The Sound Of Berghain: 10 resident DJ sets from the legendary Techno club

von Astrid Clave
16. Juli 202118. August 2023
Rubrik: Musik

In 2019 the legendary nightclub Berghain was celebrating its 15th anniversary. We have collected some outstanding DJ sets recorded in Berghain to celebrate with resident DJs like Ben Klock, Marcel Dettmann, Boris, Tama Sumo and others.

Berghain on an early sunday morning (Foto: Tonspion)

Berlins Techno Club Berghain is known to be a people magnet, and for long, it has been the talk of the town. Spectacular myths of how to get past the bouncers have even circulated across the Atlantic with celebrities showing up (and getting rejected) and tourists trying in from all over the world, hoping for a crazy night out in Berlin’s finest Schwitzkasten.

15 years later, and the Saga lives on and, more memories are built. This place is not something to take for granted and it’s not for everyone. It was made for a growing community of likeminded people, a home made of love, freedom, dance, music, and art, a creative playground where no judgment takes place – once you successfully passed the bouncers.

Dedicated folks coming from all walks of lives and underground subcultures have emerged from growing with the Berghain family, a solidly built foundation that goes way back to the early 90s to the Original Club „Ostgut“ that was shut down in 2003.

A year later, the club re-opened its famous doors under the new name Berghain right at the border of „KreuzBERG“ and „FriedrichsHAIN.“ The club owners have bought an old power plant and remodeled it to what has become one of the most iconic nightclubs of the world, often referenced as „the church“ or „the temple of Techno“. At first, the Panorama bar opened, which hosted DJs playing mostly house music.

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The atmosphere was more relaxed, the venue was a bit smaller with a more quiet nature. When Berghain opened its doors, like Panoramabar’s big brother, it was the complete opposite. It was big, like a village with multiple floors, very crowded and large and heavy sound systems with music that would accompany you until Monday morning.

Berghain resident DJs

There is probably no DJ in the world who would not love to play in Berghain, but only few represent „the sound of Berghain“, which is dark, hard and sometimes also playful and experimental. DJs with most bookings in the past 12 years are:

Quelle: Dashinsky/Berghain-statistics

Ever since it received the unlucky vote of being „the best club in the world „in DJ mag in 2009, the line of people trying to get in every weekend has immediately multiplied with Techno lovers from all over the world and now a 2 to 3 hours wait outside has become standard in spite of a 50 percent chance to pass the door.

By the way: don’t believe the rumours, nobody ever asked you to only wear black. So be creative and be you. If you show up like you are attending an Ed Sheeran concert, the bouncers might think that you might be in the wrong club. Being openly and visibly queer and -friendly usually helps. Remember Berghain is a queer, sex-positive space that has to be safe for everyone.

Berghain Schlange vor Tür (Sommer 2021) — Berghain queue on a sunday morning.

So, are you ready to stand in line for an outstanding experience? Cool. Spread the love, hug, and rave on for another 15 years to come!

Here you’ll find a particular collection of DJ sets recorded over the years at the Techno Floor of Berghain and the smaller, cozier, and funky second-floor Panorama Bar. If there was one thing that makes the Berghain club really stand out, it surely is its diversity in people and giving DJs a platform with the freedom to play whatever they like for as long as it’s got the substance.

The best Berghain DJ Sets

Luke Slater – Berghain Fünfzehn

Berghain Resident Luke Slater is diving deep into the Ostgut Archives for his latest Berghain Mixtape. His mix includes releases from 15 years of Ostgut Ton and the productions by the resident DJs that created the sound of Berghain. Luke Slater reassembled over 100 tracks into his mix to present the ulitmate Berghain experience. Don’t forget to go stay home!

Panorama Bar 06 – Ryan Elliott

Ryan Elliott, a Detroit native, knows how to spin up to 40 tracks an hour. As a resident DJ, he captures both floors, smoothly switching between the more mellow Panorama Bar and the pumping Berghain sound.

ND Baumecker – Panorama Bar 07

Frankfurt native nd_baumecker is deeply rooted in the Berghain foundation. In 2003, he opened up the first Panorama Bar DJ set, made Berlin his home in 2004 and has since been their resident DJ.

Function – Berghain 07

Berlin-based New Yorker Function (aka Dave Summer) is a Techno pioneer. He has been making music for over 25 years, and his DJ sets are headlining globally. He is also an Ostgut recording artist and is behind the releases of the Berghain mix series. Function is also the founder of the highly acclaimed Sandwell District collective.

Speedy J – Berghain Nov 2012

Speedy J has been shaping the electronic music and techno scene since the 90’s releasing on acclaimed labels like Warp, Novamut, or Plus 8.

Boris – Berghain opening set January 2013

Boris’s musical interests were formed in the 80s, living in New York for a few years partying at Paradise Garage. As an early DJ wizard on the Ostgut/Panorama decks, he’s been playing at Berghain since 2004 and knows how to bend music genres like no other.

Ben Klock – Berghain 10^th Aug 2013

As a forrunner of the Berlin techno movement and growing in popularity, in 2005, Ben Klock has joined the Berghain DJ residents. He also won BBC Radio 1’s Essential Mix of the Year award in 2015.

Marcel Dettmann – Berghain 02 (Full Mix)

As a stronger fixture in Berlin and former Ostgut (now Berghain) resident, Marcel Dettmann, a DJ, and producer is currently part of the 20 years of The FabricLondon compilation, which was just released this month.

Tobias. Live – Berghain 9.7.11

Ostgut recording Artist and resident DJ Tobias, has long been established as an influential artist. Since the early 1990s, he has worked as a studio producer, sound engineer, label operator, and pure live musician.

Fiedel Closing Set – Berghain Aug 2014

Protagonists of old school hip-hop like Mantronix or Egyptian Lover influenced him just as much as the early works of Depeche Mode or Kraftwerk. Former Ostgut and also Berghain resident DJ Fiedel always loves to build something new that reflects that moment.

Tama Sumo – Panorama Bar 02

In 1994 Tama Sumo started playing regularly at the legendary Club Globus/Tresor and became a resident DJ for about 10 years. She began to integrate different electronic music genres into her house sets, a mixture, she steadily improved over the years and which still play a significant role in her current DJ sets and her DJ Mix compilations.

Schlagwörter:Berghain Berlin Clubs DJ Sets techno

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