This band is ageless. One is inclined to say: forever young. The formation Sportfreunde Stiller, consisting of the three musicians Peter Brugger (guitar), Florian Weber (drums) and Rüdiger Linhof (bass), can actually look back on 27 years as a band. After a six-year album break, the trio is back with their eighth album “Jeder nur ein X” – in a manner that is as tried and true as it is typical.
In the 15 new songs, the musicians once again succeed in creating a snappy mix of rock, pop, happy punk, Neue Deutsche Welle borrowings and occasional funk and disco elements. Are the Sportis, as the Bavarian hit parade strikers are affectionately called by fans, musically broadened today? “It’s hard to say when you’re busy working on songs all the time,” says Peter Brugger of the German Press Agency, “but I think we’ve always tried a lot of things.”
“We listen to each other well”
This is because the three band members have different musical preferences. Although this slows down the pace of work, it is not an artistic disadvantage. On the contrary: “Of course it’s always a struggle for individual titles, but that always leads us down new paths,” says Rüdiger “Rüde” Linhof. It’s all a question of communication. In a democratic process? “Yes, yes,” says Brugger, “we listen to each other carefully. I really appreciate that in this band phase.”
That wasn’t always the case. There have also been times when one or the other was “run over”. Zoff has already put an abrupt end to many a promising band career. But not this committed trio from the Munich area. “Rüde” Linhof says: “We’re having fun with jams at the moment and we’re even really keen on rehearsals. That’s atypical for us and probably speaks for our good feeling for the band.”
As on earlier albums, the majority of the songs have a sunny, carefree attitude to life. A spirit that lets you look at the unfortunate things in life – and there are currently more than enough of them – a little milder and much more relaxed. Ukraine war? climate change? Trump comeback? The band bravely starts off with “I’m Alright” in the first single release. Typical Sportfreunde Stiller joke included: “Has anyone seen my tattoo, I can’t find it right now”.
“I don’t give a damn about bad times”, which plays with New Wave quotes, is also made of similar song wood, and with “Hand in Hand” the Upper Bavarian threesome succeeds in creating a fraternal title that has all the prerequisites for a fan anthem.
Not just cheerfulness
Nevertheless, the musicians on “Jeder nur ein X” don’t just spread happiness. “Waechter” is based on a friend of the band who was suffering from depression, and “Schwer ums Herz” sees main songwriter and singer Peter Brugger coming to terms with the death of his father. “He had a long and fulfilling life,” says Brugger, “but it doesn’t hurt any less. When I wrote the song, I immersed myself in this grief. That’s also something beautiful – and it helps to deal with this stroke of fate better to process.” He cannot predict how it will be for him to present the song live: “I haven’t thought about it yet, but it could be difficult for me.”
Sportfreunde Stiller – Homepage
