Concert Review – Shirley Holmes @ Kulturzentrum Lagerhaus, Bremen, 3/15/2025

Shirley Holmes live in Bremen, DE.

In 2019, Apple Music suggested a curated playlist called “Deutschrock,” as I had been listening to a lot of Rammstein. It was my second year learning German, and I was excited to see what bands were popular in Germany at the time. On the playlist were a few songs by the female-fronted band Shirley Holmes.

This past Saturday, I got to see Shirley Holmes live at a local bar/cultural center that my friends frequent. To say it was a full-circle moment is an understatement. I was seeing a band from Berlin, speaking and singing in German, while living Germany. Would my 2019 self ever think that I’d get to experience this? Probably not. 

Above the Lagerhaus pub is a small but homey venue. Even though I’d been to the bar multiple nights with friends, I never realized it was a venue as well until I bought the tickets. The atmosphere of the venue was what I’ve been missing from shows at home: a space held together by the love of live music. 

A small alternative/punk/math rock band from Bremen, Crash Blossoms, opened the show. It was funny to hear them talk to the audience in German, but sing in English. I appreciated seeing Lagerhaus support small bands from the community, as that is what a DIY venue is supposed to do. 

When Shirley Holmes took the stage, I don’t know what I was expecting, but any expectations were exceeded by their electric performance. It is easy to tell when bands truly love what they do, and I could feel the passion the band members had for the music. Unlike many other German bands, Shirley Holmes’ songs are all in German. They played one of my favorites, “BinIchBinIch”, which is a song that has expanded the German verbs in my vocabulary. The group played almost all of the songs from their new album, Mein bestes Selbst, which was released in February of this year. But they gave the crowd some old hits too, such as “Tanzen!”, which as the name suggests, got everyone dancing. 

To my knowledge, Shirley Holmes has never done a US tour, but if they ever do, go see them. My friend from the Dickinson program came with me, and shared that she’d only ever been to one concert: NLE Choppa sponsored by MOB and WDCV. Her post-show review? She had a great time. If that’s not enough to check these guys out, I don’t know what is. 

Nina Grafton is a Dickinson student whose favorite pastime is going to concerts. When she’s not abroad, you can listen to her show, Everyday Headbangers, on Wednesdays from 6-7 PM.