This was the case at KIELECTRIC with CHROM, TORUL, SEA OF SIN, FINAL SELECTION & ROTOSKOP

April 04, 2026, KIELECTRIC Festival 2026

The north can not only do fish sandwiches, but also festivals!

And one that doesn’t smell of summer meadows, the romance of canned beer and scattered open-air paths, but of dark electronics, club sweat, flickering lights and bodies that at some point no longer ask if they can dance. On this evening, the Pumpe in Kiel becomes an industrial resonating body. Dense sound, short distances, hardly any distance between stage and audience – perfect for letting the music flow into your bones. Not a festival in the classic sense. No terrain, no getting lost, no distractions. Only one direction: to the front. To the stage. To the night. To the dancing.

André Steinigen( Versus, among others) and Kielectric organizer Robert Korittke will host the evening. No stiff announcements, no artificial ceremonial, rather a connecting thread between the bands. And this thread holds, because the line-up is clearly conceived: Rotoskop, Final Selection, Sea of Sin, Torul and headliner Chrom. Electronic. Danceable. Scene. Without detours.

Rotoscope – The first impulse

Rotoskop open the evening with dark, edgy electronics that don’t immediately give everything away. Behind the project is Klaus Gratzel, whose sound works between introspective melancholy, synth pads and club-like beats. The opener slot is always a risk. Too early, too empty, too little reaction – the opposite happens here. As soon as the first beats kick in, the audience moves. With “Buried Down Below” and “Love Peace Honesty”, Rotoskop set the tone early on: dark, melodic, clearly structured. After that, “Sinking” and “Toxic Men” drag the set deeper into the shadow zone. Later comes “25 Years”, the Catch cover version, before “Back in Time” leads back more strongly into their own lane. “Dark Desire” and “Body Spirit Soul” get the pulse racing. With “BirthSchoolWorkDeath”, Rotoskop finally set a dry, almost defiant final pointThe evening is open. Not shouting loudly, but effectively.

Final Selection – Melancholy with a backbone

Final Selection bring a different color to the game. The band has its roots deep in classic synthpop, without ever becoming a mere nostalgia administration. Their sound thrives on melody, emotion and that slightly cool streak that immediately reaches old scene hearts. Melancholy with a backbone. And that’s exactly what happens live. With “Jupiter’s Child” and “The River”, the set opens up more wide than hard. The songs carry rather than push. After that, “Daybreak” and the new song “Wired Kingdom” are more forward-looking; here, the past doesn’t sound like looking back, but like a foundation on which to build. “Gravity” and “Beyond My Dreams” follow later. Live, the tracks sound like classic synthpop bodies with a strong heartbeat: melancholic, but never weak. Afterwards, “Red Line” adds more tension before “Touch and Fail” closes the set as a new song. On this evening, Final Selection don’t come across as an act that only serves memories. They show that melancholy can age without losing its edge.

Sea of Sin – Club meets memory

Sea of Sin then push the evening more clearly towards the dance floor. The band stands for synthpop and electro with clear scene DNA: catchy hooks, clean melody lines, club-ready structures and enough emotional underpinnings to prevent the whole thing from becoming merely superficial. The introduction with “Faith!” and “Truth” is direct, without overrunning. After that, “Contamination” and “Synchronize” tighten the electronic framework; the beats work more precisely, the movement in the room becomes more visible. The set gains grip with “High and Low” and “No Excuse”. The audience has now arrived, not only physically, but also in the evening. Later, “Don’t Let Go” and “Renegades” provide exactly that mixture of catchiness and forward momentum that works so well live with Sea of Sin. Then comes “Unspoken Words”. – Not a clumsy hit moment, but a song that sticks while the dance floor continues to work. “What Are You Waiting For?” then adds even more urgency. With “Beyond Sadness”, the set ends not in sheer euphoria, but with depth. That’s exactly right: Sea of Sin don’t leave the club cold, but with a residual shadow on their skin.

