Rockaholic has undergone an exciting transformation over the past few years. What originally started as a project to provide bands with a platform during the pandemic has now come to a successful conclusion. In a time when live performances were not possible, we supported bands in sharing their music and stories with the world – and we succeeded.

The pandemic is now behind us, concert halls are filled, and the music industry is thriving. Live performances are back, and the energy of those moments is alive again. But we, too, have had to evolve. Due to time constraints, we have shifted our focus to two key areas: live photography and Instagram.

We love capturing the special moments of concerts and sharing them with our community. These photos tell stories and capture the unique energy of each performance. Instagram has become our main channel to share these impressions directly with you and build a closer connection with our growing community.

But the journey of Rockaholic is far from over. Our mission to give bands a voice in difficult times has been successfully accomplished. Now, it’s time to rethink and reshape Rockaholic – always with the goal of experiencing and presenting the world of music and art in a fresh and innovative way. Stay tuned to see where this new path will take us!

Songs are written, studio is booked and nothing works. Corona paralyzed almost everything, including the plans of the Hamburg punk rockers Hafensaengers. And as if the pandemic wasn’t bad enough, an even more dramatic event followed. Singer and guitarist Thomas suffered kidney failure. Corona, emergency surgery and dialysis determined his everyday life for a long time.

Patrick, Rockaholic Magazine – Thomas, thank you for your time and your trust in us. This interview is not an easy one, so I’m pleased that you agreed to do it.

Thomas, Hafensaengers – Thank you very much for your invitation, I’m looking forward to your questions.

Patrick, RM – For you there was a shock news in 2020. Kidney failure. How did it first manifest itself?

Thomas, H – I have to say, I didn’t really notice it at first, I just felt increasingly weaker and weaker. First I just blamed it on the stress at work and the excessive practice of my sport (competitive bodybuilding). Just like the motto: “You’re just exhausted from the long diets, you just need a break, then you’ll be fine.”  I’m not the type to run to the doctor for every little thing… So I put it off for now. After some time the symptoms looked more and more like a flu. I went to the doctor and he did a blood count. A few days later he called me: “Ah good, you’re still alive!” I had a creatinine value of 22 – normal is between 0.6 and 1.4. So I had to go on dialysis as soon as possible. I was on dialysis for the first time when I was 23, and at 25 I got a kidney donated by my mother.

After the call, my health went abruptly down. So much that my fiancée lay next to me at night making sure I didn’t stop breathing. It all culminated in an ambulance ride to an emergency surgery where a dialysis line had to be placed in my chest. From then on, it was dialysis every two days for five hours each time.

Patrick, RM – When it became clear that you needed a donor kidney, what were your fears and anxieties?

Thomas, H – First of all, it has to be said that there are unfortunately only two options. One is a donor organ from a deceased person, for which you have to wait about ten years in Germany. The other option is to remain on dialysis until you die after a few years from the consequential damage there. The organ donation situation in Germany is a disaster. Disappointingly, nothing has improved in the 13 years since my first donation.

My fears were foremost financial. How do I pay the rent? How do I buy food when I can’t work? My fiancée and I had just opened our own tattoo studio five months earlier and are both self-employed. Now, of course, there was a lack of income for the time being. Insurance doesn’t come up as in this case with self-employed people. I was pre-sick and therefore too big risk. So after the first week of dialysis I went straight back to work. Normally, permanent patients take six months off work in such a case. Unfortunately, that was not possible in our case.
In addition, it was not at all clear at that time whether I would ever be able to play music again. That made me feel even worse.

Patrick, RM – Who or what gave you the strength to keep fighting?

Thomas, H – My fiancée Elise! Without her, I would probably not be here anymore.
She encouraged me to consider donating her kidney, which I didn’t want to do at first. I did not want to make two sick people out of one sick person. Today, however, I know that a life with only one kidney does not affect her at all and that we both feel much better physically and mentally after the transplant.
Music also played a big role. During dialysis, I listened to all the bands I love so much. That gave me an incredible amount of strength. And so it was on dialysis that I started writing the lyrics for our album. Dunkelfarben, for example, was written there.

Patrick, RM – With your single Dunkelfarben a profound number is released. What is the song about, what were your thoughts about it?

