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New Crime Drama TV Show Explores The World of Berlin’s Underground Techno Scene

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A new Amazon Prime TV show is set in Berlin’s underground techno scene, the story revolving around the life of club promoter Robert “Beat” Schlag.

The protagonist loves to party and is deeply intertwined with Berlin’s nightlife scene and the drugs, sex and antics that come with it. In the show, Schlag works at what is described as “Berlin’s most famous techno club,” possibly alluding to Berghain although no other specific reference is known at this moment.

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Berghain’s Famous Bouncer Sven Marquardt Denied Entry at Australian Nightclub

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This one may elicit a chuckle or two out of you, if you’ve ever been denied entry at Berghain that is.

Sven Marquardt, arguably the most known of Berghain’s bouncers,  was denied entry at a club in Sydney, Australia. A taste of his own medicine, perhaps, knowing of the countless techno fans he has denied at the entrance of the most popular techno club in the world, Berghain.

Berlin’s famous photographer Marquardt had an exhibition at Goethe-Institut in Sydney, and then decided to go clubbing while there. In an interview, he shared how he was denied at the entrance because local bouncers found his facial tattoos to be a tad bit suspicious. In the interview he reveals that he talked with the club owner later, who admitted that he was also denied entry at Berghain when he was in Berlin.

The irony!

Ruff Stuff: 5 Things We’ve Learned Since Moving to Berlin

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While Berlin might be the global epicenter of electronic music these days, there’s no doubting that it’s still one of the most competitive fields when it comes to breaking out in the scene.

As Frank Sinatra says about New York, “If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere”, and it’s a refrain that could just as easily still be applied to Berlin’s fervent electronic music scene.

Two individuals who evidently seem on the cusp of their big moment is Italian duo Nanni and Francois Le Roy, best known collectively as Ruff Stuff. Boasting a sound that’s heavily indebted to house in its many forms, the boys have embarked on a rich vein of form of late, chiefly as a result of the untitled EP series, released via their own self-titled label. Their latest has been courting favor in numerous discerning circles (with Laurent Garnier a huge fan) and we’re very confident you’ll be hearing much more from these guys over the past while.

But what have they learned since they moved to Berlin? We checked in with them recently to find out, eager to discover their findings in their own words:

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#TBT Series: That One Time The BBC Told Us How to Get Into Berghain

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Two weeks ago we got into Berghain on a warm September Sunday afternoon, exactly 24 hours before the club was granted “high culture” status by a German court and allowed to pay at a lower tax bracket than pure entertainment venues.

But what makes Berghain a high culture venue? BBC’s Lisa Ludwig explores the venue’s door policy and morefor “The Cultural Frontline” programme. Listen to the clip in full below or via the BBC iPlayer.

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Berlin City Guide with Kaiser Souzai

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Making concrete waves throughout the music underground and carving a reputation internationally with his live performance, popular event nights and taste-making record label Ballroom Records, Berlin based Kaiser Souzai is an unstoppable force within the industry.

With the creation of his own musical genre of Art-rock Tech, drawing influence from ’70s greats such as Pink Floyd, Genesis and Yes, yet still keeping his roots of deep and progressive techno, electrifying dance floors across the globe.

We asked the label-head, producer and DJ to share five of his favorite spots in Berlin. Enjoy his pics below:

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Berlin Officials Pledge $1M+ To Save Club Culture

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Berlin has long been known as one of the world’s centers of club culture and the creative arts. Some estimate that about 50 percent of the 32 million tourists who visited the city last year came because of its vibrant nightlife scene and the “open spirit of the city,” which in turn generates billions in revenue.

But despite Berlin’s stature and the benefits it has been reaping from this stature, the city has been dealing with many challenges similar to what clubs around the globe are facing. The statistics tell a clear story: about 170 clubs have closed in the city since 2011.

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HYTE Announces Plans for NYE in Berlin

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After the much talked about success of last year’s event, globally-renowned underground dance music brand HYTE is returning to Berlin for the fourth New Year’s Eve in a row. This time, HYTE’s New Year’s Eve 2017 promises to be a one-of-a-kind 24-hour New Year’s Eve rave unrivaled in electronic music anywhere in Europe, showcasing the underground elite the HYTE brand is so well known for.

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In Photos: Berlin’s ’90s Rave Era with Sven VĂ€th, Carl Cox, Paul van Dyk and More

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The 1990s were an interesting period as far as the rave era goes, and especially so in the techno-loving city of Berlin, where the genre pretty much defined the rave scene of that decade. Not to mention of course the wild fun that came with these parties.

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G20 Berlin Cops Partied So Hard They Had to Be Sent Home

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When the rave bug hits you, it hits you hard, and no one is exempt from it. Not even cops.

That is exactly what happened when three squads of the Berlin’s police force had to be sent home after partying too hard at a party they threw leading up to the G20 summit next week.

Berlin’s squads 14, 15 and 32 were actually stationed in Hamburg in preparation for the political event, and it is at their headquarters where they were stationed that they instigated a huge party that spiraled out of control. There they drank heavily, urinated in the open on surrounding fences, and engaged in public sex as loud music played.

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An Interactive Festival Map With All The European Summer Festivals That Matter

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Heading to Europe for the summer? Still looking to plan a last-minute trip to a festival you have never been to?

Check out this interactive map put together by Electronic Beats, it may come useful in your planning! This handy visual guide highlights all European festivals worth knowing about between the end of May and the end of August, including heavyweights the likes of Awakenings, Sonar, Into The Valley Dekmantel, Sonus and Dimension, as well as a lot other smaller less-known festivals.

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