Hey there folks, here we go again. The venerable Mr John Horn asked me to write an account of what the festive season in Germany feels like. So… the Holiday season in Germany… Well right now, it’s in a bit of a weird state. Since people are really grinding to a halt (hell, even I am not working – okay just a little freelance stuff), and those who usually wouldn’t are forced to do so by the unusual onslaught of winter (the third heavy one in a row, by the way). Things are definitely slowing down.
What is also slowing down is the usual shopping marathon I still remember from years back. But that is not necessarily
Tired of Reindeers, Santas, crazy little Elves or Christmas Trees? Try Wolf-Cookies - they're good! Cookies courtesy of Headhunter Heiko.
a bad thing. And it may be different for other people. But most people I know work either freelance, or in start-ups or they have temporary contracts. So… no diamond-necklaces as Christmas-gifts. The resulting Feedback-loop: People remember what Christmas was about before turbo-capitalism. Way back, when you either really celebrated the Advent of Christ or, even before that, gathered the Clan around you for winter-solstice.
Last weekend's early Christmas-walk out in the woods near Hagen: Runen, Real Pete, Real Pete's wife Silke (from left to right, mind you...). Photo courtesy of Headhunter Heiko.
Which is what we did, last weekend. As some of you may remember, I am part of a super-awesome live-roleplay group, and since one of our buddies celebrates his birthday on December 14th, that is always a welcome excuse to celebrate Christmas one week early. Before you gotta go and appease the whole family by your presence. You know, just hang out, bring on great food, sharing stories and affection for one another over the occasional bottle of beer or mead. And the best thing: Our friend Runen lives so far out in the woods that usually, once you’re at the party, you don’t get away again at this time of the year. So: Even the designated driver may celebrate.
And this is what I wish you all: That you can ban the thoughts about “who’s got the biggest Christmas tree in his living room” or “who gets the most expensive gift” and replace them with the heart-warming knowledge that you are together with your clan, with the people you love and that everyone’s as safe and happy as they can be. An early Merry Christmas to y’all, my dear fellow Gumbooteers!
Germany – what’s that you say? Lederhosen, Oktoberfest… Sigh. Dammit, my fellow Gumbooteers, it is So. Much. More. Germany hosts a wide spectrum of sub cultures. One of ‘em being punk. I love punk, and most from that strata, punk rock. And a lot of other Germans do, which is why you get one of the best Ramones-coverbands, the Raemouns, who are natives of the Ruhrgebiet, from Velbert (about 50 klicks from where I live). The name “Raemouns” (with an a-Umlaut in German typography) signifies a germanized version of the famous New York four-piece’s name. Pronounced with a heavy German accent, s.th. like “Rae-moans”. And like the almighty (and original! having come years before the Sex Pistols) punkrockers from Queens, NYC, the Raemouns, now in existence for ten years, have created their own fan-following.
2nd from right: Butsch Ramone... No wait - that it IS Joey... Or isn't he?
Whereever they play in the republic, you ALWAYS meet some familiar faces. I recently had the opportunity to talk to Udo Butschinek aka Butsch Ramone, who figures as your German Joey Ramone-surrogate. The gist with the Raemouns is, and that is also why people always come back, that they’re not just another cover-band. The Raemouns were meant to be an imitation band, right from the beginning. “We always meant to do it right”, says Butsch. “We studied Ramones-live footage for hours, trying to get the poses right. Some of our leather jackets were purchased in New York, because we couldn’t get the real deal in Germany. And the white Mosrite guitar that our Lemmy Ramone plays, well he built it himself. No kidding. He got the specs on the web and built it himself, because he wanted the look and the sound of Johnny Ramone.” These guys are hardcore, my fellow gumbooteers. Their shows are exactly the same white heat the Ramones used to radiate. It’s “1,2,3,4” – two minutes of chainsaw punkrock, “1,2,3,4” two minutes of chainsaw-punkrock and so on. The whole night. The only longer pause you get is when they take their leather jackets off.
Raemouns or Ramones? Which are the real ones? The guys above? These four?
What kinds of people attend Raemouns-gigs? “Oh that’s the whole range”, says Butsch. “You get thirteen year-old disco-girls who’ve only just heard of the original band, you get old rock’n’rollers, rockabillies, real street punks, normal average guys who just like rock’n’roll – everyone. Which I think is really cool.”
The greatest success for the four Ramones-heads from Velbert was as yet their tour in Argentina. There, the Ramones are apparently something like the Beatles to national consciousness. They’re huger than anywhere else. “It was weird, they treated us like the resurrected Ramones (most original members are already dead). The crowds were going absolutely bonkers, and we had to sign autographs for hours. I kept on thinking ’wait a minute, we’re just some dudes from a backwater-place in Germany who like to play the songs of our favourite band as close to the original as we can…’ But for these guys down there, it was totally happening. A great experience.”
