Spike and the Gimme Gimmes - Munich

A cover band? THE cover band. At Nachtwerk Club in Munich on 30 October, Spike and the Gimme Gimmes showed what happens when you run pop hits through the punk meat grinder: no samples, no frills, no nonsense, just 90 minutes of full throttle right in the face. I was there on a whim as a paying guest, not accredited, and I didn't regret it for a second.

A quick word on the name so nobody goes home confused: for decades the band was called Me First and the Gimme Gimmes. Since April 2025, according to Fat Mike and singer Spike Slawson, it tours as Spike and the Gimme Gimmes. Spike's take, roughly: it was always his band anyway. They are currently on the "Take The Fall Tour".

The lineup on stage is straight out of a punk rock hall of fame: Spike Slawson on vocals (known from Swingin' Utters), CJ Ramone on bass and backing vocals (known from the... um... right: the Ramones), Dan Goatham (Snuff) and Jake Kiley on guitars (Strung Out) as well as Andrew "Pinch" Pinching on drums (The Damned).

UH!-Batman: mask on, brain off

It all kicked off with UH!-Batman, and what can I say: pretty crazy, very funny and exactly the right warm-up. Mask on his head, guitar slung over his belly, zero inhibitions. He also delivered two hits you'll never get out of your head again: "Who the f*** is Superman" and "I can not speak, after drinking UH! Whiskey".

The Gimmes: no holding back

Then the Gimmes took over, and for 90 minutes everything was played live and into the ground, nothing from a backing track. "Dancing Queen" by ABBA, "Kokomo" by the Beach Boys, "Rocket Man" by Elton John and even "Ein Herz aus Stein" in German. Yes, really. "Jolene" and "Take Me Home, Country Roads" were made for singing along, and singing along was a point of honor.

Spike's banter was great too: he announced every song as if it were a world sensation that the next one is a cover. For a pure punk cover band, a punchline that worked every single time.

Verdict: if you like pop hits at punk speed, humor and a pinch of madness, you're in exactly the right place. ABBA would never have believed it. The photos were taken with my phone.