The venerable heavy metal act from Hanover, Germany, which has toured the world over for more than 30 years, will at last make it's first stop in the Caribbean region. The Scorpions perform in the Queen's Park Savannah in Port of Spain this evening. Local metal act Orange Sky will open the show. More information available at Star Events, Ltd., promoters of the show.

The Soca Twins of Berlin have been nominated for the third year in a row at the International Soca Awards 2008. They are once again up for category 13, International Soca DJ of the year, and their mix CD, Addicted 2 Soca, is up for category 28, Best DJ Soca Mix CD of the Year. In the past two years they were denied a win, but possibly the third time is the charm. You can vote for them and all other categories here.

The sixth annual International Soca Awards are going to be presented live from St. Kitts this year on October 18th. The awards ceremony will be available online at socatvonline.com.

From the Trinidad Express:

Soca Soars In Germany
By Wayne Bowman

When Bunji Garlin and Fayann Lyons set off on their recent promotional tour of Europe they were not seeking to conquer new territories solely for their benefit. The artistes, who are these days referred to as the royal couple of soca, desired to open doors for all up and coming artistes out of Trinidad and Tobago.

Judging from the response of the thousands of Europeans who flocked to the concerts to see Garlin and Lyons in action, we can safely say that local artistes will have good ground to tread upon on that continent.

The tour ended in Berlin on May 12 when Garlin and Lyons performed in that city's carnival, which is not fashioned after Trinidad's Carnival, but in fact brings elements of cultures from around the world together.

The Faluma Caribbean Music Shop is back online after a two week hiatus with a new look. Faluma is Europe's specialist for soca and calypso CDs and vinyl. They are continuing to add new products to the new store front.

Heitersheim in Baden-Württemberg is celebrating its first Caribbean Night on Saturday, May 31. It is sponsored by the Männergesangverein (MGV), the men's choral association in town. The Caribbean Steelband from Rheinfelden will provide entertainment, along with Latin group, Blue Bananas. Doors open at 7pm and the show begins at 8pm. Cover is 7€.

The mas camp in Yaam began on April 13 and is open Thursday to Saturday from 5pm. Entry is free except for Sunday Specials. Everyone is invited for the lime even if not working on a costume. Food is available at nominal prices along with appearances by various Soca DJ's from Berlin, bottle and spoon jams and just plain nice folks. "Carnival Fever" T-shirts will also be available.

The closing party is on May 5 at 8pm.

Bunji Garlin and Fay-Ann Lyons will perform on May 11 at the Glow Carnival Special at the Festsaal Kreuzburg in Berlin supported by the Soca Twins, Supersonic, Mash up Crew, and Barney Miller. The event begins at 10pm.

The Berlin Carnival, Karneval Der Kulturen, gets in swing this week from May 9 to 12. Heads up High Carnival Special With Soca Twins, Bacchanal Sisters, and Soundbwoys Destiny takes place on Saturday night, May 10 at the Maschinenhaus, Kulturbrauerei at 11pm.

The Solendo in Dortmund will be hosting it's fourth Caribbean Night on Saturday, February 23.
Festivities begin at 7pm and feature steel bands Bäng Bäng (Dortmund) and Nostalgia Steelband (Great Britain) as well as dance troupe Seis del Son, along with Caribbean food & cocktails. Tickets for 15€ available at Solendo at at the Kulturinfoshop, Ticket-Shop Dortmund City and VVK outlets.

Soul and R&B artist, Sharon Phillips, is making a few appearances in Germany over the next few months.

First up on February 23 she'll be at Groove Garden at Acanto in Hannover, on April 25 she's at the Baltic Soul Weekender 2008 on the Weissenhäuser Strand, on May 9 at the Residenz in Paderborn, and on June 21 back in Hannover as part of Fete de la Musique.

The Trinidad & Tobago born singer made her first impact on the European scene in 2003 with the release of "Touch Me" which was remixed by producers like Tiefschwarz amongst others. The next big step in her career came with the release of "Want2/Need2" which, with the help of remixes from Trentemöller and Switch became a respectable hit in the worldwide Dance scene.

In early 2007, Sharon returned to Germany when she was invited by Mousse T. to sing on the latest production by SE:SA, "Like This Like That" which she contributed vocals to.

Below is the video.