That’s how it was at COVENANT

Automatic translation. Improvements are constantly being worked on.

February 04, 2026, Hamburg Markthalle
Support: Isaac Howlett

Covenant – 40 years of frequency, 40 years of future

Some bands accompany a scene. Others shape it. Covenant belong to precisely that rare category that not only play electronic darkness, but give it meaning. Since the mid-eighties, they have been writing this cold, clear sound that knows heart and machine at the same time. Electronic, but never empty. Dark, but never without hope. Four decades later, nothing about it seems tired. Cool aesthetics, philosophical depth, club-ready energy – a field of tension that connects generations and has lost none of its power after forty years.

Two hours, twenty-two minutes and not one breath too many

On February 4, 2026, Hamburg’s Markthalle will become the echo chamber of this story. Hamburg, February, cold air outside the door. Inside, fog as thick as memory. And somewhere between the cones of light is a truth that doesn’t need to be explained in this scene: Covenant are not a throwback. Covenant are the present. The market hall is full, despite the winter outside. Black fabrics, calm faces, this wordless agreement among people who know why they are here and who expect more than a mere retrospective. The concept of the evening is almost programmatic: at least two songs from each album, played in just under two and a half hours – a complete journey through time, sound and memory.

A quiet start with an open soul

Before the pressure comes, the stage belongs to Isaac Howlett. Long familiar as the voice of Empathy Test, he is more vulnerable solo, more direct, closer to the audience. Without pathos, without protection, just voice and emotion. “Eggshell” and the unreleased “Something Changed” open the evening gently, carried by a clear voice and quiet intensity. Later, his version of “Save Myself” lends the well-known original an almost floating melancholy, before “Ghost of the Tsunami”, “Spiralling” and “House of Cards” slowly warm up the room. Not a loud warm-up – rather a luminous prelude that creates atmosphere instead of forcing it. A quiet preparation for what is about to happen.

Speed, pressure, collective pulse

Then darkness. More fog. A barely audible murmur and a brief moment without time. With “Theremin” and “Speed”, Covenant begin without detour – cool, precise, immediately present. The bass is not just audible, it can be felt in the ribs and floor and the room knows again what forward feels like. Suddenly, “Stalker” opens up the room to the dance floor, followed by “Feedback” and “Go Film”, which transform rhythm into movement. Not wild – but controlled, like a heartbeat that knows exactly why it’s beating. “I Am” feels like an inner statement before “Der Leiermann” unfolds its dark elegance and segues directly into the sparkling “Dead Stars” – a moment of collective remembrance. The technology stops briefly in the middle of “Bullet”, but the restart only makes the song more intense, more alive, more human. Mistakes are part of life.

Frequency becomes body

Later, “Call the Ships to Port” and “Happy Man” drive the energy further forward before “20 Hz” makes the room vibrate physically. “The Men” and “The Beauty and the Grace” then strike a calmer, more thoughtful note, taking the tempo out but not the depth, while “Judge of My Domain”, “Last Dance” and “Morning Star” condense the atmosphere instead of increasing the volume, floating rather than running. With “I Close My Eyes”, time seems to stand still for a moment – a quiet climax between closeness and remembrance.

Encores like chapters of a long journey

But this evening is not about to end. “Babel”, “Figurehead” and “Tour de Force” powerfully open the first encore, before “Ritual Noise” finally gets the Markthalle moving. These songs still carry. Perhaps differently than before. But deeper. Then darkness once again. A breath of silence. A second breath of darkness. And finally: “We Stand Alone” – a hymn. Everyone sings. For a moment, there is no outside. Only this we in solitude, time loses meaning. And for once, no one stands alone – although that is exactly what is being sung about.

After the last note

When the lights go up, the room seems exhausted and full at the same time. Forty years of band history are not behind this evening, but within it – alive, tangible, present. Covenant are not putting on a nostalgia show in Hamburg. They show continuity, nothing about it sounds past. And perhaps that is precisely their greatest strength: creating music that knows the past but always sounds forward. They are not reminiscent. They are.

And somewhere on the way home, this one thought slumbers, quietly but surely: we are alone. But never really alone.

Setlist Isaac Howlett:
“Eggshell” – “Something Changed” – “Save Myself” (Aesthetic Perfection cover) – “Ghost of the Tsunami” – “Spiralling” – “House of Cards”

Setlist Covenant:
“Theremin” – “Speed” – “Stalker” – “Feedback” – “Go Film” – “I Am” – “Der Leiermann” – “Dead Stars” – “Bullet” – “Call the Ships to Port” – “Happy Man” – “20 Hz” – “The Men” – “The Beauty and the Grace” – “Judge of my Domain” – “Last Dance” – “Morning Star” – “I Close My Eyes” — “Babel” – “Figurehead” – “Tour de Force” – “Ritual Noise” — “We Stand Alone”

Text & Photos: Thomas Friedel Fuhrmann