“No matter how you look at it, Berlin has techno and techno has Berlin.”
This is one of many striking lines in the documentary ‘Sound of Berlin’ that came out earlier this year. The hour-long feature is a love letter to electronic music and the German city.
It begins before the fall of the Berlin Wall, diving deep into how techno music really got its start—as a way to feel connected to each other as well as how to feel free during such an intense time in history. “You were in a room and you danced. Everyone was equal in front of the music,” explains Alexander Krüger.
It uses minimal narration, relying on interviews as well as historical and modern photographs and video to drive the narrative. Because it uses this firsthand account of storytelling, the interview pool is quite vast. It too spans the course of history, not only gathering insight from the people who started it all, but also the people who are in the scene now. Those featured include Juan Atkins, Dr. Motte, Dimitri Hegemann (founder of Berlin mainstay Tresor), Marc Houle, Monolink, Pan-Pot, Mathias Kaden, Nela, Alexander Krüger, Ekaterina and FreedomB.
The soundtrack for the documentary was made by Marc Houle and does a fantastic job in keeping the pace and setting the mood. This, coupled with the cinematography and the focus of different flashing light sources around Berlin, mimics the atmosphere of being at a techno show.
Though the documentary aired back in May 2018, it was an Apple Music exclusive. Good news, though: it is now free to stream on YouTube, and is definitely worth a watch.
Check it out below.
