Circa 1988
Translated by Alessandra Montrucchio

1965: Alphaville is an imaginary town in a film by Godard, a town with a charming front which hides a dreadful interior, directed by the mighty computer Alpha 60, invisible and omnipresent dictator.

1983: Alphaville is a German band, full of music. A band that uses only computers in its musical creations, and that - despite this point - is able to express a creative and talented potential, thanks to some play on different and sharp lyrics. This is an explosive meeting with Marian Gold (voices) and Ricky Echolette (keyboards, bass and guitar), self-taught musicians and electronics freaks.

Q: With reference to Godard, is this a way to express that the band doesn't take its musical substance from the "pop nursery" but that also movies are a great source of inspiration?

Marian: Exactly. Godard is our "father", in a way. I like about him that the spectator can't get out from one of his movies at ease. Godard "disturbs"... Alphaville is a double play of reference - Politically, this "future" world, which any emotion is banished from, reminds one of the pained "Nazism". It's forbidden to be different, intelligence is suspected, there are register numbers. The place of this adventure is Paris - Paris of yesterday and of today, by vexing, changing a name, Godard gave Alphaville another dimension, another form, another sense and he compels you to think.

Ricky: Godard doesn't work with illusion, he turns reality into illusion. It's fantastic that another reality comes from this illusion. I believe what pop music does, it's playing on words, on styles... From where the band's name comes, however, if in the film Alphaville is dominated by the computer which imposes its order and its government, in the group it's totally the contrary.

Q: Alphaville were born from the multimedia Nelson Project - is this of particular importance?

Marian: Alphaville were born from Nelson Project, today they are its mouthpiece. Nelson is a community of people who live together every day. sharing everything and where everyone finds his own freedom, his own independence. Nelson is necessary, it conditions the life of the band, and if our music, our songs are the reject of Nelson, then they are the characteristic of Alphaville anyway.

Q: Many performances in charity live shows: do you consider this a personal connection?

Ricky: As individuals we can't stand human poverty, that shocks us and agitates us. As artists, we can express ourselves and we can be listened to. To us our connection is by music. I think everybody should contribute to any humanitarian action that would prevent things from going on in such a way!

Marian: It doesn't hurt us to take part - and at the same time we financially help humanitarian movements. In South Africa, we decided to give the anti-apartheid movement all the proceeds from the sale of our first LP Forever Young. Musicians are not always negative...

Q: Live shows for the benefit of Greenpeace, another this summer in Bavaria against nuclear power... Is this a political connection?

Marian: Personally, I don't think that you can do music and politics. Generally to conciliate these two is propaganda. Our presence on the scene is political, our positions are personal. When we play in favour of this or that movement, our purpose isn't to do politics, it's primarily to entertain people, to give a sensation of power, and of well-being.

Ricky: We don't want to be politicians. Also, our music isn't really bearer of messages... it's rather symbolic. We hope our music allows people to think and dream, before trying to change the world you must change yourself.

Q: Afternoons in Utopia, the last album, in which illusion and dream mix, has a certain sad reality. A talking position more direct, without ambiguity about today's problems. Is this a disturbing legacy? Or a message to decipher?

Ricky: Afternoons in Utopia is an Aquarian opera. Each song is a mini-history which shows how everybody tries to change his destiny with another he thinks better, but which is just Utopia. What we wanted by our music and our lyrics, is not just to make people dream, but also to invite people to think. Dreams, when they're compared with the sad reality, disturb, drive to act...

Marian: If you think of Chernobyl, everybody dreamt, everybody lived in Utopia, everybody thought this was impossible, and then nobody really moved. Reality suddenly explodes and so we are surprised and we start to act, to want more information - but with everything it's just, as always, Utopia. Nuclear is only one of the means of the power to impose its law, to rule the world. Otherwise, what's the reason to dominate nature?

Q: "Dance With Me" has a poetic text where dream reaches "the Gardens of Delight", with a video that, because of its reality, disturbs and shocks. The same image of Alphaville - a symbol?

Ricky: I think that the image is stronger if text and visuals are contradictory: Utopia and reality, each one is symbolic.

Marian: The text talks about love, the image shows us prostitution. An insupportable phenomena, when you know that some children have to give themselves to prostitution in order to live. "Dance With Me" is actually a symbol, a new way to touch public opinion, to render sensitivity to the problems of our civilisation.

Q: And now... Other projects? Other inventions?

Ricky: Personally, I think we should work on a video for an advanced film - otherwise, we'll work on the next songs.