That’s how it was at ALPHAVILLE
February 14, 2025, Hamburg, Inselpark
“A promise is a promise …”
Alphaville has been on tour since November 2024 to celebrate the band’s 40th anniversary. “Forever! Live – Best of 40 Years” will take the formation around Marian Gold through Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Including on Valentine’s Day 2025 in Hamburg. Winter has arrived in the city and there is still some snow on the ground as the fans make their way to Inselpark. But it should warm up quickly in the well-filled hall …
Clear the stage
The lights went out punctually at 8 p.m., leaving only the stage bathed in blue, pulsating light. One by one, David Goodes on guitar, Alexandra Merl on bass, Jakob Kiersch on drums and Carsten Brocker on keyboards took their places. The backing singers Elisabeth Markstein and Ulrike Weidemüller positioned themselves in the middle of the stage and then finally the time had come: Marian Gold entered the stage and opened the evening with “Golden Feeling”.
Audiovisual journey
Right from the start, it was clear that Alphaville would also take the audience on a visual journey. In addition to an impressive light show, there were video projections to match each song. The atmosphere on stage was exuberant, seamlessly transitioning from the opener straight into “Wishful Thinking” and then “Dance with Me”. Gold showed impressively that even after 40 years in the music business, he still wants to do what he does. He performed a fitting dance interlude to “Dance with Me”.
Japan was in West Berlin
The first highlight of the evening, however, was “Big in Japan”. Marian announced the song with its genesis and by the time he said “Welcome to West Berlin!” it was clear that the hit from 1984 would now be heard. During the intro, almost nobody was able to stay in their seats, while Markstein and Weidemüller encouraged the audience to clap along in the background. Vocally, Gold showed that his voice can still carry the song effortlessly – in general, he surprised the audience that evening with his still youthful-sounding voice, which danced through the setlist.
Exuberant live musicians
Keyboardist Carsten Brocker was just as committed as Gold and the backing singers and almost deserved his own show. Brocker danced exuberantly between his keyboards, cheered on the audience and performed many an interlude with his synthesizer that would make a guitarist green with envy.
“A promise is a promise …”
Between songs, Gold told little anecdotes about the band’s history or the creation of the individual songs. The idea for “Red Rose”, for example, came to him on the way to the recording studio in Münster in rhythm with his steps. When his daughter Lily heard the song, she made her father promise to sing it with him one day. On this tour, the time had come. Lily danced across the stage with her father and spread her good mood to the very last row of the Inselpark. Above all, however, she proved that she doesn’t have to hide behind Marian Gold vocally. She then said goodbye with a “A promise is a promise and will not be broken!”.
Save the best for last
As we all know, the best always comes at the end. And so Alphaville had saved their greatest hits until the end of the setlist. With “A Victory of Love” and “Sounds Like a Melody”, the atmosphere in the hall was once again really boosted. The last songs didn’t keep anyone in their seats, with “Sounds Like a Melody” in particular heating things up.
“Do you really want to live forever?”
The absolute highlight, however, was – of course – “Forever Young”. The stage was bathed in dreamy light and video projections, and Marian Gold left it to the audience to sing along to the first chorus at the top of their lungs. Alphaville really savored the moment once again before the lights in the Inselpark came back on after almost two hours. The audience went out into the cold winter night and some of them were probably still humming along to “Forever Young” on the way home.
Text: Katrin Hemmerling
Photos: Thomas Friedel Fuhrmann
Live line-up
Marian Gold – vocals
David Goodes – guitar
Alexandra Merl – bass
Jakob Kiersch – drums Carsten Brocker – keyboards
Elisabeth Markstein, Ulrike Weidemüller – background vocals
Setlist:
“Golden Feeling” – “Wishful Thinking” – “Dance with Me” – “Big in Japan” – “Romeos” – “Call Me” – “Sensations” – “Heaven on Earth (The Things We’ve Got to Do)” – “Carry Your Flag” – “Inside Out” – “I Die for You Today” – “The Mysteries of Love” – “Universal Daddy” – “To Germany with Love” – “Fallen Angel” – “Red Rose” – “Fools” – “A Victory of Love” – “Sounds Like a Melody” – “Forever Young”
