Messed!Up
Three decades after starting out in Düsseldorf’s punk scene, Broilers reached a milestone few would have imagined back then: 48,000 fans packed the Merkur Spiel-Arena for the band’s biggest headline show to date. The “Ultrabowl” was equal parts punk rock celebration and stadium spectacle. And against all odds, this rarely felt like a contradiction.
First up were New York hardcore legends Agnostic Front. While Roger Miret remains the band’s unmistakable frontman, all eyes inevitably drift to Vinnie Stigma. At 70, the godfather (or rather grandfather) of New York hardcore still attacks the stage with the energy of someone half his age. The NYHC veterans had to battle a muddy sound mix, but a flawless run of songs kept the crowd firmly on their side throughout the set.
After a short changeover, the scene shifted from New York to Ibbenbüren as Donots took over the stage, neatly bridging Agnostic Front’s hardcore sound and Broilers’ mainstream (punk) rock. Every familiar Donots trademark was there: Ingo Knollmann’s flying split jump, his obligatory crowd surfing and, of course, brother Guido’s guitar acrobatics. Predictable? Maybe. But never forced. The emotions still felt entirely genuine. As the band left the stage, guitarist Guido was visibly holding back tears. It was an understandable reaction. This wasn’t only the biggest Broilers headline show to date; it was also the largest Donots concert ever outside a festival. Like Agnostic Front before them, the Donots could easily have played longer. Personally, I’d happily have traded the extended farewell version of “So Long” for one more song.
Then it was time for the evening’s main attraction.
The Broilers have taken an unusual route: From a rough-and-ready Oi! band through ska-infused punk to one of Germany’s biggest mainstream pop rock acts. Years ago, a friend jokingly described Samy Amara’s lyrics full of pathos (and sometimes kitsch) as “ZDF Fernsehgarten Punk.” It was meant sarcastically, but there was a grain of truth in it.
I first discovered the band around the Vanitas era and still regret missing their show at Hamburg’s tiny Molotow in 2007. Since then, the venues have only grown. The last time I saw them was at a sweaty warm-up show in Hamburg’s Markthalle before an arena tour.
Only days before the Ultrabowl, 200 lucky fans squeezed into Düsseldorf’s legendary Ratinger Hof for an intimate warm-up gig. Sadly, I wasn’t one of them. Instead, this was the exact opposite: 48,000 people filling the Merkur Spiel-Arena. The audience reflected every stage of the band’s career. Families with grandparents and children stood alongside lifelong fans proudly wearing faded tour shirts from every era of Broilers’ history.
True to the “Ultrabowl” theme, the evening opened with the Rhein Fire cheerleaders performing to Sham 69’s classic “If the Kids Are United” before each band member made an individual entrance, complete with cinematic introductions on the giant LED screens.
The atmosphere hit full throttle almost immediately. The setlist offered few surprises, but it hardly mattered. Packed with songs spanning the band’s entire catalogue and backed by tasteful visuals rather than overwhelming gimmicks, the show never lost momentum.
I’d like to think older favourites such as “Paul der Hooligan,” “LoFi,” or the medley featuring “Wenn Du jetzt denkst,” “Anti, Anti, Anti,” “Dumm und glücklich,” “Nur die Nacht weiß,” and “Heute schon gelebt” drew the biggest reactions. That may simply be nostalgia talking. In reality, the biggest singalongs probably belonged to the radio-friendly anthems, alongside the outstanding “Alice und Sarah.” Unsurprisingly, emotional songs like “Ihr da oben” and “Nach Hause kommen” turned the stadium into a sea of phone lights – and left more than a few fans in tears.
Yet for all the polished production, there were moments that reminded everyone how much this night meant to the band. At one point, Samy accidentally introduced “In 80 Tagen um die Welt” immediately after the band had already played it. It was a charming mistake that revealed just how overwhelmed he was. For all their commercial success, selling out their hometown stadium clearly remained deeply emotional. But the Broilers pop route in 2026 was underlined as well – by the unexpected cover of the Pointer Sisters’ “I’m So Excited.”
Because this was Düsseldorf, the encore also included the unveiling of Fortuna Düsseldorf’s new jerseys before the band paid tribute to their hometown with songs by Kraftwerk, Westernhagen and Die Toten Hosen.
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Photographer and writer: Christian Berg
