17 Hippies
Berlin has emerged as one of the great contemporary melting pots and 17 Hippies are surely the finest of Berlin bands of the moment. They aren’t hippies and there is only (!) 13 of them in their current line-up – double bass, banjo, ukulele and guitar give the rhythmic base, the melodious pattern is supplied by violins, cello, accordion, clarinet trombone and trumpet and there’s not a single piece of percussion in sight.
No one really knows why exactly seventeen or why even hippies. But having a name is good, like a road sign announcing a town – it tells you where you are. No one has any idea what’s coming up after the town sign, nor has anyone worked out what they were supposed to be doing or even where the 17 HIPPIES are heading.
We know for sure though that they have created a unique musical style, by colliding a variety of mostly European influences, from Gypsy dance to French chanson and German cabaret, with just a hint of anything from ragtime to country to early pop. From Algiers to Albuquerque, Berlin to Bloomington and Canton to Cantabria the unstoppable 17 Hippies bandwagon rolls on relentlessly, leaving crowds breathless but still wanting more.
Despite forming in 1995 it wasn’t until the summer of 2009 that they added the UK to the list of over 25 countries to be mesmerised by these first rate globalists, with ecstatic festival crowds from WOMAD to Larmer Tree punching the air and singing in unison to their whirling, crashing, diving, bobbing and weaving collision of musical styles. This 13 strong “Rock the World” orchestral phenomenon are driven by boundless energy and razor-sharp interplay. The freshest, fastest, funniest dance band to hit the festival scene in years.
“If you ask me to name my favourite band in the world at the moment, it would be a tie, between Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba, from Mali, and the 17 Hippies, from Berlin.” Charlie Gillett, BBC Radio presenter.
“…this Berlin troupe has matured into something special; an orchestral phantasmagoria that slides between Balkan rhythms, French chanson, Weimar cabaret…great fun. The Observer
Berlin’s glorious answer to Taraf de Haidouks
Let’s get things straight from the start – there are 13 of them and only three or four have allowed their hair to descend below the collar. But what 17 Hippies lack in mathematical skills and hairstyles, they more than make up with their joyous transcontinental sound. Armed with myriad instruments to be plucked and blown, they inhabit the point where The Pogues and Taraf de Haidouks intersect, albeit proudly wearing a distinctive Middle European stamp. There’s a whiff of Weimar cabaret about their sound, along with a warm caress of French chanson and several blasts of Balkan fury. But it’s a seamless, unified sound, honed by 14 years and 1,500+ gigs together, and fuelled by a self-belief that often leads them down some unexpected strassen. As The Independent declared, they’re “often weird and mostly wonderful”. Indeed, any band willing to haul a euphonium up onstage certainly has our blessing. Nige Tasell
Berlin has emerged as one of the great contemporary melting pots and 17 Hippies are surely the finest of Berlin band of the moment. They aren’t hippies and there is only (!) 13 of them in their current line-up – double bass, banjo, ukulele and guitar give the rhythmic base, the melodious pattern is supplied by violins, cello, accordion, clarinet trombone and trumpet and there’s not a single piece of percussion in sight.
No one really knows why exactly seventeen or why even hippies. But having a name is good, like a road sign announcing a town – it tells you where you are. No one has any idea what’s coming up after the town sign, nor has anyone worked out what they were supposed to be doing or even where the 17 HIPPIES are heading.
We know for sure though that they have created a unique musical style, by colliding a variety of mostly European influences, from Gypsy dance to French chanson and German cabaret, with just a hint of anything from ragtime to country to early pop. From Algiers to Albuquerque, Berlin to Bloomington and Canton to Cantabria the unstoppable 17 Hippies bandwagon rolls on relentlessly, leaving crowds breathless but still wanting more.
Despite forming in 1995 it wasn’t until the summer of 2009 that they added the UK to the list of over 25 countries to be mesmerised by these first rate globalists, with ecstatic festival crowds from WOMAD to Larmer Tree punching the air and singing in unison to their whirling, crashing, diving, bobbing and weaving collision of musical styles This 13 strong “Rock the World” orchestral phenomenon are driven by boundless energy and razor-sharp interplay. The freshest, fastest, funniest dance band to hit the festival scene in years.
- Artist Website – www.17hippies.de
- Youtube – https://www.youtube.com/user/17hippiesmusic
- Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/17Hippies/
- Twitter – https://twitter.com/17hippies
- Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/17_hippies/
- Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Tq2hRlRrQzA4Zq2ncYiiA
17 Hippies: 20 Years – Anatomy
Floating VillageListening Post 92. The Berlin-based world/folk group 17 Hippies emerged in an open-minded Europe that valued diversity. Operating less like a band than a village in which each resident carries instruments and tastes acquired on foreign adventures, the collective’s disparate elements work beautifully together, against expectations. The result is a floating musical center of gravity as inspiring as it is fun, with dominant elements (Balkan rhythm, French chanson, Weimar cabaret) and recessive strands (klezmer, Gypsy swing or whatever style a piece calls for). They sing in German, French and English, fronted by Kiki Sauer (lyricist, vocals, accordion), Christopher Blenkinsop (composer, vocals, bouzouki) and Dirk Trageser (lyricist, vocals, guitar). Anatomy, their greatest hits collection, offers a kaleidoscopic look at their bandwidth, spinning danceable tales of boisterous men and pretty women carousing, drinking or whispering in bars and cafés. Adieu portrays an intimate parting: “The others have gone ahead and are waiting for me, but your scent lingers in the air,” Sauer sings in German, “I’ll take something with me that no one else can” (video 1). There’s nothing but energy in Uz (Don’t Mess With Me), a patter song in South Hessian dialect: “I’ll punch you if you don’t cut the crap… now move your fat ass,” Trageser asserts, propelled by a rushing Cajun-Turkish rhythmic mix (video 2). Marlène is a sensuous pickup story with French verses and German refrain: “You turn the heads of those seeking desire, you dance tango, java and waltz until you’re out of your mind!” (video 3). Though the band never takes itself too seriously, Anatomy’s 20 tracks prompt an earnest thought: With the EU’s liberal foundation cracking beneath their feet, maybe more Europeans—not to mention Americans—could reorient themselves by the light and sound of 17 Hippies. (Hipster Records)
Click here to download Technical Specification (PDF)
17 Hippies
Uz - Das Video
17 Hippies, Spain
Bourrée dite d' Aurore Sand
2019 Tour promo
Gimme dat harp boy
