There were different things that led to my Power House residency. First of all was working with DJ Pete for eight years at Hard Wax. There was a special kind of house music he called Power House. It was mostly pumping, bottom heavy. With good floor credentials. It had to have some originality, but it had to work. After a while the term stuck. Shed used it for his label and I, for the time being, as description. But around that time I was not happy with a lot of club nights in Berlin and beyond, and the kind of house music played there. It seemed theoretical to me, overladen with virtual knowledge, but lacking in experience how to make a night fun, and not even interested in it. Often I stood in a club and the headliner played like a warm up. In a highly unfair moment we called it shoegaze house music. And I actually like shoegaze music. But we thought it would be great to just do a night where the music pumps right in your face and having a good time is the goal, but it had to be reached with some flair. A kind of extrovert counter-reaction. And at that time I was missing a regualr night where I could just do whatever I wanted to do.
I always like to put ideas into action so I told Pete why not do a night with a sound that more represents our idea of a good night out. And not only one sound, several sounds. But not necessarily in one night. I asked my friend Philip Marshall if he would take care of an instantly recognizeable artwork, and gladly he agreed.
And so we stood at Paloma, playing some known and relatively unknown house, and we did not even run a big PR to make it work. It just worked. The floor was rammed for 8 hours and dancers were screaming in our face. It was just wonderful. At that time we saw the potential that it might work once more. And soon enough I had a monthly residency, did Power Disco too with the same attitude, and it is still going strong.
Over time the concept became quite elastic, we explored many styles in our archives. We were never so rigid to begin with. We just had way too many records and used them. And we invited other DJs who liked the idea as well. At the time I am writing this the residency is going for 8 years, and it is still successful. Sometimes I curse it too. It became a kind of impromptu mission statement I am strongly associated with, and it became a profitable night for Paloma. But I am sure I will let it go before it is not fun anymore. Because that it what is was always about.
A party during Documenta that year. I do not know what the idea behind it was, but nothing too artsy. The place was rather filled with people from an art context who seemed to need a breather from the art context. Thankfully I was prepared for exactly that.
Another mixtape that recorded for an official release, then did not happen. We even had an artwork! Ok, they probably just did not like hip house, and did not want to tell me. As if it would be a problem to tell that to anybody. I, of course, love it.
Artwork by Michael Kummermehr
K. Alexi Shelby And MCD-TA – Dig This King Sun – On The Club Tip Subsonic Two Vs. Nightmares On Wax – Addicted To Music Chubb Rock – Ya Bad Chubbs Precious – Definition Of A Track L.B. Bad – I Like To Move Doug Lazy – Let It Roll T.D.P. – Ladies Let’s Go Tuff Crew – What You Don’t Know Too Nice – I Git Minze Laurent X – It’s Magic
DJ Mink – Hey Hey Can U Relate Unique 3 – Weight For The Bass KC Flightt – Planet E White Knight – Keep It Movin’ Mix N Tel – Feel The Beat Shut Up And Dance – This Town Needs A Sheriff Fast Eddie – Hip House This I’D Jazz – Good To Go Separate Minds – We Need Somebody K.A. Posse – Shake S-B-M & MC Tunes – Back To Attack
Although it closed in 2010, Bar25 still holds a very special place in Berlin clubbing history. Established in 2004, it introduced a hedonistic playground atmosphere to a scene that often preferred to appear sombre and serious. There are countless tales about what wild abandon happened between the wooden fence shielding the club from everyday life and its naturally occuring other boundary, the Spree river, where from the opposite bank or passing boats you could watch a very escapist crowd roam the vast area on marathon weekends. Its soundtrack of minimal and quirky tech house grooves that still work even when held back by a limiter is as synonymous with the Berlin party experience as are the improvised wooden interiors, psychedelic decor and joyful ideas that spawned a legion of other clubs to follow suit since its closure. Now rejuvenated as part of the Holzmarkt project in the same space, we’re taking a look back at the sounds that represented the club. To do this we enlisted someone very close to the project, who could also share some of his favorite memories from the club: Jake The Rapper, a former Bar25 resident DJ.
“This is an excellent example of original minimal, and minimal was my gateway into the whole techno scene and later Bar25. I feel like there were a lot of parallel scenes happening in the Bar at the same time, so I can’t really say this was the blueprint for the Bar25 sound, but it’s definitely the one I went deep into. When other DJs and their fans would take over right after something I was into, I’d be like, “What is this? This is totally different. I don’t get it”—which is just fine, as the place fed on variety and experimentation. There was also a whole other floor called The Circus that was dedicated exclusively to weirdness and avant-garde music. It was a very open time for music and a very open place. It certainly expanded my tastes and skills and every other part of my mind. But this track, although it came out three years before Bar25 opened, definitely laid the groundwork for the kind of vibe that was really appreciated. This was deep and trippy and softly took me to a place I really wanted to go after having been dancing, partying and socializing—sometimes for days on end.”
