was quiet for most of the interview, although we were forewarned by the other three that he can be quite bitchy.“Careful what you ask, it may very well be your last question,” laughed Bill and Tom.
Good-natured ribbing is very much a norm with the boys, and it shouldn’t have come as a surprise, really, especially since they have been together for 10 long years.
Starting out with the name ‘Devilish’, Listing and Schafer (they were 14 and 13 respectively at the time) had known each other from music school. After both watched Bill and Tom perform a live show in 2001, they met up and formed another band together.
In 2003, after Bill had gained publicity taking part in a children’s Star Search at the age of 13, the band changed their name to Tokio Hotel. The name came up because of their love for Tokyo (Tokio is the German spelling for the city) and because they are constantly touring and staying in hotels.
While many may envy them for the opportunity of staying in nice hotels, there are times when the boys wished that they were at home instead.
“Sometimes we feel like lying in our own beds and sometimes we get tired of the schedule. But at the end of the day, we are aware that this is our dream. We get to travel to far away places and we are always excited to meet fans,’ said Bill.
Being in Asia alone is something that Tokio Hotel still finds hard to believe. They had never once thought that there were Tokio Hotel fans in the region. The boys of course, had underestimated their music and charm.
Reminiscing their first gig in a small village in Germany in 2005, Tokio Hotel had been booked to perform at a small festival half a year before their first single was released. What they didn’t expect, was the huge success that followed. The venue, which was meant to accomodate at least 2,000 people, was suddenly packed with thouHotelsands of fans who flooded in to watch Tokio Hotel perform.
“It was just crazy and out of control. No one expected so many fans. There was no way at all to reach the stage,“ said Bill.
They could only stay in the car while the fans surrounded the vehicle and would not stop hitting it. Finally reaching the stage, things fell apart after they performed two songs. It was lucky that no one was hurt.
On that note, the band also spoke about another close call they experienced back in 2008, during their ‘1000 Hotels’ European tour. Bill strained his voice after performing 43 concerts with no rest. The rest of the tour had to be cancelled when a cyst was found in his vocal chords. This placed a dark cloud on the band as they didn’t know what to do.
“I was just sitting in my hotel room and couldn’t do anything. I could only watch while the fans cried. It was unexpected and one of the hardest moments the band had to go through. I was afraid I couldn’t sing anymore.”
Lucky for Tokio Hotel and Malaysian fans, Bill recovered. Delivering a steady 14 songs on the night of the showcase, Tokio Hotel whipped fans into a frenzy.
While the crowd was excited with opening acts Pop Shuvit and Bunkface’s performances, they were impatient for Tokio Hotel to be on stage.
Starting at a late 9.15pm, the band delivered a great audio experience, which was good, as the media sitting at the back had trouble catching a glimpse of the stage with the many heads bobbing to the music in front of us.
Bill’s vocals showed no signs of having been under a surgical knife before and delivered crowd favourites such as Automatic and World Behind My Wall.
Taking the stage, it was a completely different persona that dominated, compared to the more playful/reserved (this would be Schafer) Tokio Hotel we had met earlier. It was pure energy on stage and the crowd could feel it.
As fans sang along to every song, everyone was sorely aware that the one song they were waiting for had yet to be performed. When Tokio Hotel left the stage, the crowd chanted for the song they were dying to hear — Monsoon. The screams went up a notch as the band reappeared and gave us the German rendition of the song Durch Den Monsun.
After one hour of jumping around on stage, Tokio Hotel finally retired for the night. While fans were left feeling sorry that it was over, the announcement that the band will soon be back in Malaysia for an MTV event brought their spirits up.
This will definitely not be the last Malaysia has seen of Tokio Hotel.
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