Jackson Dyer is an Australian singer-songwriter and producer, based in Berlin. His debut album, “Inlet,” was released on November 15. We caught up with him to talk about going home to Australia to record his debut album, the pros and cons of producing an album solo, and his beginnings busking in Mauerpark. Stick around until the end of the interview to hear Jackson perform “Over the Dunes” live in-studio. Produced by Sylvia Cunningham
Jan 11, 2020•7 min•Ep. 69
We met up with DJ and producer Shed, aka René Pawlowitz, following the November 29 release of his fifth studio album “Oderbruch” on Berghain’s label Ostgut Ton. Pawlowitz opens up about the inspiration for the album, which centers around memories from the region his family’s from in East Germany. He talks about how the area has changed and doesn’t hide the sense of nostalgia that emerges: “It’s a mixture of being sad but also happy. It’s depressive in a good way,” he says. Produced by Sylvia Cun...
Dec 21, 2019•6 min•Ep. 68
5K HD is a Vienna-based avant-garde electro pop band tired of sticking to musical conventions. We met up with lead singer Mira Lu Kovacs to find out about the band’s jazz influences and passion for experimenting with sound and improvisation. The band recently released their second album, “High Performer,” and will be showcasing their new material in a European tour in early 2020. Produced by Benjamin Restle...
Nov 23, 2019•3 min•Ep. 67
Ishmael Ensemble is a Bristol-based ambient-jazz-electronica outfit that defies being pigeonholed into only one genre. We sat down with band leader Pete Cunningham and bassist Jake Spurgeon to talk about what inspires them musically and why they love playing in Berlin. Ishmael Ensemble released their debut album, “A State of Flow,” in May of 2019. They are currently recording a new EP and planning a concert tour for 2020. Produced by Benjamin Restle...
Oct 26, 2019•5 min•Ep. 66
Berlin-based garage pop band Gurr write songs about anxiety, what it means to be a strong woman, and, of course, love. We caught up with the Laura Lee and Andreya Casablanca to talk about writing lyrics in German versus English, friendship, their upcoming tour and their new “She Says” EP, which is available now. Produced by Sylvia Cunnningham
Sep 07, 2019•6 min•Ep. 65
We spoke with Keith Duncan and Johannes von Weizsäcker, two members of The Chap, ahead of their performance at the Torstraßen Festival. The band, who has challenged themselves in recent years to release a series of concept albums which push them beyond their comfort zone, shares some thoughts on their tenure together. Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll
Aug 17, 2019•5 min•Ep. 64
We spoke with performer Tara Nome Doyle ahead of the Torstraßen Festival at the Volksbühne . The 21-year-old Berlin singer-songwriter walks us through her songwriting process and the first song she wrote at the age of 11, the musical impact of growing up in a Norwegian-Irish family, and her first EP, “Milk and Honey” which was released in 2018. Stick around until the end to hear a special a capella performance of her version of the Norwegian folk song “Till Till Tara.” Produced by Monika Müller-...
Aug 10, 2019•5 min•Ep. 63
German musician Delhia de France likes drawing from Greek mythology to create her music. She’s particularly fascinated with goddesses. “I like the concept of taking something totally mundane and giving it a kind of divine spark or kind of a divine image,” de France said. De France stopped by our studio to talk about her new EP ‘Oceanides’ and her collaboration with award-winning German producer Robot Koch. Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll...
Jul 27, 2019•5 min•Ep. 62
Rising Appalachia is a band founded by two sisters, Leah and Chloe Smith . With links to social and environmental activism, the folk duo from Atlanta, Georgia, look for harmony in the music they create and the places they go. The sisters dropped by our studio in the middle of a series of European shows celebrating their new album “Leylines.” We talked about their roots and the philosophy behind the Slow Music Movement. Plus, they performed a traditional Appalachian love song live in studio, “Acr...
Jul 20, 2019•9 min•Ep. 61
On July 1, 1989, a few months before the fall of the Berlin Wall, a couple handfuls of people started a dance parade to acid house music along Kurfürstendamm in West Berlin. It was called Loveparade and was organized by a DJ named Dr. Motte . 30 years on, we caught up with Dr. Motte to find out more about the origins of the legendary event, and how a celebration founded in the name of “peace, love and pancakes” became a world-renowned party. Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll...