“This has some elements of electroclash that were really big at the time. This was the same time when Peaches, Mocky, Gonzales, Puppetmastaz and so on were some the biggest Berlin acts. It definitely influenced pop music and of course in the Bar as well, although it generally went with a more minimal sound than this. This was a big banger in comparison to what usually came before and after it. Is it a bit cheesy? Yes it is. But it’s so smooth that it inevitably got everyone deep up in there and fully involved. Plus I had a few numbers that use this same half-tone progression, and I chose this one for being the most representative of that time and also one that is still playable today.”
“I know this doesn’t even seem like a dance track at all—very mellow. But if I played this during the day between minimal tracks, people really loved it. it’s instantly recognizable without being too poppy or kitschy; it’s deep without being too melancholic—it’s really quite a piece of work. The lyrics are just single nouns in a row—“a life, a room, a house, a street.” It seems to comprise cut-up parts of a poem, and yet it expresses a mood and a scenario that’s somehow Lynchian. And then there are these minor guitar chords that go easy on ya. There’s no kick drum—or any drums per se—and yet it totally grooves and got people dancing, at least in the Ranchette at the Bar25. That may be why the place was unique, you could really DJ tracks to celebrate their spirit without having to kowtow to dance floor dynamics. There was already such a suspense and energy there, even when it was half full a little would go a long way.”
“I feel like this track, despite the fact that it became a tech house club hit nationally and internationally, nonetheless captured the sound of the Bar25. Remember that a lot of the time it was daytime, so something with a deep, warm sound made a lot more sense in bright sunlight than in a dark club. A lot of these kind of songs I think gained popularity through the surge in open-airs and daytime clubs like Bar25. This might have put everybody to sleep in the average German dance club in 2005. But when it’s around midday and you’re sitting, looking out at the Spree while a light breeze makes the straw in your gin and tonic move around so you hear the ice in your glass tinkle…you see yourself reflected in your friend’s sunglasses and you look like you’re really enjoying yourself, and then this big soothing, massaging synth surface lifts you up and you have to just stand up and go YEAHHH! …yeah, that’s a Bar25 moment for me.”Read the rest of this entry »
Mix record for Mareena’s Unrush mix series which is usually more ambient themed. I recorded a mix with UK street soul and tunes played at affiliated pirate stations. Good decision actually, the mix was quite popular.
Lewis Taylor – Ghosts Zene – I Will See You Right Irini – 24/7 Love S.L.O. Featuring Stevvon ?– Save Your Love Courtney Buchanan – Life With You Hiroshi Fujiwara – Getting Over You Carlene Davis – Dial My Number Perfect Taste – It’s Over Lalah Hathaway – Baby Don’t Cry Shiro – Good Love Holly Montana – You Been Mean To Me Lewis Taylor – Bittersweet Junior Giscombe – Morning Will Come Chanté Moore – Love’s Taken Over La Rue – Wish I Could Find Another Golden – Don’t Destroy Me Bassline – You’ve Gone Sonya – Goodbye Goodbye Everis – Love Has Arrived China Black – Searching It Takes Two – What’s Happenin’ Pure Silk – One Girl Too Late Claudia Patrice – Forever Sunai – Gonna Take My Chances Abstract Truth – We Had A Thing Fresh 4 – Wishing On A Star Smith & Mighty – Anyone Nicolette – No Government Jackie Sheridan – If You Really Love Me McKoy – Family Chapter & The Verse – Keep On It SWV – Right Here Leta Davis – You’ll Never Get To Heaven Carlton – Love And Pain Smith & Mighty – Walk On Angel Grant – Lil’ Red Boat Judy Albanese – That Ain’t Right Gabrielle – Because Of You Charlene Smith – Feel The Good Times 3D Productions – Trust In You Jummai – Do You Unknown Artist – Remiks Gina Foster – Expect A Miracle Malaya – Blameless Stilife – This Love Tara Kemp – Hold You Tight Pinky – Looking For A Love Lenny Dennis – Lovin You The Bygraves – Set Me Free Optimystic – Trust Me Everything But The Girl – Take Me Banderas – This Is Your Life Pet Shop Boys – The View From Your Balcony
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