Self-proclaimed ‘trashiest transvestites’ take to Lincoln stage

When Lincoln musician Sam Dale decided to holiday in Berlin, he never expected that he would return six years later for a rock performance alongside four burley Germans — and in women’s clothes.

The group, called The Feminists, describe themselves as a cross-dressing trash-rock band popular for their ‘undercover’ shows and messages of equality.

Lead-singer Sam played in bands in Lincoln as a teenager, but left when we was 19 to take a trip to Berlin.

Sam said: “In 2008 I went on holiday to Berlin, and found out that I could make a living busking, so decided to stay.

“A year or so later some burly Germans came up to me in a bar, after I had sung, and asked me if I wanted to join their band.

“The band was a ‘prog rock’ act, but it later turned out they had a side project called The Feminists and this is what really caught my imagination.

“The idea came up one day when they needed to play an ‘undercover’ show, so they put on women’s clothes as disguises, and played all of the wild, trashy rock songs that they would never normally play.

“I loved the songs and the idea: the name is related to the dresses, but I ran with it and turned the shows into a sort of Feminist preaching show, where I shout to the audience about equality. It works well and the audiences responses are mad!”

The Feminists will return to Lincoln on October 3.

According to Sam, Berlin is a place “where anything goes” and cross-dressing bands are not unheard of, “but no one does it quite like The Feminists”.

The Feminists will be visiting Lincoln on Friday, October 3, for a one-off performance at Ye Olde Crowne, on Casketgate.

The gig will mark the second time the group have performed in Lincoln.

Sam added: “October 3 is German Reunification Day, the holiday in Germany for when East and West Germany were reunited.

“Weirdly enough, I am from the Lincoln Jewish Community, and the night is also Yom Kippur, the most significant Holy Day in the Jewish calendar! So what better way to celebrate than by bringing the lads over to the homeland?”