Jul 01, 2019•5 min•Ep. 60
We sat down with JJ Weihl, one of the founders of Berlin-based band Fenster, to talk about their latest album, “The Room,” and past projects. From creating a soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t exist to tracking an entire album live while in the Tuscan countryside, Weihl gives us insight into the band’s creative process. Produced by Flora Adamian
Jun 22, 2019•5 min•Ep. 59
Berlin street musicians play everywhere, from street corners to public transportation. In this series, we’re talking with Berlin street musicians in order to find out more about who they are and what drives them to share their music throughout the city. We spoke with soprano Christina Harslem to learn more about the rewards and challenges of performing as a street musician. Produced by Flora Adamian
Jun 08, 2019•5 min•Ep. 58
Maryama Luccioni is the founder of African Acid Is The Future, a Berlin-based music collective that hosts concerts and radio shows, and has put out an LP titled Ambiance I. On June 6 , African Acid Is The Future will feature Tuareg musician Mdou Moctar in a show at the Volksbühne in Berlin. We sat down with Luccioni to talk about the collective’s origin stories, plus a glimpse into Moctar’s music ahead of the show. Produced by Sylvia Cunningham...
Jun 01, 2019•6 min•Ep. 57
We caught up with musician Diane Weigmann. Born and raised in Berlin, Weigmann was once a member of the all-female pop band the Lemonbabies. Ahead of the release of her fourth solo studio album, Weigmann talks about how motherhood has led to a change in perspective, as well as her new single “Größer als Du denkst” (in English, that’s “Greater than you think”). Produced by Nikki Motson
May 18, 2019•6 min•Ep. 56
The Berlin-based violinist Daniel Weltlinger’s latest album, “Szolnok,” tells the story of his grandfather — who fled Europe during the war, violin in tow, before ending up in Australia — and how Weltlinger came to own and play that violin decades later. We sat down with Weltlinger to learn more about his grandfather and hear music from the album, played live in-studio, from the same violin. Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll
May 04, 2019•5 min•Ep. 55
“The only good system is a sound system” is an adage known among music heads and audio nerds. It’s also the name of a festival in Berlin designed to explore the sounds and politics of bass music. Co-curators Zuri Maria Daiß and Pascal Jurt want to stoke Berlin’s curiosity with the genre of club music and hope the festival will bring together technicians, musicians and theorists to foster an exchange of ideas on sound system culture. Produced by Charlotte Billing....
Apr 20, 2019•4 min•Ep. 54
Artist February Montaine mysteriously disappeared from his Derbyshire, England home in 1991. He left behind a substantial collection of journals and homemade tapes, which became cherished by his stepdaughter Suzy . She passed her stepfather’s work onto Berlin-based musician and producer Sam Potter, who spent years weaving these remnants together. One journal idea that stuck with Potter, was Montaine’s belief that “the best music listens to you in the same way you listen to it. So to make a song ...
Apr 13, 2019•6 min•Ep. 53
It was August 2018 when Kelly Watson Woelffer, a Berlin-based flutist originally from the U.S., heard “Music in Circles” by American composer Andrew Norman and something in her ignited. “I’ve been a little bit artistically starved for the last five years or so because I have three tiny humans at home,” said Watson Woelffer. “I have been playing and teaching, of course, but have not led something of my own in about five years…I was just listening to [“Music in Circles”] and I had a sudden decisio...
Mar 23, 2019•6 min•Ep. 51
Berlin street musicians play everywhere, from street corners to public transportation. In this series, we’re talking with Berlin street musicians in order to find out more about who they are and what drives them to share their music throughout the city. We caught up with Ukrainian music students Igor and Anton who play accordion and violin, playing at a U-Bahn station, to gain a bit more insight into their world. Produced by Nikki Motson
Mar 23, 2019•6 min•Ep. 52
How should we care for sound archives in the digital age? It’s a question that Detlef Diederichsen, head of music and performing arts at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt , has considered for more than 10 years — so much so that he created Find the File, a festival that begins on March 21 at the HKW, to explore big-picture questions about music digitalization. We caught up with Diederichsen to discuss how the idea came to life, plus we hear from Berlin-based musicians Tellavision and Derya Yıldırım...
