A music fever is gripping Croatia as fans prepare for a historic moment: the iconic German synth-pop band Alphaville, whose melodies like 'Forever Young' and 'Big in Japan' defined an entire era, is coming to Zagreb for the first time in their long and fruitful career. The countdown is practically over, as the long-awaited spectacle will take place on Friday, September 5th, at the Zagreb Fair, within the impressive space of Pavilion 9. This is not just a concert; this is an opportunity for thousands of local fans to experience live the authentic energy and sound of a band that has left an indelible mark on the world's music history of the eighties, masterfully blending nostalgic melodies with a futuristic electronic sound.

Their music, which was once the soundtrack to the upbringing of many, is now experiencing an incredible renaissance and winning the hearts of new generations. The best proof of this is the incredible success of the song "Forever Young," which reached number one on the prestigious TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart during 2024. The popularity of this timeless anthem has exploded on social media, where it has been used in over a million different TikTok videos, thus confirming its universal and lasting appeal. The band, which has over 20 million monthly listeners on Spotify, while "Forever Young" alone has more than 950 million streams, and the total number of plays of their songs exceeds an incredible 1.8 billion, clearly shows that their musical magic is not fading.

Beginnings in the creative chaos of West Berlin

The story of Alphaville begins in 1982, in the creative and turbulent environment of what was then West Berlin. Founders Marian Gold, Bernhard Lloyd, and Frank Mertens joined forces and visions. Bernhard Lloyd remembers those days with nostalgia, describing their beginning as playing in a toy store. "We started from absolute zero, surrounded by sequencers, drum machines, arpeggiators, and tape loops. We had no formal music education, but from the very beginning, we had our own compositions. Our journey into the world of music was led by the heart, not the mind, and somehow it all worked out," Lloyd recalled ahead of their arrival in Zagreb.

The band's name was inspired by Jean-Luc Godard's 1965 dystopian science fiction film, "Alphaville, une étrange aventure de Lemmy Caution," which perfectly reflected their musical aesthetic – a combination of dark, introspective lyrics and uplifting, synthetic melodies. Their breakthrough onto the scene was meteoric. With their very first released single, "Big in Japan," they achieved huge worldwide success. The song, which is about a couple trying to break their heroin addiction by dreaming of success in a distant land where no one knows them, became a chart-topper across Europe.

Defining a decade: The album 'Forever Young'

Frontman Marian Gold, whose vocals became the band's trademark, points out that the sudden success of the single "Big in Japan" gave them an incredible boost and fuel for further work. "We had an insatiable hunger for grandiose melodies and an ambition to tell complex, almost novelistic stories within a three-and-a-half-minute framework," explained Gold. Their goal was to create something completely new, to position themselves outside the musical frameworks of the time, and to chart a path for a career that would, as it turned out, last for decades. They were pioneers in using the potential of synthesizers and electronic music, and their specific sound, which was a perfect blend of melodiousness and experimentalism, became an inspiration for numerous other artists.

The debut album "Forever Young" from 1984 became a cornerstone of the synth-pop genre. Besides the title track and "Big in Japan," the album also spawned the hit "Sounds Like a Melody." The title track, "Forever Young," became more than a hit; it turned into a global anthem for a generation that grew up in the shadow of the Cold War and the constant threat of nuclear annihilation. Its lyrics about hope, fear, and the desire for eternal youth in an uncertain world resonated with millions of people and have remained relevant to this day.

Evolution of sound and artistic explorations

After their initial success, the band went through some changes. Frank Mertens left the group, and he was replaced by Ricky Echolette. Throughout their career, which has spanned more than half a century, Alphaville has experienced periods of exceptional creativity as well as moments of artistic block. They built their philosophy on the idea that music can be a separate universe, unlimited by rules and genres. They describe the production of the album "Forever Young" as playing in a large toy store, while they see the work on the later, more ambitious album "The Breathtaking Blue" as being in an amusement park with almost infinite possibilities. That 1989 album was also accompanied by a short film of the same name, which was a pioneering move for that time.

Over the years, they continued to release albums and explore new sonic landscapes, including "Catching Rays on Giant" from 2010 and "Strange Attractor" from 2017. Their ability to adapt and remain relevant is also evident in their latest projects. In recent years, they caused a sensation again with the album "Eternally Yours" (2022), on which they re-recorded their greatest hits in collaboration with the German Film Orchestra Babelsberg, giving them a new, symphonic dimension. They recently celebrated 40 years of their career by releasing the compilation "Forever! Best of 40 years" (2024), which contains 40 remastered songs, selected with the participation of their most loyal fans.

An inexhaustible source of inspiration and the Zagreb spectacle

Alphaville's influence on modern music is still immense. This is confirmed by the fact that in October 2024, global stars David Guetta and Ava Max released their version of the hit "Forever Young," with revised lyrics and modern production, introducing the classic to a new audience. Their live performances are an unforgettable experience, a journey through time that takes the audience back to the days when their songs were an indispensable part of everyday life, but at the same time offers a fresh, energetic look at their rich catalog. The concert in Zagreb is expected to be just that – an emotional and energetic blend of nostalgia and contemporary sound.

For all those who plan to attend this unique musical event and experience the magic of Alphaville live, there are still some tickets left. They are available through the Entrio system at the link https://www.entrio.hr/event/alphaville-live-24171. This is an opportunity not to be missed – a chance to hear live the songs that defined generations and to be part of the first, historic performance of the legendary band on Croatian soil.