Rock Monsters Romania

What do carols and Robin and the Backstabbers have in common? It’s always a good time to listen to them, but especially in this period. Jokes aside, on the 28th of December, I was in Expirat to see the band for the second time this year, after their show on the 1st of September, and for the fourth time in my life. But this time was special because it was the first time when I could make it to their end of the year concert.

The beginning was in full force with popular songs like “Nataşa” and “Sat după Sat”,where Robin’s unique energy transferred to everybody in the sold out Expirat.

After one short break for guitar tuning (it doesn’t always go according to the plan, does it?) and few sips of beer by Robin, the show went on with “M E C A N I C Ă F I N Ă”, a song that reminded me of the show they had in 2019 at Fall in Love, just few weeks before the release of their latest album, “Bacovia Overdrive vol. III: Vladivostok“. Soon after, the band played “Paris Dakar”, a song that is not usually in their playlist.

Another special song was “SPNZRTR” with its unique and powerful intro solo, a song where guitars were played at full force… and Robin was purely Robin with his trademark moves, including the “God Position” as I love to name it and a small Wednesday dance reference. After playing a new song that I unfortunately forgot the name of (Later edit: “Zenovia OMG”) and powerful claps during “aUGAda!”, the band went full metal at the bis, in a manner that I’ve never seen at their shows.

Another thing I loved was the interaction between the band and the public, including “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” which was sung by everyone.

The whole concert felt like a dream, a late Christmas gift for all in the venue. Even if it was winter outside, I left the concert feeling like it was the middle of the summer, at an amazing festival. Only the cold weather could tell me otherwise… my mind and my soul were back to the first time I saw RatB live and nothing could change that. As 2023 was approaching and we heard a new song on the set, I am sure that I’ll see them again next year, hopefully with new songs and, why not, a new album.

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Article by Radu Mihai

Photos by Raluca Stanescu