Mar 16, 2019•4 min•Ep. 50
Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra is made up of 18 musicians from a wide variety of musical backgrounds, who all share a dedication to experimentation. They typically meet to rehearse and improvise together about once every month. We caught up with some members of the orchestra as they prepare for the first concert in their new three part series, “Neue Orchesterformen I/III.” Produced by Sylvia Cunningham
Feb 23, 2019•4 min•Ep. 49
Berlin is a vibrant place, full of diverse sights and sounds, and the city’s many buskers are a part of the scene. In a new series, we’re talking with Berlin street musicians in order to find out more about who they are and what drives them to share their music throughout the city. This week, we meet Santur player Hakan Tuğrul at Fehrbelliner Platz to listen to some traditional Persian music as well as his original compositions. Produced by Nikki Motson...
Feb 09, 2019•5 min•Ep. 48
Berghain resident DJ Pete (aka Substance) stopped by our studio to talk about his new EP “Rise And Shine.” It’s his first solo release since 1998. DJ Pete is a fixture in Kreuzberg, the place where he grew up. He worked in the record store Hard Wax, and it’s where he started to DJ. Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll
Jan 26, 2019•5 min•Ep. 47
Berlin-based Swedish musician Fredrik Kinbom has lived abroad for the past 20 years. It was in U.K. where a chance encounter led him to buy his first lap steel guitar, with which he started carving his signature sound. We caught up with Kinbom to talk about learning politeness from the British, his interest in history, and spreading Scandinavian melancholy through his latest solo album, “Songs for Lap Steel & Harmonium.” Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll...
Jan 12, 2019•5 min•Ep. 46
Kareth Schaffer is a choreographer and performer who has become a regular at Tanztage, Berlin’s contemporary dance festival, showcasing up and coming talents. We caught up with her ahead of “Dancing Against the Far Right,” a choreographed conversation where, together with six guest speakers, Schaffer will lead a discussion with a Berlin audience around the values that dance institutions uphold. Produced by Monika Müller-Kroll
Jan 05, 2019•4 min•Ep. 45
Julia Holter ’s music is exploratory and playful. “ Aviary ” is her fifth studio album and takes listeners on an unpredictable 90-minute journey, influenced in part by film scores and medieval music. We caught up with Holter during her 2018 European tour to find out more about her recording process and how her formal musical education helped her to grow in unconventional ways. Produced by Sylvia Cunningham...
Dec 15, 2018•4 min•Ep. 44
Sopranist Julie Wyma is the chairwoman of the Berliner Opernverein. Together with Berlin-based artists of different nationalities, backgrounds, and sexual orientations, Wyma has produced a staged version of the AIDS Quilt Songbook: Berlin Edition. The project was first started in the United States by baritone William Parker, who, according to Wyma, was driven by the belief that “the artistic community could do more to recognize the epidemic and support those living with it.” The Berlin edition i...
Dec 01, 2018•4 min•Ep. 43
Fin Greenall, better known as Fink, knows a few things about music. His musical career started in the club culture of the 1990s, when he was signed to Ninja Tune. In the 2000s he got into blues and folk songwriting and Fink became a band. He has lived in Berlin since 2014. We caught up with the musician, originally from Cornwall, to find out about his musical shifts, his love of the blues, and the journey that has led to his current output. Greenall says: “I don’t like music which is just produc...
Nov 24, 2018•5 min•Ep. 42
Gavin Turek has been dancing, singing and writing songs for about as long as she can remember. The 31-year-old Los Angeleno came by KCRW Berlin’s studios while she was in town working with local producers, and we talked about her musical upbringing and how she finds her confidence on stage. Turek’s live shows burst with energy, unsurprising for a performer who originally trained as a dancer. “I find being on stage incredibly empowering and freeing even though it’s very vulnerable at the same tim...
Nov 17, 2018•5 min•Ep. 41
Nov. 9, 1989 was a historical turning point. This week, we look back and forward, bringing you different perspectives on the 29th anniversary of the fall of the Wall. Mark Reeder describes his life like a ball in a pinball machine: “I kind of met one person and then it ricocheted onto another, and that’s how I kind of made my career.” Most of that career was made in Berlin, where he says West Berlin was the “crazy, mad place where I lived” and East Berlin was the “crazy, mad place that I visited...
Nov 10, 2018•4 min•Ep. 40
