Music & clubs

Feminist fests

Need a shot of estrogen to counteract the pure masculinity of Rummelsnuff? June has you covered and then some. Here's our festival guide.

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Stella Chiweshe
Need a shot of estrogen to counteract the pure masculinity of Rummelsnuff? June has you covered and then some. First up is Heroines Editions, in which three Berlin-based female electronic musicians warm us up for July’s Heroines of Sound festival. Manami N., known for her collage-like fusion of electronic noise and traditional Japanese instruments, presents Without Love, Make Heimat, while Christina Ertl’s Plants and Empire spellbinds with Reading? Solanum melongena, which takes its foliage-heavy sound directly from the green, leafy source, and Chinese-American Audrey Chen will take the stage with her largely improvised blend of homemade analogue beats and classical cello. Feeling more blatantly subversive? Return to the Kantine for Ich brauche eine Genie – Popkultur, Feminismus, Spaß & so, Vol 1. Kerstin and Sandra Grether, the twin sisters behind Doctorella and the Bohemian Strawberry indie label, have put together a night of soapbox sermons, readings and straight-up body-groovin’ fun with some of Berlin’s most disruptive female artists. Aside from Doctorella, there’s fellow feminist sister act Jolly Goods; Zuckerklub, who Kerstin describes as the June Carter and Johnny Cash of German-speaking indie rock; and the demolition party pop of Chefboss, which may or may not feature confetti guns and up to 30 backup dancers. Finally, the 70-year-old Stella Chiweshe might not be playing the above festivals, but as one of the first-ever women to master the mbira (thumb piano) in her native Zimbabwe, she’s been hoisting the feminist flag high since before most of us were born. Partly Berlin-based but little known among the hipster set until recently, she’s making up for lost time this month: catch her at Funkhaus with the African Acid is the Future crew, playing Torstraßenfestival’s Saturday blowout, or grooving in the garden at Down By The River. Heroines Editions, Jun 17, 20:00 | Kantine am Berghain, Friedrichshain Ich brauche eine Genie – Popkultur, Feminismus, Spaß & so, Vol 1, Jun 29, 20:00 | Kantine am Berghain African Acid is the Future Jun 2, 18:00 | Funkhaus, Schöneweide Down By The River Jun 24, 14:00 | About Blank, Friedrichshain