review by Travis Baumann

I have been a fan of Suicide Commando for quite some time, their last few albums just pushing them further and further up my list of top favorites. Johan's last album was, in my opinion, his best yet with some serious dance-floor power in "Hellraiser" and "Raise your God".

Johan was hanging out by the Tshirt booth before the show and Tina and I had a chance to say hi and tell him how much we appreciated his music and this chance to see him live. He was very nice and grateful for the attention.

The stage setup consisted of two keyboard players in the rear of the stage that were very difficult to make out but apparently one of them was Johan's girlfriend. Green lasers with beam splitters emanated from behind the keyboardists making visually appealing displays in thin air.

Johan emerged as the beat started. The set began with "Raise your God", even more powerful than on disc or in club settings. He came to the front as the crowd went absolutely crazy, screaming and stomping. He raised his arms in the crucifix pattern, hung his head in mock death and then exploded into a frenzy of movement.

One of the only draw-backs to the Wave Gothik Treffen festival is how many of your favorite bands are booked at periods that conflict with one another. Unfortunately Laibach was scheduled to start before Suicide was even through with their set so after about four songs Tina and I had to make the decision and as much as we love Suicide Commando and no matter how great he sounded and how energetic a show he put on, we HAD to see Laibach again and this time in front of the massive monument that breaks Leipzig's skyline (or should I say IS their skyline).

In the short time we were there, Johan put on an amazing performance and did some of my favorite songs ( "Hellraiser", "Raise your God", and "God where are You?". At least I got to hear these). I would highly recommend seeing him perform live and look forward to the opportunity to witness this in its entirety.