It was a stormy invasion, the arrival of Katzenjammer's four girls from high Oslo to the Western European club circuit. The Netherlands fell in love with their energetic and colorful shows. And Katzenjammer could also play on a range of authentic instruments such as the balalaika and the xylophone. This paid off on their second album A Kiss Before You Go (2011) on which their cabaret-like mix of
… rock, punk, Balkan and Scandinavian folk came to fruition. Katzenjammer broke through in Germany, but was unable to seal this momentum: successor Rockland only appears four years later, an eternity in the fast music world. The four members are now over thirty but nothing has changed yet, they assure us on social media. Nevertheless, Rockland sounds as if they have thought hard about it all these years, so that the bouncy and spontaneous of yesteryear is lacking. The sjeu is a bit off and what remains is a fine pop album in which this time a striking amount of americana influences resound. (MR)more
