A Few More Tweaks

Entrance:
The entrance situation was a bit chaotic due to a parallel concert taking place at the Lotto Arena right next to the Sportpaleis, with both venues opening their doors at the same time. The venue itself is massive, and while impressive, the signage could definitely be improved. Finding the correct way to the standing area was slightly confusing, especially for first-time visitors.

Place:
Since the front rows were already packed, I opted for a strategic spot directly in front of the FOH area. From there, I had a great panoramic view of the entire stage setup and could fully appreciate the visual elements of the show. While you miss some of the direct interaction with the band, the overall experience from this position is still very rewarding.

Opener:
Aesthetic Perfection delivered a solid performance. The sound was well-balanced, and Noizith switched sides more frequently with Lore Jarocinski, which added some dynamic movement to the stage. However, the crowd took a while to warm up—definitely not comparable to the energy levels in Leipzig or Amsterdam. Still, the band held their ground and kept the momentum going.

Band:
The band seemed to genuinely enjoy themselves on stage. There were still a few minor adjustments visible, which is to be expected early in a tour. Till Lindemann was in good spirits, and the overall chemistry between the members felt promising, the energy was positive.

Music:
The sound quality throughout the concert was strong. A highlight was the full version of Fish On, which was performed in its entirety. The setlist didn’t offer many surprises, but the medley transitions worked well and showed that the band is experimenting with new formats. It’s not a radically different show, but it’s evolving in the right direction.

Favorite moment:
One unexpected moment occurred when the large curtain failed to drop completely—it took a few minutes to fix the issue manually. Another surreal highlight: „Dr. Lohner“ performed again a “surgery” on Joe Letz, pulling several fish from Joe’s “private parts.” Joe Letz also caked the same person multiple times, which added to the absurdity.

Till treated the microphones not only with his feet he headbutted the microphone at one point—unclear whether he injured himself—and later „borrowed“ a camera again, trying to hand it to a girl on stage who looked visibly confused. These moments added a layer of unpredictability and humor to the show.

Total experience:
Even in a venue as large as the Sportpaleis, the show can be thoroughly enjoyed from the back rows or seated areas. While you miss the intimacy of front-row interaction, you gain a full view of the light show and massive screens, which worked flawlessly that night. The water effects during Blut were particularly impressive—far more intense than the sprinkler setups used in previous tours.

One small critique: the band members were sometimes hard to see clearly. A more balanced use of spotlights would help, especially since the dancers are constantly in full light, which isn’t always necessary. Drinks were served in standard recycling cups rather than the tour-branded ones, which were only available at the merch booth. Interestingly, there were many official cup collectors actively gathering cups before and during the show.

One fun detail that hasn’t spread much yet: Joe Letz hid several pics as Easter eggs throughout the first row. I pointed this out to a few visitors nearby, and they were genuinely thrilled to discover them. Also worth mentioning: some of the smaller fans found a clever way to deal with the height difference—they simply stacked empty cups to stand on and improve their view.

All in all, it was another great experience with new video sequences I hadn’t seen before. Still, I’ll always prefer being in the front row—it’s where the energy truly hits.

7/10

Laurie

Entrance:
I arrived around 4 PM, and there weren’t that many people in line yet. They had set up a rectangular queuing area in front of the entrance with different entry points. I was still able to go to one that had 4 people before me. The entry process was decent with not much pushing. Although where I was security took its time. People weren’t running either, I fast walked.

Place/seat and view:
I got second row, close to the middle on the right side. People were very chill and left a lot of space between everyone. I had a great view of the stage; however, I was sometimes blinded by the front lights, though that happens at a lot of other shows when you’re up front. Had a good view on everyone, since Joe’s drums are setup sideways I only saw his side though.

Opener:
This was my second time seeing Aesthetic Perfection, and I enjoyed it just as much as the first time. From what I could tell, the crowd didn’t really get into them at first, but started warming up toward the end, especially when they asked us to wave along with the song. My favorite track of theirs, Sex, was played second, which felt a bit unfortunate since the energy in the crowd wasn’t quite there yet.

Band:
I’d heard that during Blut more water would come down. At first, I didn’t feel anything, but the second time there was definitely more, still, it wasn’t that much. My glasses got a bit wet, but nothing major. When I looked behind me, though, it looked like proper rain, so maybe my spot was spared. The cake-throwing returned during Allesfresser, though it didn’t last as long as before. Each band member threw about two cakes (except Till), and Joe came down to perform his infamous tampon act, throwing four cakes at the same people in the middle. They must have been hungry!

The return of the ball during Platz Eins was fun, of course, it brought out a sea of phones, but that’s to be expected. Afterward, Till came along the barricade to give high fives. The act for Fish On also changed a bit and now takes less time. We got Joe on the table and Doctor Danny delivering the fish, he pulled around six fish out of Joe’s ass and then catapulted a bunch of them into the crowd. They reached their destination in the middle!

At one point during the show, I noticed Brynn Route limping off stage with Till’s help. I saw it happen multiple times, so I assume she might have hurt herself during the performance. She kept coming back, though, so hopefully it wasn’t anything serious.

Music:
The setlist was great fun and included some changes compared to the last time I saw them two years ago. The newest additions for me were Und die Engel singen, Prostitution, Du hast kein Herz, and Übers Meer. I was especially excited to hear Du hast kein Herz, and it absolutely delivered.

In Antwerp, we also got a small change compared to the first two shows of the tour. Skills in Pills still closed the main part of the set, but instead of Fish On opening the encore, we got Übers Meer. They played the full version of the song, ending with Till repeating “und der Wind weht übers Meer” before transitioning into Knebel with “In den Mund”. It was a nice surprise and worked really well. This also meant that Fish On was moved to second-to-last, with Ich hasse Kinder closing the show.

Favourite moment:
I liked how the show felt bigger this time, with impressive production, the lasers worked very well in combination with the smoke. Also that I got to hear Du hast kein Herz live.

Total experience:
Overall, I really enjoyed the show and the new production. However, the addition of the two dancers felt a bit unnecessary and made the stage look a little too busy at times. At one point, I honestly had a “where do I look now?” moment. The sound was good from where I was standing, everything came through clearly, though I’m no expert when it comes to that.