Berghain / Panorama Bar

על המקום הזה Berghain / Panorama Bar

Berghain is not simply Berlin's best nightclub. It is the most discussed, most analysed and most influential nightclub in the world — a former East German heating plant on the border of Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg that has been open since 2004 and has not declined in reputation or cultural significance since its opening year. The building is a vast concrete turbine hall — cathedral-sized, with a ceiling that disappears into darkness. The main floor runs relentless, precise techno at volume levels that cannot be accurately described in words. Panorama Bar on the upper floor runs house music in a lighter, more social environment with a glass roof that lets in Berlin's grey sky. The club opens Friday at midnight and closes Monday morning, with no interruption: people arrive, leave and return over a 48-72 hour cycle. The door policy is the most discussed in the world. The reasoning is aesthetic rather than exclusionary — the queue is the filter that produces an interior social environment unlike any other club. Dress dark, speak little, put your phone away at the door (the camera is stickered over on entry). The darkroom, the outdoor terrace, the bar built into the old boiler structure — every element of the experience is specific to this building and this city. Berghain is also the venue for Folsom Europe and Berlin Leather Week after-parties. Sunday at Berghain, arriving at dawn, remains one of the defining experiences of European gay nightlife.