15/06/2026
We all have people who’ve influenced our musical perspective. Some are family members, friends, some are mysterious figures who trigger within us a state known as “suspension of disbelief”. Dettmann is one of these people.
He grew up in the former GDR, in a place where the records he craved, Depeche Mode, The Cure, Front 242, were impossible to find, so he took it upon himself to distribute these and other favourite releases from his hometown of Pößneck. By 96 he was running a small record shop from home with steady stream of music lovers riding along.
The rest of his story is sort of mythical. A friend submitted a mixtape on his behalf to OstGut and, shortly after, one of the club’s founders called him up. Within months, he was a resident at the club that would become Berghain. He complemented his DJing with a job at HardWax, which allowed him a fresh stream of music, helped curate the shelves for other DJs at the store and brought a wide spectrum of new sounds to Berlin. For a decade he worked alongside DJ Pete, Shed and Cassy, crossing paths with pioneers like Carl Craig or Jeff Mills. More recently, his work has travelled well past the club as well, with sound concepts for photo exhibitions and a piece for the Berlin State Ballet with Frank Wiedemann and choreographer Nadja Saidakowa.
Dettmann & Marquardt
Marquardt, the legendary doorman and artist behind these photos, first captured Dettmann in 2008 for his debut album on Ostgut Ton, and what started as a single shoot quickly became an annual ritual. From the beginning, Marquardt felt Dettmann was the perfect subject for his lens. Their shared East German upbringing gave the relationship a particular tone which grew into full artistic collaboration, combining music, photography and visual art into live audiovisual performances such as Black Box and Slide.
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A common ground!
basilarfestival.com
10–13 September 2026
Barragem da Queimadela, Fafe, Portugal