Thomas, H – The song describes the youthful feeling of wanting to reach for the stars and possibly making it. The feeling of being invincible, until you slowly realize more and more that you can’t reach the stars, no matter how hard you stretch.

Patrick, RM – You spoke lovingly of Max, your bandmate, in the press text. How did the studio sessions go?

Thomas, H – Max had already hammered all the drum tracks at home in elaborate detail work and made them ready for the studio. This saved us an incredible amount of time in the studio, because if there was one thing I didn’t have, it was time.

Patrick, RM – Do you want to continue as a duo in the future or do you plan to reinforce?

Thomas, H – We are now officially only a duo and it will probably stay that way for the time being.
But at the live shows there will always be someone from our old team on bass.

Patrick, RM – After plans were thwarted several times, are there still plans for the studio album?

Thomas, H – The album is already finished. But we don’t know yet how and when we will release it. First of all we will release some singles now.

Patrick, RM – Would you like to give your fans and our readers some motivating words?

Thomas, H – I know how it feels to be at the bottom and not see any sense anymore. But I think, if you hold out long enough, the sense will come. Because if you’re already at the bottom, the only direction you can go is back up.

Patrick, RM – Thanks a lot to you, good luck with the new single and hopefully see you soon on the live stage.

Thomas, H – I hope so too! Thank you for the interview!

Silverstein announce their return with new material and concerts in Germany.
The Canadian post-hardcore band Silverstein has released their new single “It’s Over” on 18.11.2021.

With over 20 years of band history, we are not only looking at an impressive history, but also at impressive moments. For the second time, the band was nominated at the Juno Awards. After being represented in the category “New Group of the Year” in 2006, this year it was fingers crossed in the category “Rock Album of the Year“. “A Beautiful Place to Drown” (release date: March 6, 2020) didn’t win the category, but did make it into the Billboard charts. The album climbed to #5 on the “US Top Hard Rock Albums.” In Germany, it reached #83 on the German album charts.

“It’s Over” is now another milestone in songwriting and producing. As such, the track conveys a balanced mix of melody and aggression, while not denying the band’s punk roots. “When I was writing it, I was thinking about all those angst-ridden hours when you can’t feel anything but the quiet, steady crescendo of panic that eventually gets so intense you can’t feel your fingertips,” guitarist Paul Marc Rousseau comments on the single. “It’s Over” thus ushers in another era in Silverstein‘s great band history, testifying once again why they are one of the most successful and influential bands in post-hardcore.

There will be a few opportunities to see Silverstein live in Germany in 2022. So far only a few dates are known, but there should be some additional dates possible. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that the virus doesn’t put a spoke in the fan community’s wheel again.

Albums at a glance

When Broken Is Easily Fixed (2003), Discovering the Waterfront (2005), Arrivals & Departures (2007), A Shipwreck in the Sand (2009), Rescue (2011), Short Songs (2012), This Is How the Wind Shifts (2013), I Am Alive in Everything I Touch (2015), Dead Reflection (2017), A Beautiful Place to Drown (2020)

The singer from Delaware/USA is known to many as the frontman of the post-hardcore band Boysetsfire. His third solo album Rebel Songs will be released on 17.12.2021 in stores as CD and vinyl, as well as on all known streaming platforms.

Personal feelings, solidarity & cohesion

The album Rebel Songs is like a cross-section through the entire career of the punk rock singer. Nathan was and is a political person, and as such he already gave expression to his political rage with Boysetsfire. But at some point it was time to fight for himself, to deal with his own demons, to face his heartbreak and to question his personal growth. Out of the self-reflective reappraisal and the current world situation, this record was born. “When the pandemic hit, it suddenly became very obvious that everything political is very personal,” Nathan says. Everyone had to deal with the global emergency in their own way, but the political imprint also often guided the personal thoughts of individuals. Thus, not only did personal and interpersonal views collide, but injustice against certain groups grew as well. “[…] the pandemic showed how incredibly underserved certain groups were – women, people of color, the lower and middle classes, the homeless, the LGBTQIA+ people. Every day we saw them being led into dangerously vulnerable situations, and it broke my heart to see the division among people.”

