This event has already taken place. We will be offering further events of this special kind in the future. News about the FRS Helgoline Music Cruise will be announced on our website.

Review: 6th FRS Helgoline Music Cruise

What a day.

On 12 September 2026, Germany’s only offshore island became a concert venue: Tocotronic played a live set at the Nordseehalle on Heligoland — and the concert had certainly not just begun there.

Even during the crossing, the open deck of the HSC “Halunder Jet” became the first stage of the day. That’s how it goes when the journey to the concert is part of the concert itself.

About Tocotronic

For over thirty years, Tocotronic have been one of the most influential bands in the German-speaking world. Several number-one albums, countless concerts — and a body of work that has never lent itself to a simple formula.

Having started out in Hamburg, they have long been regarded as a fixture on the scene, without ever becoming complacent. Their music has evolved from the guitar-driven noise of their early years to grand, often surprisingly delicate arrangements, whilst Dirk von Lowtzow’s lyrics are always what stick in the mind: clever, defiant, sometimes funny lines about life and the things that go wrong.

The fact that a band of this calibre is playing in a hall on a rock in the middle of the North Sea is exactly the sort of occasion for which we invented the Music Cruise.

Live on board and in front of the Nordseehalle

Even before Heligoland came into view, Stefanie Schrank was performing on the open deck. The Cologne-based musician blends electronic sounds, synth-pop and experimental soundscapes into a style all of her own, turning the crossing itself into part of the concert.

Once they arrived on the island, the action continued straight away. In front of the Nordseehalle, schluma played an open-air set. The Hamburg-based quartet formed in 2024 at the HAW, are signed to the Grand Hotel van Cleef label and were awarded the Krach + Getöse emerging artist prize. Their debut album “Heulen am Wasser” was just eight days old at the time.

Some thirty years of Hamburg’s musical history lie between the two bands. schluma are regarded as representatives of the Neue Hamburger Schule and cite the early Tocotronic records as their point of reference. On Heligoland, they shared the bill.

And so, what was meant to be an evening of music turned into a whole day of concerts, which had already begun on board.

Thanks to everyone who came along! You made this day really special. Thanks to Tocotronic, Stefanie Schrank and schluma. And thanks to everyone on Heligoland who made sure this concert could go ahead.

See you at the next Music Cruise!