DONOTS – A JAK in three acts – Whiskey-Soda.de

It’s nice when a circle closes and the first band of the year is also the last. Starting with the ice-cold (and that doesn’t just mean the winter weather) FCKAFD reception at the Prinzipalmarkt in Münster in February, when, among others, the Donots and Kapelle Petra die Nicht-Alternative showed the non-alternative the musical middle finger, and ending with the traditional year-end concert in the Rosenhof, although the term is actually tricky, because it has now become a residency, and the club is booked (and sold out) for three evenings in a row.

Friday, December 27th, 2024

Smile And Burn opens the first show of the already very early, very full hall, and have, among other things, the very cool (and produced by Purgen, Guido and stage manager Phil) record “Seid Ihr Stolz auf mich”, which they released this summer, with them, and not only JD Donot at the edge of the stage celebrates the four euphorically. A certain tension can be heard in conversations in the hall, because this year the Donots didn’t let anyone know what they could hear, except that a lot of songs were rehearsed and there was a request on Facebook. With the usual “Don’t Bring Me Down” and “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” as an intro, the stage is prepared for the five Ibbenbüreners shortly after 9 p.m. and then it starts with the very unusual opener “Saccharine Smile”. The hall immediately shakes. For the most part, the guys play it safe when it comes to the setlist and all the relevant hits are there, but they also dig deep: the New Order cover “True Faith” (not played since 2001, according to setlist.fm), or “Outshine The World” and “Wretched Boy” serve the nerd section in the hall, which leads Ingo to self-awareness: “Some of them have a shine in their eyes, and they.” Others think it’s time to get a beer!”

If you thought for years that the Donots were a grassroots democratic group, you have now been proven wrong. Ingo (“I’m a singer and Wikipedia says I’m allowed to do that!”) really wants to get his way and play “Song 2” by Blur throughout the evening. Alex has no idea how the chords go and the others shake their heads, but the frontman prevails. Shortly before “Whoho” we stop and roast the rest in the morning. But “Chef” did the math without the audience, who now demanded the full number (and got it). Day 1 ends with “Goodbye Routine” after more than two hours in the gallery, and on many people you can hear: “See you tomorrow!”

Saturday, December 28, 2024

Not only are JAKs themselves traditional, so is the post-Christmas illness in Purgen. While in recent years he has dragged himself onto the stage with plenty of pharmaceutical aids, today nothing works. But cancellations are out of the question for the remaining four, and since there are capable string pluckers in the crew and friends, plenty of WhatsApp messages were sent from the morning onwards, the runs were practiced backstage and off we went. Beforehand, Indecent Behavior opens the night and manages to initiate the first mosh pit.

No matter how warmly the gentlemen are applauded, everyone is excited to see what the Donots bench has to offer today. Kruse from Adam Angst is the first substitute and this time we start with “Calling”. Jan-Dirk is connected via Facetime for a few minutes and receives recovery applause in the hospital room. The program contains fewer deep cuts, only “Young Man Wanted to Pity” and “Shitting Mattress” fall into this category, which backliner Michel wanted for his guest spot. Unsurprisingly, the sick colleague also gets a few (mock) nasty comments. Guido: “Actually, it’s much hotter otherwise, maybe we’ll put Jan-Dirk to sleep tomorrow!”, which Alex only counters with: “Why wait until tomorrow?”, causing a lot of laughter. It becomes clear that this is not meant seriously when Ingo serenades the patient. Despite the stress of rehearsals, he still had time to write a short song in the afternoon, and it will be rehearsed and performed live with the audience choir. Technical boss Phil has to interrupt his usual dances at Alex’s side because he now takes over the woofer and even has his fan club, complete with name shirts, in the front row. Since he is indispensable on the sidelines, after “Hey Ralph” and “You’re So Yesterday” it’s over for him again, and the former sixth (live) member Robin Völkert takes over the job. The band repeatedly thanks their “gap fillers”, who are much more than that. It’s nothing short of a miracle how harmoniously the entire two-hour concert takes place with minimal rehearsal (or even without it at all, as in Merchcowboy friend Toby’s part in “Whatever Happening To The 80s” and “We’re Not Gonna Take It”) . Before everyone is sent home with “So Long”, there is one more all-star performance, and the old warhorse “Blitzkrieg Bob” is performed with five bass players under the moist eyes of the convalescent duck who has switched back on.

As great as this evening was, everyone naturally wishes that a normal show with the regular cast could take place again at the last JAK.

Sunday, December 29, 2024

The reunited Heisskalte from Sindelfingen start Sunday and live up to their name as they really heat things up. The actual trio is complemented by bassist Lola, who is later honored by Ingo as the “coolest pig on stage”. Then the usual procedure of a half-hour break for conversion, and promptly at 9:10 p.m. the former student band is on stage for the intro of Guido’s Daughter and the following “Here with a Roar.” The most important thing: Jan-Dirk is fit again! Even though he’s at 100%, the poor man isn’t back yet. “He puked right before the show!” Alex said shortly after the show began, which led to loud cheers of “Purgen” from the crowd. For “health reasons” and much to the chagrin of his colleagues, the younger Knollmann distributes garlic to the audience, and plenty of it is used. “You sick pig!” Ingo scolds a fan with a laugh, who completely ingests the medicinal plant (it is really considered that!) like an apple, which also leaves the singer briefly infected during the usual bath in the crowd to “Kaputt”.

From the “Rare Goods” department, “You may never be happy” and “Finally somewhere” made it into the playlist today. Otherwise, for the very last performance of the year, there are primarily the classics, with more than two thirds being in German Numbers heard. The focus here is on “Karacho”, which is represented with a total of eight titles. It’s not only the last gig of the year, but also for a long time, as Guido makes clear in a slightly wistful announcement, since he won’t be able to see this “eyes” for a long time. The tour group is staying at home until the summer festivals, even though it has already been teased that there will be news soon. Quite a few in the Rosenhof had hoped that the cat would be let out of the bag here and now. But this secret will be carried into the new year. (or maybe that’s exactly why) the mood today is even more boiling than on the previous two days. Nevertheless – which is hardly possible.

In the encore set, the fans still needed the Donots’ unplanned “shitty mattress”, although Ingo was actually hoping to go to the backstage bar for “a dry gin and tonic”. According to the printed setlist, “So Long” is supposed to be the bouncer, but can a Donots year end without “Goodbye Routine”? Exactly! That’s why the frontman has to postpone drink again for a few minutes, and shortly after 11.30 p.m. and its almost two and a half playing time, this JAK is also history, and a sweaty (and garlic-smelling) hall empties, even if some are slightly sad about it This is the last Donots concert for now. There will be full-length shows again at the latest at the Münster Slams in November and the JAKs 2025, and until then the memory of three unforgettable evenings in Osnabrück will remain!

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Photo credit: Wollo@Whiskey-Soda