Berlin after the Wall: Tresor and the Detroit–Berlin axis

A city without owners

On 9 November 1989 the Berlin Wall fell. East Berlin suddenly opened up, full of empty factories, basements and buildings whose legal status was unclear. For young people from both sides of the city this was a space of freedom. Parties happened wherever you could plug in power and a sound system.

Tresor: a club in a vault

In March 1991 Dimitri Hegemann opened Tresor in the underground vault of the former Wertheim department store, near Potsdamer Platz. Thick walls, steel doors and old safe-deposit boxes made a raw, industrial space. Darkness, strobes and hard techno: that atmosphere is still what people associate with Berlin.

The Detroit–Berlin axis

From the start Hegemann invited artists from Detroit. Tresor Records debuted with a release by X-101, which was Underground Resistance. The label released Jeff Mills and Blake Baxter, among others. The 3MB project brought together Moritz von Oswald and Thomas Fehlmann from Berlin with "Magic" Juan Atkins from Detroit, and "Jazz Is the Teacher" is the best example of that partnership. Detroit musicians were often more appreciated in Berlin than at home.

Love Parade and the 1990s scene

In 1989 Dr. Motte organised the first Love Parade, a small demonstration of about 150 people under the slogan "Peace, Joy, Pancakes". In the 1990s it grew into one of the largest parties in the world. Alongside Tresor there were clubs such as E-Werk and Planet. They played records by local artists such as the Berlin duo Sun Electric, but also imports from Belgium and New York, like Joey Beltram's "Energy Flash". Berlin techno became a symbol of a reunited, free city.

Today

The original Tresor closed in 2005 when the building was earmarked for redevelopment. The club reopened in 2007 in a former power station on Köpenicker Straße and is still running. Berlin became the world capital of techno, but its roots are in a dark 1990s basement and a friendship with Detroit.