Review – Kraftwerk’s five-star gig at Stockton Globe Theatre

Words and photos by Dave Lawrence

THE pioneering and hugely influential electronic German band Kraftwerk are currently on their first UK tour for nine years.

Sadly, once again, there no visit to York with Stockton being the closest concert, so a trip to the restored Globe Theatre was needed.

Kraftwerk have not released a new studio album for well over 20 years and much of the evening’s setlist was decades older than that, but despite the material’s familiarity it succeeded in remaining fresh, perceptive, visionary and cautionary

Kraftwerk performing at Stockton Globe on 27 May 2026.

In their Tron-style grid-lighted suits the four members remained rooted to their podiums, anonymous and emotionless throughout the performance, the definition of man-machine music.

Although the foot of original member Ralf Hütter – now 79 – could occasionally be seen tapping away to the beat, instead of your attention being drawn to specific musicians and their antics on stage you instead became engrossed in the audio visual landscapes presented.

The vibrant visuals – which often managed to be simultaneously retro and futuristic – were impeccably paired with the pulses, beats, loop and washes of sound for which Kraftwerk are famous.

Kraftwerk performing at Stockton Globe on 27 May 2026.

During opening song Numbers the green on black retro digital graphics scrolled around the screen in hypnotic fashion before a change to yellow and white during the insanely catchy Computer World, one of the most prophetic songs written about the dangers of digital control and surveillance.

On Spacelab we watched the approaching earth from a spacecraft window growing closer until coastlines materialised including the UK. With an unknown destination tagged on the map the spaceship flew closer over a panoramic view of Stockton before landing outside the Globe Theatre to audience cheers.

Kraftwerk performing at Stockton Globe on 27 May 2026.

Stark red, white and black graphics occasionally resembling a Mondrian painting accompanied Man Machine but on a spellbinding version of The Model the band choose not to use custom graphics and instead performed the song while the original video played on the screen.

At one point, Hütter addressed the audience to talk fondly of the late Ryuichi Sakamoto – a friend and collaborator since 1981 when the band first visited Japan. By way of homage the group performed Sakamoto’s Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence which was followed by dramatic versions of Geiger Counter and Radioactivity and their obvious anti-nuclear themes.

Kraftwerk performing at Stockton Globe on 27 May 2026.

Autobahn, Tour de France and Trans Europe Express revelled in the themes of transport and the unique rhythms of each – turning wheels and overtaken vehicles, trains speeding along tracks and over bridges, and the racing pulses and laboured breathing of cyclists.

The show appeared to finish with a sequence of Boing Boom Tschak, Techno Pop, and Musique Non Stop, with each member leaving their consoles in turn, bowing reverentially to the audience before departing, until only Hütter was left and it was his turn to depart.

The band however returned to their consoles to close the show with The Robots with their eerie robotic mannequins on the screen behind them.

It was a striking and memorable way to bring the impeccably presented experience to a close.