While I can only say, that Butsch need not be too modest. The Raemouns ARE great. Which is why I, for at least seven years in a row, now keep on going to their shows whenever they play near where I live. And perhaps it is their zeal, their mission which they take to heart, which makes them so sympathetic: To keep the flame that used to be the Ramones alive in the world. If you can, go see the Raemouns. Even if you’re not into cover-bands: After your third beer, you’ll think it’s Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee and Marky (or Tommy). Hey ho, let’s go!
Rock’n'Roll beyond control: The Raemouns live in Berlin, Germany. For the daring amongst the Gumboot-followers…
It doesn’t happen any day, that you officially welcome someone into a community, with all pomp and circumstance. So today, I am really proud to introduce my old friend Zelimir to you, who, finally after the 21 years that I’ve known him, has recently received his German passport. Zeli, whose family hails from Serbia, former Yugoslavia, agreed to talk about becoming a German here at the Gumboot.
Enthusiastic about German reading culture and literature: Zelimir Pecenica (31).
Pete: I remember being on the phone with you back in High School, when you were with your parents spending the summer in Beograd. The situation always reminded me of that Ramones-song: “You by the phone, you all alone – It’s a long way back to Germany…” So, finally you are officially a German citizen! Congratulations, mate! Do you feel any different now?
Zeli: Emotionally, it’s not much of a difference, since I’ve always lived in Germany. So, what’s new? Travelling in the EU is a lot easier now. Also, when dealing with bureaucracy, there are no more questions about my heritage anymore. I’m German, period. When you’re not a native, people will always harbour secret doubts about language proficiency and so on. The citizenship helps.
Pete: What was it like to vote in an election for the first time?
Zeli: I’ve lived here all my life, and now my vote counts, at last. My first election was the EU-parliament, and then I did the municipal elections here in Solingen and the election for the Bundestag in 2009. When you’ve never been able to do that, you really feel how special democracy is.
Pete: Do you think your relationship to Serbia will change?
Zeli: Merely acquiring a new citizenship doesn’t really change that. Yet it’s been a long and slow process, and I can say that I now relate to my ancestry in a different way. Maybe I’m just more serious about dealing with my roots.
Pete: What did your parents say, when they got the news?
Zeli: They like it, though it’s a cut. But then my status isn’t transitory any longer. My parents lived in Germany for fourty years, and they’re still not allowed to vote. Also, my dad said: “Son, it’ll also be better for your job perspective.”
Pete: Who gave you a harder time? The infamous German bureaucracy or the guys in Beograd?
Zeli: They were both tricky, on different levels. They took more bribes in Beograd, yet the Germans were also tough. Here I am, perfectly integrated into German society, fluent as a native speaker, good High School education, studying German and English literature at Heinrich Heine University in Duesseldorf – come on! Why the long wait with all that evidence in my favour?!?!?
Pete: What do you like especially about Germany?
Zeli: You have your rights here, as a citizen, and they’re respected. Also, everything is in order, be it infrastructure or bureaucracy. We know how to run things, this country simply works. And I like the high cultural level, the book- and reading-culture, the incredible way in which every small town sports the odd museum and library. There’s only a German term that describes this aptly: “Kulturnation”. Germany is a nation of culture.
Pete: What do you like better about old Serbia?
Zeli: Back “home” (in inverted commas, since my home is Solingen), people are more overtly emotional. They socialise easier, and they’re not as prone to having idiotic things dictated to them by the state. Nobody crosses the street at a red light in Germany, and if you do, at least two bystanders are bound to glare at you.
Pete: Now for a touchy question. All of us remember the civil war that tore Yugoslavia apart in the nineties. What was that like – seeing the war on TV, in your parents’ home-country, and with all your relatives living there?
Zeli (sighs): That was a difficult time. As a teenager, you’re struggling with your identity anyway, and such a situation doesn’t help. Especially, since the mainstream media made Serbia out as “the bad guys”, although in reality, it was of course a bit more complex than that. Some Germans seemed to be glad to finally be able to point their fingers at others. I rejected the war, yet of course the fault for it wasn’t on only one side. I didn’t tell a lot of people for a long time about my ancestry, unless I had to. But luckily, time is a healer.
Pete: Could Germany have done more for you and your integration?
Zeli: Not for me, obviously. I’m training to be a High School-teacher in the not too distant future. But lots of other foreigners in Germany could have needed and still need more help in finding their way around. A lot of people feel that all German society does for them is build them a ghetto.
“MULTI-KULTI” – Germany, home of many cultures
Germany has roughly 82.2 million inhabitants. 7.3 million have a different nationality, making them 8.8 %. In our province, Northrhine-Westphalia, you find 1.9 million people amongst the 18 million inhabitants who don’t have a German passport (10.6 %). Solingen alone hosts over 130 different nationalities. The largest group are Solingers with Turkish citizenship, followed by Italians. Then you get a lot of “foreigners” from former Yugoslavia like Zeli, and almost as many Greek Solingers, constituting the fourth larger group. 14 percent of all people in Solingen are not native Germans.
Check out this youtube-video (in English!) about young immigrants who are less lucky than my buddy Zeli – courtesy of Deutsche Welle-TV:
Pete: Who gave you a harder time? The infamous German bureaucracy or the guys in Beograd?