Fake beaches are just about to emerge all over Berlin for the long summer of dipping your dancing feet into sand. First one in the row and one of the biggest this year is the tenth Berlin Festival. Don't miss the big weekend fun and plenty other events before and after.

TUESDAY 26.05

21.00 WAND @ Westgermany

WHY: Their record label describes them as "an obese organ falsely organized as 4 overjoyous nerds. Four flesh balloons betting on a few aging amplifiers." Concert organizers label them as sludge psych titans, and loosely mention the band's connection to Ty Segall. WAND's gritty psychedelic sound got us from the first listen; do not miss to hear them live at the best place for wizardry of this caliber.

Westgermany / Skalitzer Str. 133, 10999 Berlin, U Kottbusser Tor / more info

WEDNESDAY 27.05

21.00 Iceage + Less Win @ Bi Nuu

WHY: Iceage are a young four-member band from Copenhagen, mixing punk with post-punk, goth, and hardcore. Their album is bursting with youthful energy, and so are their live shows. Lately the band is getting widely appreciated for direct, catchy and clever sound, and notoriously physically, sometimes aggressive, often destructive and always fun gigs.

Bi Nuu / Im Schlesischen Tor, 10997 Berlin / more info

THURSDAY 28.05

20.00 One More Pioneer @ Brotfabrik

WHY: gamut inc present their second music theatre piece One More Pioneer, which questions the concept of future and enters the field of progress, Utopia and technophilia. The piece is loosely based on a short story of David Foster Wallace, and its framework interacts with found footage, such as frequently asked questions by Google. Dark and delicate electro acoustic and electronic tunes are delivered by gamut inc's retro futuristic, self built, computer driven music machines.

Brotfabrik / Caligariplatz 1, 13086 Berlin/Weissensee / more info

20.00 TOPS + Better Person @ Privatclub

WHY: TOPS are a four-piece band from Montreal, delivering a raw punk take on AM studio pop.
Six months after their last sold out show in Berlin, they are now back on stage to present their new record “Picture You Staring”. Support comes from Better Person, the elegant and carefully considered solo project of Sean Nicholas Savage's touring guitarist Adam Byczkowski.

Privatclub / Skalitzer Straße 85-86, 10997 Berlin, U Schlesisches Tor / more info

FRIDAY 29.05

18.00 Berlin Festival 2015 @ Arena Park

WHY: Berlin Festival brings together unique music, culture and art. Genre barriers are torn down; techno flirts with hip hop, arthouse with cabaret, high fashion with street wear, street food with haute cuisine, and classical music with club culture. Playing the 10th anniversary are top international acts Underworld, James Blake, Róisín Murphy, Seth Troxler, Carl Craig etc, alongside Berlin's club scene key players such as Richie Hawtin, Dixon, Tale Of Us and Âme. The festival will transform Arena Park into Berlin's biggest club for a 48hour party.

ARENA PARK / Eichenstraße 4, 12435 Berlin, U Schlesisches Tor / more info

TUESDAY 02.06

20.30 DOOMSQUAD + Helen Fry @ Loophole

WHY: DOOMSQUAD is a Toronto-based art project made up of siblings Trevor, Jaclyn, and Allie Blumas. The trio create experimental dance music that is heavily indebted to trance and psychedelia. As interdisciplinary artists, the band brings a wide range of influences; from far-reaching global beats to the sounds of their local community, all thoughtfully curated and channeled into the project. Support comes in the form of a rare performance from Helen Fry.

Loophole / Boddinstrasse 60, 12053 Berlin, U Rathaus Neukölln / more info

WEDNESDAY 03.06

20.00 Pharmakon +  Shaddah Tuum + Gainstage + BlackBlackGold @ Kantine am Berghain

WHY: After three appearances at Berghain, in the frame of Not Equal and as support for Swans, Margaret Chardiet aka Pharmakon will once again fill the space with her thick power electronics/ noise/ industrial sound (good ear protection recommended!). Shaddah Tuum (Nicolas Lefort and Brandon Rosenbluth) will play support, as well as Arik Hayut and Pierce Warnecke who will come together as Gainstage to launch their newly released debut album.

Kantine am Berghain / Am Wriezener Bahnhof, S+U Warschauer Str. / more info

THURSDAY 04.06

21.00 Shameless/Limitless: Jaakko Eino Kalevi LP Release Show and Party + Long-Sam + Molly Nilsson (DJ) + Chikiss (DJ) @ Urban Spree

WHY: The endlessly creative and strikingly original pop savant Jaakko Eino Kalevi is back to present the new LP (and debut full length for Weird World / Domino) which will see wide release in June. This show will not only serve as the record release, but also the tour kick off. Long-Sam is playing support, Chikiss and Molly Nilsson Djing.

Urban Spree / Revaler Str. 99, S+U Warschauer Str. / more info