In a sea of new music festivals, there’s something about Reeperbahn that stands apart. Set across the buzzing streets of Hamburg, it’s a city bursting with music culture. You can talk about The Beatles and their early days, but what’s more immediate is Hamburg’s hook on the new. It’s a place where bands lay their foundations, a home away from home. But when Reeperbahn rolls into town, it becomes a hotbed of the exciting and undiscovered.
Across five days, countless venues and hundreds of artists, its focus is the thrilling and the fresh. That’s why, in 2025, the festival celebrates its 20th birthday in the style that has defined it since its inception in 2006 (or 2000… depending on who you ask). It’s about the joy of discovering your next favourite band, but also about shaping the next 12 months in new music. Few destinations come close to being this much of a global hub for emerging talent. In 2025, Reeperbahn is a unifying force driven by the next generation. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
Hamburg as a city plays just as important a role in Reeperbahn’s identity as the bands do. Live music pulses through its veins. Hopping between venues feels as natural as grabbing a bratwurst between sets. For many, the first band they catch is Punchbag, who use that opportunity to pump Hamburg with fizzing, hyper-indie energy. Tracks like ‘I’m Not Your Punchbag’, ‘Fuck It’ and ‘You Used To Be So Sexy’ are gloriously bonkers fun. Turning shimmering pop into eruptive indie-punk rippers, Punchbag thrive in painting the walls with the brightest colours imaginable. At Stage 15, they shine.
The genre-clashing energy of Partyof2 captures the headrush that comes to define Reeperbahn, where sonic boundaries blur. Rap meets club chaos for a set that already feels self-assured, primed to cause absolute scenes on far bigger stages in the very near future.
The bunker-like surrounds of Prinzenbar are a perfect fit for Silver Gore, whose genre-splicing approach to alt-music pins everyone to the spot. The haunting ‘A Scar’s Length’ is a highlight of a set that stands out among Reeperbahn’s deep bench. For their first performance in Europe, Silver Gore are a thrilling mystery. Their next move is sure to be equally unpredictable.
Over at Freiheit 36, Alessi Rose feels like a superstar in waiting. Fans scream every lyric, practically unheard of at a festival like this. A year of stadium shows is worn like armour. Reeperbahn is floored, and Alessi’s rise to the top seems not just inevitable, but immediate.
You know those jam-packed shows where, in the moment, the world revolves around one band? That’s tonight for Florence Road. Already the talk of the street after a surprise Opening Ceremony set, they turn in a performance that feels properly momentous. ‘Heavy’ captures their ability to balance emotional heft with euphoric noise. ‘Caterpillar’, ‘Figure It Out’ and ‘Goodbye’ reveal a band full of ambition. Florence Road aren’t just proving why they’re one of the most exciting bands around, they’re in their most unstoppable form yet.
There may be no band pushing the boundaries like RIP Magic. It’s 11:30pm on Reeperbahn’s first night and darkness has fallen over Hamburg, fitting for a band that collides rap, emo, electronica and alt-rock into something genreless and brilliant. The result is a set that feels epiphany-worthy. The buzz around them in the UK underground is earned and expanding. This is a moment we’ll be looking back on.
3pm might not scream ‘party set time’, but at Reeperbahn, usual rules don’t apply. CATTY turns the early slot into an intimate masterclass in future-pop brilliance. Stadium-ready anthems like ‘Healing Out Of Spite’ and ‘Belladonna’ fill the room. Her charm straddles the line between superstar and your best mate. Her first European show, but certainly not the last.
“Fucking sauna,” declares VILLANELLE frontman Gene Gallagher, two songs into their set at 25 Club. Sweat, swagger and soaring indie anthems follow. With just one single out — “this is our new single, go buy it,” we’re told — the attitude is already massive. VILLANELLE are ready to be a Very Big Deal.
Over at Molotow’s tiny Top 10 basement, Max Baby takes to the stage. Post-modern indie collides with alt-electronics for a set that crackles with chaos and charisma. ‘I Can Do Anything’ and ‘Feet’ are standouts. ‘Nothing Ever Changes’, all scrunched guitars and Daft Punk pulse, seals it. Sweaty walls become disco balls.
