Best-of albums from forty years of synth-pop band Alphaville
Published: Wednesday, Sep 25th 2024, 10:20
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Three music fans discover the synthesizer in the early 1980s. They land three worldwide hits. The history of Alphaville also includes iconic director Jean-Luc Godard. The trio is now releasing their best-of albums.
When asked how many songs by the band Alphaville come to mind spontaneously, most people will probably answer: one ("Forever Young"), two (plus "Big in Japan") or three (plus "Sounds Like A Melody"). But in addition to the three worldwide hits from 1984, the synth-pop band from Germany has released numerous other songs in their long career. Alphaville now present their fans' favorite songs on their three best-of albums "Alphaville Forever! - Best Of 40 Years".
"For decades, we refused to make a best-of album because we just thought it sucked and there was nothing creative about it," says 70-year-old frontman Marian Gold in an interview with Deutsche Presse-Agentur. "But now 40 years have passed and that's why it started to interest me at some point."
The special feature: The band's fans were able to select their 40 favorite songs via a special online tool, put them in the desired order and save them as a playlist - including the chart hits "I Die For You Today" (2010), "Dance With Me" (1986) and "The Jet Set" (1985).
From "dilettantes" to high-flyers
In 1982, Gold, Bernhard Lloyd and Frank Mertens founded a synth-pop trio in Münster, Westphalia, which was initially called "Forever Young", the name of their later global hit. A year later, however, they named themselves Alphaville, in reference to a science fiction film by French director Jean-Luc Godard.
"We weren't great instrumentalists, we were actually complete amateurs and dilettantes," Gold remembers today. "But there were machines like rhythm machines or synthesizers that allowed people with less skill to play melodies. Suddenly we were able to make music ourselves."
The musicians found inspiration in New Wave, such as Ultravox, OMD, Kraftwerk and David Bowie. With their synth-heavy pop, Alphaville captured an attitude to life in the early 1980s and catapulted themselves to the top of the musical world with their first three singles in 1984. "Big in Japan", "Sounds Like A Melody" and "Forever Young" were released within a few months. Their debut album followed exactly 40 years ago with seven more songs, which sold two million copies.
"Fell into the lap"
A real dream start to their career, but one that was also viewed critically by some. "We never really had a good standing here in Germany in terms of our popularity with critics. The band was constantly reproached for everything falling into our laps," says lead singer Gold.
But the fact itself is true. The three of them came from a middle-class background, didn't have to learn to play instruments and didn't have to tour small clubs. "And then the first single became a big hit. That's phenomenal, but I can understand why some people didn't like it. This problem still hangs over us in Germany today."
After the debut and worldwide hit year 1984, keyboardist Mertens left the band due to the media hype, and Alphaville experimented with different musical styles and more complex narratives on the subsequent albums. In contrast to other bands of the eighties, the lyrics are rather profound and complex.
"Songs with serious themes"
"We weren't a German band in that sense. These Gaga lyrics mainly exist in Germany. Serious bands from America or Great Britain have also dealt with more serious topics and tried to make a statement," explains Gold.
"As a singer, I couldn't stand on stage and sing some bullshit to people. I wouldn't have enjoyed that. That's why our songs deal with serious topics."
Musically, the best-of albums show the creativity and playfulness of the German band, who became known worldwide for their synth-pop mix of melancholy, cheerfulness and gloom and later also combined influences from classical music, blues and jazz. And they created three hits for eternity that are still familiar to young people today - partly thanks to trends in the social medium Tiktok.
From November, Alphaville will go on an anniversary tour with their timeless music from eight studio albums, with a performance on November 3 in Zurich. And the 70-year-old Gold promises: "Our concerts are not retirement events."
©Keystone/SDA
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