Live music in March

“1 lost okapi” is how the concert announcement puts it in typical Helsinki-speak. “Perhaps the voice of an alien gazing longingly at the distant starry sky” is what it says on Momotrope’s website, and the truth probably lies somewhere in between. “Sound conglomerate” is also mentioned there, along with “conceptual weirdness”, which brings us a bit closer to understanding this band. What do they do? Sometimes atmospheric pop, sometimes wild electronica – but always something surprising.

01.03. | Helsinki, Zurich

Two enchanting women with an ensemble – this could be something special. Zola Jesus, the undisputed queen of goth who trained as an opera singer, was once described by *Der Spiegel* as the ‘Lady Gaga of the armchair’. And that’s perhaps not too far off the mark. She is accompanied by the Swiss musician Marie Krüttli. The trained pianist has already won several jazz awards and, in her music, effortlessly crosses the boundaries between profound jazz piano and breezy experimental pop.

07 Mar | Moods, Zurich

Is this the most minimalist post-punk Antistatic have to offer? Or is it the most complex math rock? In any case, I’ve never seen anyone use guitars as percussion instruments quite as radically as these Danes do. A vocal-less, rhythmic adventure ride. And Sc’ööf, the Swiss band with the unpronounceable name, opening the evening? They take the rhythmic antics to the extreme, moving somewhere between jazz, punk and the atonal experiments of New Music.

10 March, Moods, Zurich

Frank Spilker and his band Die Sterne have not only survived the 90s, they remain one of Germany’s most stylish and least cringe-worthy pop bands to this day. It’s been a long time since they caused a sensation with songs like ‘Universal Tellerwäscher’ and ‘Was hat dich bloß so ruiniert’, and every new album is still a little goldmine.

26 March | Bogen F, Zurich

Die Anstalt play such cold 80s wave that you might think the Cold War was still in full swing and you were right in the middle of walled-off Berlin. The aesthetics, sound and attitude are spot on here: it’s freezing!

28 March | Gaswerk, Winterthur