We said we might just be able to squeeze some more D-A-D in this year, and we did! Now out on their own tour, D-A-D was visiting Gjethuset in Frederiksværk. Now, this is a venue we’ve never heard about before, but then again, we’ve never been to Frederiksværk either, so how could we?
There was a little bit of trepidation about the show. Gjethuset, a very nice place it would turn out, had announced an outdoor show, and the meteorologists had announced rain all night long. As it was raining all the way from the office to Frederiksværk, we weren’t becoming more hopeful, but the rock gods smiled upon us, and as soon as we had parked our car, and headed for the nearby venue, the rain stopped, and we didn’t see another drop for the rest of the evening.

“God damnit Frederiksværk! It feels like yesterday, that we were here last. Still the same fucking people!”
- Jesper Binzer (vocals/guitar)

We had had a similar trepidation about the support, Go Go Berlin, but they too proved kinder to us than first thought. So, how after two such positive surprises could anything go wrong with D-A-D?
It couldn’t, was the clear answer in my mind, as I now stood waiting for the main band, amongst a much larger crowd than before, watching the stage being built. In came the sofa, announcing this to be a Riskin’ It All focused concert, and in came Stig Pedersen’s many, many basses, one after the other, for tuning and soundcheck. A shady, hooded character took care of Jacob Binzer’s guitars (we’re assuming it was Jacob himself), and when it was time for Laust Sonne’s drums to be checked, the good people of Gjethuset had a guy suffering from Down’s syndrome do the honour. I’m not sure if he’s an actual member of the crew, or just a lucky son of a gun, but either way, it was clear that he was having the time of his life. He wasn’t a great musician, but his performance skills were equal to none, and as he ran out on the catwalk lifting his hands in the air, the crowd cheered him on wholeheartedly.
And then we waited. And waited. And then we waited some more. Apparently, something technical was amiss, and we had to wait for a whole hour after Go Go Berlin left, before D-A-D came on. This really tested the crowd’s patience, and a personal thought is that it might have been made a bit more durable if there had been some background music playing in between the bands.

Finally, the time arrived though, and after a brand new opening consisting of an evil laugh coming out of the speakers, D-A-D came on hard with Bad Craziness. It didn’t take long before all the waiting was forgiven, and Frederiksværk was happily enjoying itself together with what was so clearly the main event of the evening.
There’s not much to say about the set as such. Anyone who knows the album, and let’s be fair here, anyone who knows D-A-D also knows Riskin’ It All, knows what songs were played, and in what order. We were happy to hear that they were still going with the special German release, so that I Won’t Cut My Hair was included, something that hit home with the crowd in a big way, but there were of course all the other, lesser played songs, that were also a delight to hear. D-A-D have found their own new favourite in Down That Dusty 3’rd World Road, and it hits home here as well, and I can never get enough of Grow Or Pay. Makin’ Fun Of Money and Smart Boy Can’t Tell Ya’ are also two tracks that have seen a nice revival in the live setting.
What I was most happy about however, was that even though D-A-D weren’t restricted by the tight setting of Grøn Koncert, they were still able to deliver a tight show, without too much time spent on solos. Sure, there was a bit of jamming from Sonne and Jacob Binzer respectively, but a bit should be in there. Just not too much, and D-A-D walked that silver line very safely here.

“Frederiks motherfucking værk!”
- Jesper Binzer (vocals/guitar)

“I feel he’s cursing a lot tonight.”
- Jacob Binzer (guitar)

There were a few other well-known things that weren’t exactly as they usually are. Jesper Binzer, for instance, didn’t talk quite as much as we’re used to, but kept it nice and tight like the rest of them.
Then there was the thing about the pyrotechnics – there were none. Not even Pedersen’s trick with the rocket hat in Sleeping My Day Away. Not sure why, but I allow myself a guess, it would something about security rules.
Still, even with these details cut out, the crowd was eating the show up from start to finish.
The audience was generally well behaved, and shouted and applauded at all the right moments, and even though nothing extraordinarily wild happened, it was easy to see that the good people of Frederiksværk were enjoying themselves royally. Sleeping My Day Away and Laugh ‘N’ A ½ saw some great singing, as always, and as I mentioned above, I Won’t Cut My Hair also got a lot of love. What had started out as a quite slow evening, finally erupted into the party it was meant to be.

“We’re going to bid you farewell now, with an old ass.”
- Stig Pedersen (bass/vocals)

And then it was over, faster than we could have hoped for, but leaving behind a nice sense of fulfilment nonetheless. D-A-D had proved to be a nice, well-known band to revisit, and Gjethuset had proved to be a nice, new venue to visit. Not a drop of rain fell, and all of our trepidations were put to shame. What more can we ask for?

Setlist:

Bad Craziness
D*Law
Day Of Wrong Moves
Rock ‘N’ Rock Radar
I Won’t Cut My Hair
Down That Dusty 3’rd World Road
Makin’ Fun Of Money
Grow Or Pay
Smart Boy Can’t Tell Ya’
Riskin’ It All
Laugh ‘N’ A ½
Jihad
Sleeping My Day Away
It’s After Dark