Amphi Festival 2025: Lineup Announced with Legacy Acts and Diverse European Performers

The Amphi Festival, a cornerstone event for Europe’s alternative and electronic music scenes, will return to the banks of the Rhine next summer for its 19th edition. Organizers announced this week that the festival will take place on July 19 and 20 at the Tanzbrunnen, a sprawling event complex that has become its signature home. A substantial lineup of more than 40 international and domestic acts has been released, topped by the veteran Irish electronic group VNV Nation and the German metal band Lord of the Lost, as previously reported by this publication.

For nearly two decades, the festival has served as a primary summer destination for a dedicated subculture, drawing thousands of enthusiasts from across the continent for a weekend of music and community. Its persistence has established it as a reliable barometer for the health and direction of the gothic, industrial, and darkwave genres. The annual pilgrimage to Cologne is considered by many regulars to be as much a social tradition as it is a musical event, reinforcing the city’s status as a key hub for the scene.

The initial lineup signals a continuation of the festival’s broad curatorial scope, balancing legacy acts that have defined their genres with contemporary artists. The sheer number and variety of performers, from 1980s synth-pop pioneers to modern industrial metal bands, underscores the event’s scale. The program will unfold across three separate stages, promising a dense and continuous schedule of performances throughout the weekend.

Amphi Festival History

The event was first held in 2005 at the Amphitheater in Gelsenkirchen, a venue which provided the festival with its name. Following a successful debut, the festival relocated in 2006 to its current, more expansive home at the Tanzbrunnen in Cologne. The move proved to be a pivotal decision, providing the capacity for significant growth in both attendance and the number of performers, and quickly establishing the event as one of the most popular of its kind in Europe.

Over the subsequent years, the Amphi Festival cemented its identity by expanding its physical footprint and programmatic offerings. The addition of the indoor Theatre Stage created a dynamic indoor-outdoor experience for attendees. For several years, a third stage was introduced aboard the MS RheinEnergie, a large event ship moored on the river, transforming the festival into a unique multi-faceted event.

While the ship stage is not part of every edition, its use is indicative of the festival’s history of programmatic experimentation. This evolution, from a single-stage event to a large-scale, multi-venue institution, charts its rise to prominence within the European festival circuit, creating what many attendees describe as a distinct “family-like” atmosphere that draws an international audience from around the world.

A Destination for a Niche Scene

The festival has solidified its standing as a significant annual destination for a dedicated, genre-specific audience. Over its nearly two-decade history, it has consistently drawn attendees from across Germany and greater Europe, many of whom return each year. This loyalty has made the Amphi Festival a central meeting point for the international communities surrounding the gothic, industrial, and dark electronic music scenes, functioning as both a musical event and a social gathering.

Its setting is the Tanzbrunnen, a park and event complex located on the Rhine river’s edge in Cologne. The festival utilizes a multi-stage configuration spread across these grounds. Performances take place on the large, tent-covered open-air Main Stage, within the more conventional confines of the indoor Theatre Stage, and at the smaller Orbit Stage. This setup, with three active stages, creates a format of continuous and often overlapping performances, where attendees move between venues to see different acts throughout the day.

A Lineup Spanning Generations

The festival’s lineup presents a carefully constructed blend of legacy artists and more contemporary acts, reflecting multiple generations of the dark music scene. This curatorial approach places bands that were foundational in the 1980s and 1990s on the same bill as groups that have emerged in the last two decades, offering a broad survey of the genres’ evolution. For attendees, it provides an opportunity to see pioneers of the sound alongside the artists who are currently carrying it forward.

A significant portion of the roster is composed of influential German bands, grounding the festival in its national context. Among them is Die Krupps, a group formed in Düsseldorf in 1980, whose early work was instrumental in the development of industrial and electronic body music. Also scheduled is the synth-pop trio Camouflage, which achieved international recognition in the late 1980s. They are joined by Oomph!, a band from Braunschweig that, since its formation in 1989, became a key architect of the Neue Deutsche Härte subgenre, a style that fuses industrial metal with electronic elements.

