Alphaville (band)
Alphaville is a German synth-pop band formed in Münster in 1982. They gained popularity in the 1980s. The group was founded by singers Marian Gold, Bernhard Lloyd, and Frank Mertens. They achieved chart success with the singles "Forever Young", "Big in Japan", "Sounds Like a Melody", "The Jet Set", and "Dance with Me".[1][2][3] Gold remains the only continuous member of Alphaville. They took their name from Jean-Luc Godard's film of the same name.[4]
Alphaville
Forever Young
1982–present
- Marian Gold
- David Goodes
- Jakob Kiersch
- Carsten Brocker
- Alexandra Merl
- Bernhard Lloyd
- Frank Mertens
- Ricky Echolette
- Robbie France
- Rob Harris
- Shane Meehan
- Martin Lister
- Maja Kim
History[edit]
Formation[edit]
Alphaville was formed after lead singer Marian Gold and Bernhard Lloyd met in West Berlin in 1981. The pair were heavily influenced by UK indie acts like Tubeway Army, Gary Numan and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD). Gold had written "Big in Japan" in 1979 after hearing the music of Holly Johnson's band Big in Japan.[5] They first named their band "Forever Young" and subsequently changed it to "Alphaville" after the 1965 science fiction film. Together the three wrote Forever Young and recorded their first demo of the same name. The first Alphaville concert took place on 31 December 1982 in Enger, Westphalia.[6]
In 1984, the newly renamed Alphaville released their debut single, "Big in Japan". In the early years, Gold said that "none of us could really play an instrument. The music was in our heads, but we were dependent on synthesizers and drum machines and things like that. ... The equipment we had at that time was basically toys – the cheapest monophonic synthesizers you could imagine. We had a little studio in a basement, made a couple of demos and sent them to some record companies to try to get a deal. We didn't have much hope, but we had three offers and from that moment everything happened very fast."[5]
Projects[edit]
Gold has released two solo albums (So Long Celeste, 1992, and United, 1996, both mixing personal creations and covers), alongside his work in the band.
Lloyd also worked on a project named Atlantic Popes with singer Max Holler, releasing a 13-track CD.
Alphaville participated in Night of the Proms in 2002, performing "Big in Japan" and "Forever Young". Gold also contributed to a group performance of "Let It Be" with other performers at the event.
On 25–26 May 2018, Alphaville and Marian Gold played two nights at the Whisky a Go Go club in Hollywood.[17][18] The two concerts were also live streamed.[18]
On 15 March 2019, the album "Forever Young" was remastered for the 35th anniversary.[19]
On 7 May 2021, the albums "Afternoons in Utopia" and "The Breathtaking Blue" was remastered after the successful reissue of the album Forever Young.[20]
To support the upcoming release of the symphonic album Eternally Yours in 2022, Gold and his daughter Lily Becker began a podcast discussing Alphaville songs and the album.[21]