Bauhaus
Gotham

THE REVIEW

Hello my dear readers, since I'm getting the hang of it, here's my fifth review, as promised, of another concert-DVD from the Gothic-New wave sphere, this time of the eerie Bauhaus, documenting their reunion concert held in 1998 in New York, specifically at the Hammerstein Ballroom.

Brief introduction to the band: They are the group that most embodied the Gothic genre, with its vampiric and B-horror traits, led by an extraordinarily charismatic singer, and with a stage presence that was as transgressive and punk as never before. The music? punk, post-punk, sometimes funky and just enough new wave.

Let’s talk about the concert: anyone imagining Peter Murphy locked in a cage like in the Ziggy Stardust video will be disappointed; Murphy appears in elegant jacket and trousers, actually, in the first song (for the record, Double Dare), he doesn’t appear at all, and instead of him on stage, you see his face on a screen (as he will do at the Alcatraz in Milan).

Second song: there he is on stage! In the abrasive In the Flat Field, where Daniel Ash showcases his guitar skills... the first impressions are, as one interviewed audience member also says, "seems Bauhaus first time!" Let's skip to the fifth piece, and there's Hollow Hills, in a performance that gives you chills! For those who don't know, the song is an extremely slow and nocturnal ballad.

Then there's the funk of Kick in the Eye, where the band plays while dancing, Terror Couple Kill Colonel, which talks about a colonel killed in his home in West Germany, there's also Severence, a cover of Dead Can Dance, in between two slow pieces like The Passion of Lovers and She's in Parties, then back to punk with Dark Entries, a very Batcave piece, then it's time for Spy in the Cab, where many light bulbs are placed on stage... what can I say? I was incredibly moved by this slow and atmospheric piece. Murphy changes and puts on a long, black coat, it's time for Bela Lugosi's Dead, the Gothic manifesto piece: extremely deep bass, guitar slashes, and drum touches... and so it goes until the end.

After thirty years, Bauhaus are still the best of their genre, the sounds are perfect, the moves and poses too, the whole audience.

In conclusion, you absolutely must have this DVD, to get to know that dreamy era that was Gothic in the early nineties.

To be continued........