Complementing the strong domestic presence is a diverse group of prominent international artists. The English poet and musician Anne Clark, whose career began in the post-punk era of the early 1980s, will bring her distinctive spoken-word performances set against minimalist electronic backdrops. From Belgium comes Suicide Commando, the long-running and definitive project of Johan Van Roy, whose aggressive, distorted electronic sound has shaped the harsh industrial and terror EBM subgenres since the late 1980s. More recent international voices are also represented, including She Past Away, a duo from Turkey that has gained a wide following for its modern interpretation of the darkwave and post-punk sounds of the 1980s.

International and Stylistic Diversity

The remainder of the announced lineup continues this international and stylistic diversity. It includes the American industrial metal group Psyclon Nine; the German symphonic metal band Xandria; and Letzte Instanz, a long-running German group that combines rock with classical instrumentation. From Italy comes Spiritual Front, whose sound is often categorized as “suicide pop,” while Luxembourg is represented by the neofolk project Rome. The Canadian post-punk duo Traitrs and the Swedish synth-pop act Ashbury Heights are also slated to perform.

Further rounding out the German contingent are several bands from the Neue Deutsche Härte and dark rock scenes, such as Stahlmann, Maerzfeld, and Erdling, alongside the dark metal group Nachtblut and the veteran electronic act Klangstabil. The lineup is further supplemented by the harsh industrial sounds of Germany’s [X]-RX and the aggrotech of [SITD]; the futurepop of Eisfabrik; and the Berlin-based Australian electronic producer Zanias. The English gothic rock band The Nosferatu and the Swedish EBM artist Rein are also listed. Other acts include Qual, Hell Boulevard, Wisborg, Bloody Dead And Sexy, Auger, Ductape, Abu Nein, The Second Sight, Vlad in Tears, Dunkelsucht, Unify Separate, and Gulvøss.

Pre-Festival Call The Ship To Port Event

On Friday, July 18, the day before the main festival begins, a separate opening event titled Call The Ship To Port will take place. This concert is held aboard the MS RheinEnergie, an event ship moored on the Rhine near the Tanzbrunnen. This year’s event will feature an exclusive 1980s-themed lineup, with performances from the German synth-pop group Alphaville, along with Forced To Mode, which performs Depeche Mode covers, and Sven Friedrich, known for his work with the bands Zeraphine and Solar Fake. This pre-festival tradition offers a distinct musical experience and serves as an official opening for the weekend.

Official Pre-Party

In addition to the concert on the Rhine, the official Amphi Festival pre-party will also take place on Friday, July 18, at the Theater am Tanzbrunnen, beginning at 10 p.m. The event, which is free for all weekend festival ticket holders, offers two distinct dance floors.

The main hall will feature a mix of EBM, industrial, and electronic music with sets from DJs MSTH, Daniel Myer, and Krachvarien. A second floor in the foyer will be dedicated to 1980s pop and wave music, hosted by DJ Dalecooper. This event provides an alternative kick-off to the weekend for those not attending the ship concert.

Ticket Information

Weekend passes for the festival are currently on sale for €139, plus shipping costs for a physical “hardticket.” These passes grant access to the main festival grounds on Saturday and Sunday, and include entry to the official pre-party at the Theater on Friday night.

For attendees wishing to stay on-site, a separate camping ticket is available for €39, plus a refundable garbage deposit, though it is only valid when purchased with a weekend festival pass. Prospective attendees can buy tickets directly from the festival’s official online vendor, the Amphi Shop, or through major German ticket distributors like Eventim.

While the Call The Ship To Port concert requires a separate ticket, entry to the official pre-party at the Theater is included with a weekend festival pass. Given the festival’s history of selling out, purchasing tickets well in advance is a common practice among its dedicated attendees.

Conclusion

With its comprehensive lineup, diverse pre-festival activities, and dedicated international following, the Amphi Festival is positioned to once again serve as a major anchor for the European summer music calendar. The combination of legacy acts and contemporary performers continues to be a successful formula, ensuring the event appeals to a broad cross-section of its niche audience.

As it approaches its 20th anniversary, the festival’s ability to maintain its traditions while adapting to the evolving landscape of live music solidifies its importance not just as a concert weekend, but as a vital cultural institution.