Houston fans scream, sigh, cry for Tokio Hotel

Houston fans scream, sigh, cry for Tokio Hotel



Bill Olive: For the Chronicle
Andy Fekete was first in line to meet Tokio Hotel Wednesday at Cactus Music.

The truth is, I know I'm not exactly part of the target audience -- teenage and female -- when it comes to Tokio Hotel. But I still don't quite get it.

A brash blend of pop, rock, hair product and mascara has produced two German albums and last year's English-language Scream, which has yet to yield big sales or any major radio hits in the United States. But thanks to the androgynous appeal of 19-year-old lead singer Bill Kaulitz, the group has amassed a frenzied fanbase that rivals those of more commercially successful acts like the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus.

They were out in full force Wednesday afternoon at Cactus Music, which hosted a Tokio Hotel autograph session that drew fans from all over the Texas. (The band stopped by Hot Hits 95.7 FM earlier in the day.) The Cactus line snaked through the store, into the adjoining room and spilled outside onto the sidewalk.

Hoodies and Hot Topic wristbands were everywhere

Jaelly Longoria, 18, and Claudia Chagolla, 19, drove almost six hours from Alamo, located in the Rio Grande Valley, in a convertible covered with German words of TH adoration. They wore matching purple tank tops and were second in line.

"We left at 1:52 a.m. exactly. We drove out from a Wal-Mart, from buying munchies. We've been driving all night," Chagolla says.

"My mom's a little worried," Longoria added. "But I'm 18, I've got a driver's license. I can go. I would skip my college classes anytime for Tokio Hotel.

"If I touch Bill's hair, and I get sent to jail, it's worth it."

The pair brought gifts, too. Rainbow Twizzlers for Bill; Skittles for identical-twin brother Tom Kaulitz.

Just ahead in line, securing the coveted first slot, was 17-year-old Andy Fekete. She showed up at 10 a.m. with little sister Sloan and mom Sheila, who had no qualms about pulling her daughters out of school in Spring.

"I went to first period, took my chemistry test, and then my mom picked me up," Fekete says with a giggle. "My teachers knew I was leaving for this, but the attendance (office) thinks I was leaving for a doctor's appointment."

She attended a TH concert in August at Verizon Wireless Theater and -- OMG! -- caught Tom's "sweaty towel." The group eventually signed the prized possession for Fekete.

"They have their own style, and their music's, like, their own," she says. "It's not American music at all."



Bill Olive: For the Chronicle
Claudia Chagolla and Jaelly Longoria drove their Tokio-mobile from the Valley.


When the group entered the building, the screams began and rarely subsided. Cameras flashed. Tears rolled. Moms clamored for a look. German security barked orders and rushed fans through the line.

The band sat at a modest table, markers in hand, as posters and discs flew by them. They rarely expressed emotion -- particularly Bill, who transmitted all the excitement of a porcelain doll even as fans gushed in front of him.

Bodyguards took gifts and tossed them behind the chairs. It all went by in a flash. Several girls bought additional copies of the band's disc and got back in line for another look at the hair. (Fans were required to buy a CD in order to get an autograph.)

"Bill ignored me," Longoria said outside. She was not happy.

"I gave him his candy, and then I asked him if I could shake his hand. He just turned away. I wanted to cry. I was like, 'You bitch.'

"But he still hasn't lost this fan."

After a few minutes, she joined Chagolla back in line.