Torul – elegance that gets under your skin

Torul are one of those bands that don’t have to win through volume. Since the early 2010s, the Slovenian formation has earned a firm place in the scene with its independent mix of synthpop, electronic depth and an almost cinematic atmosphere. Their songs often work with a pull rather than a quick grab. They come closer, while you still think you have distance. Live, this means one thing above all: control. The opening track “Day of A Slay / Running Away” immediately sets its own tone. Not rough, not overexcited, but focused. After that, “Conversations” opens up the space more towards emotion, while “Lonely Night” brings in that typical Torul night color: cool, urban, slightly lost. With “Dancers in the Dark”, the evening suddenly becomes more physical. The song fits almost outrageously well into this festival because it names exactly what has been happening for a long time: People move in the semi-darkness because the beat has had them for a long time. “On My Way” continues this flow. Later, “Just Go” and “Show Me Your City” focus more on movement and contour. “Saviour of Love” then adds an almost painfully elegant note, before “You And Me” pulls the emotional axis of the set more personally once again. “Monday” is one of the moments in which Torul show how much pressure can also lie in restraint. “We Don’t Care” then picks up the edge again. Here, the elegance becomes a little rougher, the pulse clearer. No break, rather a controlled tightening of the reins. With “Waterproof Theme”, this special Torul expanse opens up once again, electronic, shimmering, almost weightless. The song seems like a late neon strip in a dark street. And then “All”: a finale that doesn’t go for a bang, but for reverberation.

Chromium – When control turns into energy

Then it’s time for the headliner. For years, Chrom have stood for one of the clearest interfaces between synthpop, EBM and club electro. Their tracks are built for movement: precise, driving, direct. No unnecessary detours, no gimmicks that dilute the core. It’s all about impact. And that’s exactly what they deliver. The set picks up from the very first moment. The beats grip harder, the structures are clearer, the energy more immediate. The pump reacts immediately, the dance floor becomes tight. Bodies move closer together. The set starts with “Paralysed” and “Surrender” without a long warm-up. The pressure is immediate, the structures are clear, the vocals catch. Then “Memories” and “In My World” bring this typical chrome mixture of melody, melancholy and club edge to the pump.

Later, “Losing Myself” and “I Don’t Believe” tighten the screw. The movement in the room becomes more cohesive, almost mechanical. No more loose dancing, rather a common beat. “Regret & Testify” is followed by one of those moments in which Chrome are particularly strong: emotional enough for the head, direct enough for the legs. With “Murder Fantasies” it gets darker, sharper, edgier. “Agony” maintains this tension and adds even more emphasis. “Heavenly” then seems almost like a brief glance upwards, but without losing the ground beneath your feet. Things go deeper again with “Down Below”. The title fits the mood: down into the engine room, where bass, voice and movement merge. “Beyond the Trees” then takes some of this heaviness with it, but at the same time opens up the view, as if the set is taking a quick breath before the final stretch begins. “Visions” sets a strong late accent. The song feels like a clear focal point live, precise, broad, immediately tangible. “The Start of Something New” ends the regular part with a title that sounds almost too fitting. Chrom play it not as a soft farewell, but as a controlled discharge. Not an ending in the true sense of the word. Rather a cut that immediately calls for an encore. – And it comes. As an encore, “Loneliness” hits exactly where Chrom are always particularly effective: in this strange mixture of loneliness and collective movement. Finally, “Staring at the Sun”. A finale that looks forward without shaking off the shadows. Chrome set the pump on fire once more, clean, controlled, with maximum emphasis.

Conclusion – A night without detours

The Kielectric Festival 2026 is not an event that wants to be everything. Not a stylistic vendor’s tray. Not a program of compromises. It has a clear focus: Electronic. Danceable. Scene. From Rotoskop as an edgy introduction to Final Selection and Sea of Sin to the elegant depth of Torul and the powerful headlining set by Chrom, the result is a dramaturgy that doesn’t seem random. Each act sets a different accent without losing the common thread. André Steinigen and Robert Korittke charmingly hold the evening together without putting themselves before the music. At the end, you are left with the feeling of having been part of a night that worked precisely at that moment. And that’s how it should be!

Text & Photos: Thomas Friedel Fuhrmann