EActually, they are more known from carnival sessions: But on Saturday, the Cologne dialect band Höhner rocked the heavy metal festival in Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein. “It’s absolutely amazing what happened here today,” said singer Patrick Lück after the performance of the German Press Agency, which was accompanied by much applause. At times it was like a home game for the band. “They even sang along to things like Cologne’s “Echte Fründe ston zesamme””, Lück said happily.
The musician had said before the concert that music is a language that everyone understands. “Above all that’s why we’re not worried that the audience won’t be able to relate to our music.” After the performance, he said that this had come true. “It was a great atmosphere. It’s amazing how friendly you are received here.” And: “We definitely want to come back.”
As a tribute to the fans, the musicians also played a Rhenish version of the Metallica hit “Nothing Else Matters”. With the Höhnern it became: “Everything else doesn’t count”. In 2019, Metallica surprisingly intoned “Viva Colonia” on Kölsch at a performance in the Rheinenergie Stadium in front of around 50,000 fans.
The natural habitat of the Höhner are actually carnival stages with colorful confetti rain. With swayers like “Viva Colonia” and “The Caravan Moves On” they bring festival halls in the Rhineland to a boil. In Wacken they performed in front of the metal fans at 11:11 am. “Of course, that was something completely different than a performance in the ballroom,” said Lück – if only because of the large crowd.
Even before the concert, he had said with regard to the Wacken Festival: “It is, so to speak, an accolade for us to be able to perform there.” In recent years, musicians from outside the heavy metal scene have repeatedly performed at the festival up, for example Heino.