In a “were you there?” moment, Etta Marcus stops time at half past midnight in Molotow’s underground. Drawing from both already released tracks and those dropped literally an hour before (‘Teenage Messiah’), her performance is magnetic. ‘Girls That Play’ is vaudevillian and vicious in equal measure. This is the kind of set you’ll be bragging about for months.
There’s something in the water Down Under, and Gut Health are riding that wave. A runaway train of punk energy, they effectively take over Molotow all weekend. ‘Beat To Beat’ hits hard every time. Meanwhile, the return of Just Mustardon the eve of new album ‘WE WERE JUST THERE’ is nothing short of hypnotic. Evolving with purpose, they leave Hamburg creating something truly undeniable.
Four stories up in an old WWII bunker, Chloe Slater makes her Reeperbahn debut. ‘Harriet’, ’24 Hours’ and ‘Price On Fun’ showcase her summer of growth, while ‘Sinking Feeling’ finds new emotional weight. Over at Knust, Luvcat confirms the hype with ‘Love & Money’, a track that feels like it’s being whispered directly into your soul. Meanwhile, She’s In Parties turn Molotow into an 80s daydream. ‘Fallen’ and ‘Same Old Story’ light up a room ready to follow them anywhere. Sparks? Try full-blown fireworks.
Witch Post are on another level. Playing their second Top 10 set, the room is so packed people are spilling into the corridor. ‘Dreaming’, ‘The Wolf’, ‘Rust’ and ‘Chill Out’ hit harder than ever. They’ve become masters of drawing you into their world. Over at Betty (Headcrash), Porij are pure release. Midnight magic. ‘I’m Your Lover (Only)’ already feels like a classic.
And just when you think that’s it: a secret Kraftklub show at Molotow. One of Germany’s biggest bands, casually popping in to toast 20 years of Reeperbahn. Immediate indie bangers. Unrepeatable chaos. A night for the history books.
Even as tired bodies shuffle through the final day, the music never lets up. Brodie Milner unleashes songwriting full of tension and release, a combination of Sam Fender’s scope with Yard Act’s punk bite. Over at a stifling Molotow, The Hubbards offer joyous indie hooks (‘Spot Me, I’m Clean’, ‘Just Touch’) in a set curated by footballer Jackson Irvine. Yorkshire meets Hamburg, and the result is pure serotonin.
To close things out, it’s your friendly neighbourhood Dork taking over Docks. Three killer artists. One last party.
Bow Anderson opens with magnetic presence, spinning heartbreak and modern life into polished pop bangers. ‘East Coast’ stuns. ’20s’ turns the venue into a dancefloor.
Blondshell, though, brings the roof down. 2025 has belonged to her, and tonight proves why. Cuts from ‘If You Asked For A Picture’ and her self-titled debut soar. ’23’s a Baby’, ‘What’s Fair’, ‘Veronica Mars’, all delivered with superstar poise. A cover of Addison Rae’s ‘Diet Pepsi’ slots in seamlessly. New track ‘Berlin TV Tower’ hints at a thrilling new chapter. ‘Kiss City’ and ‘Salad’ end it in cathartic brilliance. A career-defining set.
Everything Everything are the perfect Reeperbahn finale. Always reinventing, always pushing. Tracks from ‘Mountainhead’ (‘Wild Guess’, ‘Cold Reactor’) tear through the room. ‘Pizza Boy’, ‘Violet Sun’ and ‘Get To Heaven’ prove how their sound refuses to conform. Instead, the stage bends to them. ‘Regret’, ‘Kemosabe’, ‘Cough Cough’, ‘Distant Past’ — the setlist of dreams. A reminder that reinvention can be its own kind of anthem.
As Coach Party detonate their way through Molotow in a ferocious late-night set, Reeperbahn 2025 comes to a close. No festival in Europe packs this much into five days. The vibrations of Hamburg will be felt long after this weekend. After all, it’s the destination on the new music map.
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