Anja Huwe of Xmal Deutschland at The Paramount

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The voice of Xmal Deutschland went quiet for the better part of forty years -- and for anybody who wore out those early-eighties records, the fact that Anja Huwe is singing them again at all still feels improbable. Xmal Deutschland was one of the founding sounds of goth, all thundering toms and German incantation, and their frontwoman walked away from music for decades to make visual art before returning. Now she brings that catalog to the Paramount in Boyle Heights, an old ballroom with exactly the right amount of ghosts in the walls. This is not nostalgia tourism; it is a genuine reappearance, the kind the post-punk faithful will drive from three states to witness. If you know what those first two records meant, you already have your ticket. If you do not, prepare to understand.