Pop-Kultur – Glass checks out Berlin’s culture thriving festival

THIS year marked the two-year anniversary of Berlin’s diverse and upcoming Pop-Kultur festival. Debuting its first year at the famous Berghain club, Pop-Kulture celebrated this year’s festival in the thriving venues situated in the culture filled borough of Neukölln. The line up boasted a seemingly endless choice of art, film, talks and musical entertainment across the three days in nine different venues.

Mogwai performing Atomic. Photograph: Roland Owsnitzki

Mogwai opened the festival at the Admiralspalast with a dramatic performance of their new album Atomic in it’s entirety. Written as a supporting soundtrack for a BBC documentary, Atomic focused on theme of nuclear energy, raising awareness of it’s danger. The band created an air of intensity as they played a 2 hour instrumental set which recreated sounds of nuclear war in an electronic lo-fi style – all of which was played in unison with the real life footage of nuclear war scenes from the documentary.

Cat’s Eyes. Photograph: Roland Owsnitzki

Cat’s Eyes charmed their audience with an intimate gig, with the fronting couple Faris and Rachel filling gaps between songs with a mixture of humorous comments on their relationship and in jokes. Indie music offered a hiatus from the electronic bands at Pop-Kultur, and this set the tone right in time for Frankie Cosmos. She played a relaxing set featuring soft vocals over lazy guitar tracks, many of which from her newest album Next Thing.

Closing the first night of music was Alex.Do, who played an energetic DJ set in a tucked away, dimly lit venue – a classic Berlin scene. His set consisted of pumping house and trance before he wound the tempo down at the end in time for a 3 am finish.

Fatima Al Qadiri (DJ set). Photograph: Roland Owsnitzki

Making two appearances, Fatima Al Qadiri was a true highlight of Pop-Kultur. Her talk with Juliana Huxtable on the context of music raised key points on lyricism and how incorporating art is an important part of her music. Qadiri, who originates from Kuwait spoke about how religious themes impact her music, and the talk gave a great insight into the workings of her newest album Brute. This was later followed by a stimulating DJ set which included international music and tracks from her new album.

Liars. Photograph: Roland Owsnitzki

New York based Liars played an intense midnight set to a jam packed venue. The three-piece  – who were only illuminated by their laptop screens – played a candid hour of live music leaving fans wanting more.

Kurt’s Lighter exhibition. Photograph: Annett Bonkowski

In addition to the music, art played an important role at Pop-Kultur. Scott King’s exhibition Kurt’s Lighter follows the story of a Nirvana enthusiast and his mission to trace a special venue in Berlin. The exhibition drew particular interest by festival goers as it displayed niche objects with a twist featured in the supporting short film.

Annika from Exploded View. Photograph: Annett Bonkowski

Exploded View performed a dark but melodic set on the last night of the festival. Lead singer Annika graced the night with her quirky presence, often relocating her place on stage after every other song. The combination of Nico-esque vocals and sinister bass lines made an interesting live show.  

Although only two years in, Pop-Kultur has created a clear ethos of quality and diverse entertainment at their festival. It’s a refreshing alternative to larger events, and there is a sense of community that runs throughout the weekend, despite the festival taking place in different locations. Who knows what year three will hold!

by Katrina Mirpuri