An unusual crowd gathered in the Grand Social last night to see a drum legend. There were people of all generations, but a lot of 50 somethings dressed in black. These were fans of the 70’s experimental rock band Can and with Jaki Liebezeit in town, the man described by some members of Can as ‘half man, half machine’, it was a treat for all.

Jaki was born in 1938 in Dresden, and at the tender age of 75 seems to have lost none of his ability on stage. He played in both acts on the night, performing for over well over two hours. The first act was Drums Off Chaos, (currently) a three piece drum ensemble and they created wave after wave of tribal beats that had those around me lost in another world. There’s nothing like a drum circle to capture something primordial, and can really move an audience. Each song lasted for 10 or 15 minutes, but really there felt no reason to stop any of them!

Later in the night, Jaki performed with Burnt Friedman, for a subtle set of drums and electronic sounds of all descriptions. At times it was complex and diverse, but it’s hard for a band who work on something delicate to capture a Friday night crowd. It’s rare that the support act are the best on the night, but on this occasion, the Drums Off Chaos won out!

They finished on stage at eleven thirty after almost three hours of drum bliss, and Jaki looked like he could have played the same again! A night for purists to explore all a drum can do.