A sensational double bill of local talent open air in Gretchen’s yard this July with Mieke Miami and Yelka both performing live. Representing 2 of the cities finest labels, Fun in the Church and Karaoke Kalk, this is an unbeatable programme of alternative, jazz-inflected, avant-pop.
Mieke Miami is the new indie pop star from Berlin’s periphery. Born in Hamburg and moved to Brandenburg via Berlin, where she was already declared one of the most important newcomers of 2021 by Tipberlin. Musically, the formidable multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and singer – we forgot producer – moves somewhere between folk, pop, acid jazz, soul and funk. As if Roisin Murphy had formed a band together with Joni Mitchell and ESG.
‘Montecarlo Magic’, the follow- up to her debut album ‘In The Forest’ (2016, Sonar Kollektiv) may no longer darken through the forest, but there is truly no compulsion to light either. It is more of a special, positive swing that radiates inwards and outwards, a state that seems to be an inner retreat and a journey at the same time: Florida, California and Brandenburg all nestle very close together there.
The most unlikely band of the year. YELKA are set to release 10 strictly limited vinyl albums in 3 years with artwork by Kompakt’s Bianca Strauch-Freytag. And they do so without any kind of social media. Instead they play residencies in Hamburg and Berlin (more international residencies to follow).In strange times, beautiful things happen. People reunite to eventually get back to doing what they’ve wanted to do all along. This is what was happening about three years ago, when drummer Christian Obermaier and Daniel Meteo met playing soccer in the Uckermark region of Germany, only to shortly after form a new band with bassist and singer Yelka Wehmeier in Berlin. According to lore, it was above all Meteo’s humor that convinced Obermeier.
Meteo is known in the past years mainly as the manager of Apparat, music publisher (Random Noize) and label maker (Shitkatapult, The Album Label), Wehmeier most recently as a bassist in the first line-up of Patrick Wagner’s band Gewalt, and Christian Obermaier, we had almost forgotten about him, although in the noughties he was one of the most sought-after drummers in the Berlin indie world, playing amongst other in SchneiderTM’s band. He and the band’s namesake Yelka Wehmeier, in turn, played together in the criminally overlooked Berlin post-rock band EAGLE BOSTON until 2013! YELKA now sounds much more brittle, minimalist. Which might be due to Daniel Meteo’s Magic Band-like guitar playing.
But also musical harbingers like Captain Beefheart, Can or the electric Davis between Kraut and Jazz!Fun in the church-A&R Maurice Summen was so enthusiastic about the already recorded material that he spontaneously offered the trio a 10-album deal. So in 2023 alone, three YELKA albums will be released on Fun in the church. (March, June, September). By the end of 2025, all 10 albums should then be released. No wonder they have no time for the Internet beyond that.
The doubleconcert now at Gretchen (Yard Open Air) will showcase actual and new songs of both bands: YELKA will debut parts of the new album live (the album FOR will be released on Karaoke Kalk end of June 24) and MIEKE MIAMI will show up with a full band and play new compositions from the upcoming album BIRDLAND, which will be released by Sonar Kollektiv in September this year. An actual single called Whispering Pines is already airing on BBC or Radio 1.
Yelka and Mieke Miami
Wednesday, 17th July 2024 | Doors 19:00 | Starts 20:00 CET
Gretchen | Obentrautstraße 19-21 in 10963 Berlin
