Music & clubs

Five questions for… Rummelsnuff

INTERVIEW. Cult musician Rummelsnuff appears in all his considerable might at Badehaus Szimpla on Oct 22, launching his brand new beer, "Kraftbock". And of course playing a few tunes.

Image for Five questions for... Rummelsnuff
Spaten (c) Rummelsnuff

Bigger than a train and twice as loud, Rummelsnuff’s unique brand of “grobe Strommusik” has been a Berlin cult sensation for a decade. Now he’s getting into the craft beer scene with his own brand of bock and launching it with a concert on Thursday, October 22, 7:30pm at Badehaus Szimpla Musiksalon, so be sure not to miss it if you forget your testosterone injection that morning.

How often do you work out to maintain those muscles?

I always work out in the courtyard between meals… and four times a week I work out intensively for an hour and a half.

You’re getting your own beer brand. Tell us a good drinking story.

Captain Rummelsnuff calls the beer Kraftbock. And it lives up to its name. It’s a bock that contains rye malt, barley and spelt. And 10 percent alcohol. Most prefer to enjoy Kraftbock in moderation. But the beer is for friends of the captain. Not so much for him, even if he tried it and found it to be excellent. For quite a few years, Rummelsnuff has left the enjoyment of alcohol to others, because the last drinking story ended, as so often, in arrest. I’ve caused enough damage for one lifetime.

How long have so you been Rummelsnuff? Who were you beforehand?

A bouncer and bodybuilder (1.76cm, 110kg) called Roger discovered in 2005 that he’s actually called Rummelsnuff.

What’s your saddest song? How did you write it?

Melancholy is ever-present in Captain Rummelsnuff’s music. But also trust. The two come in contact with one another again and again. And so sailor-hyms like “Salzig schmeckt der Wind” (“The wind tastes salty”) are slightly melancholic, but never hopelessly sad.

What’s your most joyful song? What was its inspiration?

One of them is a song called “Bratwurstzange” (“barbecue tongs”). It’s a song praising a man from Thuringia, who doesn’t need tongs to flip the sausages on the hot grill, but does it with his hands. Another is “Pumper” which is about those lads bursting with vigour who live at the edge of Berlin.

Rummelsnuff, Oct 22, doors open 19:30 | Badehaus: Szimpla Musiksalon, Revaler Straβe 99, Friedrichshain, S+U-Bhf Warschauer Straβe