This Means War + Others at Don’t Panic in Essen, Germany on 10 February 2024.
A fab evening out at one of my favourite venues in Europe, Don’t Panic in Essen, Germany, in the company of the lads from This Means War (punk from the Lowlands) and their 2 drivers (yes, 2 !). For full disclosure, I consider TMW as mates of mine (even if they live in the “wrong” part of Belgium 😉 ), so there may be a bit of bias in my comments.
The evening was billed as “Son Of A Bastard The Ride 2024”, featuring bands from the Sunny Bastards independent record label in Germany, including Crashed Out and Riot City Radio. The label specialises in Punk Rock and Oi bands, so the style of the music to be presented was clear in advance.
The first band on shortly after I arrived was Crashed Out from the North East of England, who I had seen a few times before. I was a bit surprised how early on the bill they went on, but apparently there were logistical reasons for them to do so. Although they have been around since 1995, Crashed Out are one of my favourite current street punk bands and their songs sound as fresh today as they did when they were first released (although some of the record production back in the day was a bit iffy). A great start of the evening in my opinion.
Second up were No Restraints, a “Street Core” band from the North of Italy. This was a new band to me and on first hearing, I have to admit that they did not really grab me as much as the other bands on the bill. Sorry guys
Next on were Riot City Radio, a band that I have wanted to see for a while now and this was my first opportunity. And I was definitely not disappointed. Their debut album, ‘Time Will Tell’ has been a regular feature of my driving playlist for the last few months, and is definitely one of my recommendations if you like this style of music. I will make sure I catch them again when I am next able to do so.
So, on to headliners, This Means War from Flanders, Belgium. I first discovered the band when they supported GBH a few years ago, and I had the pleasure of putting them on as support to GBH when they played at our local venue in Arlon in Belgium. Since then, I have seen them several times and they have become firm drinking buddies of mine. I knew of Steve previously from Chron Gen and he is a mighty fine bass player. I thoroughly enjoyed their set, as did the audience judging by the enthusiastic reaction.
The evening continued with more beers in the company of the lads from This Means War until it all became a bit of a murky haze. Will be seeng the guys again soon.