The 12-song album grapples with all of these impressions, views and realities. Support on Rebel Songs comes from rapper Eugenius, former Tagtraum frontman Matze Rossi and Rise Against head Tim McIlrath, who is not only a self-confessed vegan but also known for his tireless work for the animal rights organization PETA. Together with a variety of artists, the record results in an atmospheric experiment in collaboration and new approaches, with Nathan finding his way back to himself and his punk rock roots. “Community is more powerful than anything else. The drive to make that community better should be what politics is all about.”

The album was produced under the direction of Brian McTernan (Battery, Be Well) and is released on the label End Hits Records.

NATHAN GRAY & Support: SHORELINE

Concerts cancelled for now!

Post-hardcore legends Hot Water Music from Gainesville, Florida announce their new studio album for 2022.

Feel the Void will be the first full length under End Hits Records (Europe) and Equal Vision Recordings (USA). The record was produced under the direction of Brian McTernan (Battery, Be Well). In songwriting, Chuck Ragan and Chris Wollard were assisted by Canadian Chris Cresswell (The Flatliners, Scorpios).

Hot Water Music about the record:
“We are very excited to be signed to Equal Vision and End Hits for our upcoming record, “Feel the Void.” Recording this record was a very cool combination of old and new. Reuniting with Brian McTernan as a producer while watching Chris, Chuck, and Cresswell work together for the first time resulted in the recording and writing magic that we had all hoped we would be able to create. We truly cannot wait to get back on the road and share these new songs live, especially in Oct 22 with BSF and Samiam!
Thanks for all of your support over the years, we promise this record is the one you’ve been hoping for.”

Hot Water Music, Boysetsfire & Samiam

The band has also announced a European tour for October 2022. Together with the post-hardcore colleagues Boysetsfire and the emocore greatness Samiam, which was already founded in 1988, concerts in England, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria and Germany are fixed.

A sensational lineup not to be missed. Tickets at: https://www.eventim.de*

It’s a sign of life for culture lovers in Munich. With the event series “Kultursommer in der Stadt 2021” artists are finally allowed to play in front of a live audience again. On 27.7.2021 the stage was set for Pawn Painters from Schrobenhausen, Tame the Abyss and Flyswatter (both Munich). The latter were headliners and co-organizers of the evening.

Pawn Painters opened at 7 p.m., nonchalantly playing a bravura opener gig and wowing the audience with their vintage meets sphere sound. “I thought for a moment that U2 was playing” – Florry from Flyswatter congratulated the band on the successfully difficult opener job.

Premiere in the Olympic Stadium

With Tame the Abyss the audience was able to experience a premiere. The band had no opportunity to test themselves in front of an audience since their formation shortly before Corona, and so this evening meant: concert premiere in the Olympic stadium. That’s what you call an introduction, and you can hardly believe it, because the trio mastered the performance, despite a technical problem extremely professional and skillful. Entertainment, wit, interaction with the audience and no trace of excitement, that’s how you want a support act. Georg Raig, singer and guitarist of the band had the audience firmly under control. With the final new song Underground, the band provided a successful participatory conclusion and paved the stage for the headliner Flyswatter.

Stage time for the headliner

A good portion of energy could be felt from Florian “Florry” Kämmerling (vocals, guitar), Marco Kärger (guitar), Attila Antas (drums) and Nick Sauter from Cadet Carter, who supported the band again as bassist. “Flyswatter is back” you read everywhere and with already the second concert since the Corona loosenings, you can confirm it. The band was “on fire” and thrilled their audience in the stadium. Thanks to a livestream, fans from all over the world could tune in. A special thanks went from Florry to Brazil, where the band has an extraordinarily large fanbase. There was then a big reunion with special guest Robert Ehrenbrand (Boysetsfire, My Hero Died Today). Together they performed not only Flyswatter material, but also Bro Hymn by Pennywise. A successful show interludeed and a great pleasure for the die-hard fans of the post and hardcore scene. But the icing on the cake of the evening was a somewhat messed up second encore. Since the time slot ended at 10 p.m. due to Corona restrictions and the band thus couldn’t give a final encore, Florry reacted spontaneously and sang their ode Youth gone Wild, solo. With this, he not only provided an unforgettable goosebump moment, but also a grandiose conclusion to a successful event.

Program Sommerbühne Kulturbühne in der Stadt (de)

Photos by Doc Snyder Photo