Germany

The Discothèque

What’s better than techno? German techno is the answer. Having the largest electronic music scene in the world, the Germans know how to “discothèque.” 

The beginning of the German electronic music scene began sometime in the 1950s when composer Karlheinz Stockhausen wanted to create modern and innovative music. This thinking began to expand starting in the early 1970s. 

Kraftwerk was one of the first “krautrock” bands whose vision was to exemplify modern life and the move into a more technological society. Themes that are heavily present in their music are computers, robots and traveling by the Autobahn.

The bands instrumentals were a different sort for the time, as they used a vocoder, electronic drums and synthesizers. 

Kraftwerk was heavily influential for many artists to come into the electronic music scene. By the eighties, many techno bands began springing up and wedging their way into popular culture.

By the late '80s, the rave scene in East Berlin became extremely popular, and going to underground techno parties was the norm. A few years later, techno clubs began to open. The very first techno clubs were Planet, Der Bunker and Tresor. 

German DJs normally played at these clubs, experimenting with different sounds and becoming weirder and weirder as the techno music was being well-received. 

One of the first famous DJs in Germany was Sven Vath who became popular in 1990 and went on to open his own dance club. 

As more of these techno dance clubs were opening in Germany’s big cities, they were being called “discothèques.”

By the mid to late 1990s, rave music was mainstream and techno musicians began trying mixing music and creating what we know as “remixes.” This means they would take classic songs and give them a techno spin, usually speeding up the original song.

The German music scene is now pretty diverse with hip-hop, rap and alternative having emerged recently, but the electronic scene is still going strong. Dancing at discothèques and raging to techno music is a very prominent part of German popular culture.

Digitalism

The techno/house duo called Digitalism hit the German electronic music scene in 2004. The band consists of DJs Jens Moelle and Ismail Tüfekçi. After the two were asked to DJ at a party together, they began mixing and recording as a band. 

In 2007, Digitalism released their debut album, Idealism. Some of the songs from the album were previously released as singles, but the band felt ready enough to compile them into a 15-track album.

Following Idealism, the duo released two EPs including the popular Pogo EP.  Their second full-length album was released in 2011 and was called I Love You, Dude.

The band has just recently released a new album called DJ Kicks. The album’s music shifts between many different genres including synth-pop, new wave, techno and what the band calls “pop glamour.” 

Digitalism is mainly a German band, but they have ventured out of their cultural realm by spreading their influence all over the world.

For example, the band records for the French label Kitsuné and Virgin Records. Digitalism has also appeared at well-known festivals including Coachella, Lollapalooza and Ultra Music Festival.

Most of Digitalism’s music consists of remixed tracks by existing artists of various genres. Some of the artists they have remixed include The Futureheads, Daft Punk and The White Stripes.

The band’s most recognized song is “Pogo” from Idealism and has been featured in different aspects of popular culture. The song even became one of the official tracks for Electronic Arts video games.

With some of Digitalism’s influences clearly being techno bands such as Daft Punk and Kraftwerk, the band has really made a name for themselves in the techno music scene.