A new book on Berlin club culture is coming out in May 2022

 A new book 'Coming To Berlin' that explores various elements of the Berlin nightlife scene should be published in May 2022. 

‘Coming To Berlin: Global Journeys Into An Electronic Music And Club Culture’ told through Paul Hanford’s novelistic narrative mixes imagination and interview, psychogeography and narrative, humor and horror. Each chapter follows encounters with the people who made the city their own.

Due for May, the new book explores the German capital over the decades following “intimate encounters with migrants, settlers and newcomers who have made the city their own."

Coming to Berlin also aims to step away from the boilerplate of Berlin as a “techno city”, and hopes to shed light on more intimate club culture through interviews, stories, and encounters with musicians.

Among those interviewed are Mark Reeder, Monica Kruse and Love Parade founder Danelle DePicciotto, who talk about how their lives were connected by urban punk and 1980s art movement Genialle Dillentanten, and how this led to the birth of modern club culture in the city. It describes how an ever-changing city with a turbulent history has evolved into the de facto cultural capital of Europe.

In a more recent context, a young Syrian refugee talks about immersing himself in DJing and music such as the British drill due to moving to the city, while artists like Ziúr and KMRU talk about combining experimental rhythms with electronic music and Berlin club culture.

And how at the heart of that electronic music and club culture play a unique role. An appeal to multiculturalism and a love letter to the boundless potential of music, the book breaks the tradition of perceiving Berlin as a techno foundation and shows the true diversity and richness that make up this city.

We follow the Turkish hip-hop scene on the streets of Kreuzberg. And under the threat of gentrification, in a world after a pandemic in which clubs have stopped their 30-year pulse, we are hanging out with artists who are transforming electronic music into new genres and even new genders.

"I hope that through reading, people will feel a kinship with artists, the city and music and what Berlin represents as a kind of intangible beacon for creative freedom."

Velocity Press will publish the book on May 5th. Find more information HERE.

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