Lucifer Loves Danzig

Johanna Sadonis: It is hard to pinpoint the best gig of my life. For one, being born in 1979 I was clearly born too late to see my heroes in their prime. Nevertheless, being a music maniac I have been going to shows for nearly 30 years and seen a huge amount of artists and many highlights in the most peculiar places. I’ve had my mind blown by the ethereal perfection of Dead Can Dance at the Tempodrom in Berlin. I’ve sat two nights first row watching my hero Patti Smith in a small church in Berlin and it touched me so, my eyes swell with tears numerous times.

My first concert at the tender age of 13 was Guns N Roses at the Olympic Stadium Berlin, where I got seated on the very tribune Hitler, the monster, watched the Olympic games in 1936. I’ve seen KISS play on a cruise ship in the Bahamas. I’ve seen Lindsey Buckingham playing solos to me and mouthing “I love you” from the stage during a Fleetwood Mac show that I had been dying to see. I’ve seen all four Stones play a mind boggling show in Stockholm, right after a jaw dropping show by The Hellacopters, my husbands band. When both bands met backstage for a photo, Mick Jagger zoomed past me rolling his eyes. Not sure what it was about me that annoyed him but it remains one of the best concerts I saw ha! I swayed to the magic that is Black Mountain at the Troubadour surrounded by a cloud of weed and it felt like the best thing ever and I’ve seen Iggy Pop many times around the world knocking me off my socks over and over again.

Maybe the most intense experiences though are the very first gigs, when one is most impressionable.

Considering this, seeing Danzig at Huxley’s Berlin in 1993 at the age of 14 was the greatest thing for me. First row I found myself face to face with very sweaty devilish rock and roll. For the first time this close to a stage, I was fully immersed in the band’s furious energy and the closest I had ever gotten to any amps. And boy, were they loud!

The wild screaming guitars tore right through me. Just like thunder! In this old ballroom that my grandmother used to dance in as a young girl, adorned with molded ceilings, the crowd went nuts and my little body got squashed against the fence in front of me. I had just lost my virginity that spring and got really into Metal and at this show I completely surrendered myself to the music of black leather clad gods of rock. See that inverted cross I had drawn onto the back of my hand in the photo? That night Danzig completely stole me over to the dark side and it wouldn’t be long until I dyed my blonde hair raven black. The immense influence this had on me is very evident through the decades in my music, my lyrics and the imagery I love and apply. So, thank you, Glenn.