They revolutionized Cologne’s Carnival with their songs about wild parties and arrogant festival presidents. A producer once said of the Cologne-based rock band “Brings”: They live rock & roll more than any other group.
The rock ensemble was founded by brothers Peter and Stephan Brings, guitarist Harry Alfter, keyboardist Kai Engel and drummer Christian Blüm. When they took the stage at the Carnival in 2000 with the song “Superjeilezick”, it didn’t just spell the beginning of a new era for the band. The conservative Carnival sessions had never before featured lyrics about drug use. The song became a hit throughout Germany and secured the band’s future. After 23 years on the stage, the group – which has added to its success over time – will finally tell its story without pulling any punches.
How do you free yourself from the burden of having a famous father? (Kai Engel’s father is Cologne’s legend Tommy Engel; Christian Blüm’s father was the labor secretary). How can you rebel against the developments changing a city while benefiting from them at the same time? And how difficult is it to accommodate the insane marathon of a Carnival session, tours across all of Germany and all the new challenges that crop up with the addition of a regimented family life? The musicians recount on-stage crying fits, bouts of depression, drug crashes and break-ups, teenage life on the tour bus and how it feels to hear 50,000 people singing your own songs.
