About two months ago I sold all of my belongings and bought a one way ticket to the Techno capital of the world, Berlin. You would be surprised (or maybe you wouldn’t be) the amount of times I’ve heard the following questions:

“Why did you pick Berlin?”

To which I usually say something boring like:

“I don’t really know, I just felt drawn here for some reason.”

or

“I’ve alway wanted to live in Europe and Berlin is one of the cheapest European cities, so here I am.”

If satisfied with my answer, they will then usually segue into:

“So, do you like techno?”

Wow, well that’s a loaded question. First of all, I don’t really even know what techno is. When I hear someone say “techno” I immediately hear “I’m Blue” by Eiffel 65 while images of glazed raver kids wearing pink fuzzy boots, rainbow bracelets and pacifiers dance through my head.

Depending on who asks, I usually say something like;

“Well I like to dance, so I like anything that I can dance to.”

But truthfully, I have no idea what the hell is even considered techno these days. One thing I do know, however, is that I fucking love it—whatever “it” is.

Listening to techno is like being in a virtual reality where beats are king and lyrics are irrelevant. The moment that the DJ releases the build up, you can feel a weight being lifted off the entire crowd. Imagine a room full of people communicating with their bodies only, shedding layers of insecurities and stress with every beat drop. Before you know it, you’ve been in the basement of a bar dancing for 7 hours. As you make your way home, the sun is barely breaking through the horizon. You smile and notice how much lighter you feel. Could it be that a good DJ is more effective than a therapist?

Ringo, Joris Voorn

Joris Voorn is my latest obsession. His DJ mixes are incredible (and he offers a lot of them for free on his Soundcloud page.)

Joris Voorn blows the house down with a truly epic set on Queensnight in Trouw Amsterdam, as club packed to the brim with happy people celebrates love for their Queen and electronic music. Beatrix and beats, so good together!

Nicole Paulus, Nico New Media

Images by Phillippe Leroyer, Flickr

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So, Do You Like Techno?