The Next Day #109: Berlin Weekend Guide
Must-see events in Berlin: July 17-20, 2025. Cover photo: Cris Masca
We’re kicking it off Thursday with our very own The Next 20% Summer Pod Party, a joint gathering with our friends from 20% Berlin.
The weekend brings plenty to tempt: Gaswerk Music Days return with a mix of kraut, dub, ambient and psych-pop; Psicotrópicos Festival kicks off at MAAYA ahead of its big edition on the 27th at Neue Nationalgalerie (with none other than Hermeto Pascoal); Riki Hidaka × Oren Ambarchi offer a deep listening session at Morphine Raum; Butoh Batoru takes over Säule; Schokoladen celebrates 35 years of punk spirit; and Finest Friday brings a stacked Panorama Bar lineup.
This week’s Performing Arts tip: Opera Lash – Acts of Love by Rebecca Saunders and Dead Centre at Deutsche Oper Berlin.
And while we’re packing bags and folding tents to head to WHOLE Festival this weekend, if you’re staying in town tonight, don’t miss Candice Breitz’s artist talk at Neue Nationalgalerie.
And a little heads-up: next Tuesday we’re teaming up with for a cozy book swap picnic. Free, BYO book, come hang.
Lalai & Mateus
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🍻 TND & 20% BERLIN SUMMER GATHERING
The Next 20% Summer Pod Party
Thursday, 17.07, 7 - 11 pm. Berliner Berg Brauerei, Treptower Str. 39, 12059 Berlin. Ticket: €5.50 including one welcome beer or non-alcoholic drink
The Next Day and our neighbor newsletter 20% Berlin are joining forces this Thursday for a cozy get-together: live podcast taping, beer, music, and a chance for us — the people behind the newsletters — to meet you, our readers.
🎸 CONCERTS
DURCHLÜFTEN 2025 Opening Weekend
Thu–Sat, 17–19.07, 7 pm – 10 pm. Open air: Schlüterhof, Humboldt Forum, Mitte, Berlin. Free admission.
DURCHLÜFTEN brings global rhythms to Berlin’s summer evenings. The highlights for this weekend are: (Thu) Minyo Crusaders blend Japanese folk with Latin, African and Caribbean grooves; (Fri) Florence Adooni’s joyful Ghanaian highlife; and (Sat) Kasiva Mutua’s powerful Kenyan percussion.
She Past Away
Friday, 18.07, 7 pm. Astra Kulturhaus, Revaler Str. 99, 10245 Berlin. Ticket: €34.93.
Istanbul’s dark-wave duo blends post-punk riffs, haunting synths, and vocals to create a deep, late-night atmosphere. Perfect for moody, cathartic dancing. Inziva
Gaswerk Music Days 2025 – Unwritten Score (day 3)
Friday, 18.07, 6 pm – 3 am. Gaswerksiedlung, Köpenicker Chaussee 24–39, 10317 Berlin. Ticket: €25+taxes (presale) / €30 (door)
A night for deep listeners and sonic explorers: live cinema from Vincent Moon, experimental electronics, krautrock echoes, and a collective jam to close it out.
Gaswerk Music Days 2025 – Effect and Fade (day 4)
Saturday, 19.07, 4 pm – 5 am. Gaswerksiedlung, Köpenicker Chaussee 24–39, 10317 Berlin. Ticket: €25 (presale) / €30 (door)
Gaswerk closes with Effect and Fade: Vanishing Twin’s psychedelic pop, Shackleton’s hypnotic percussion, Appleblim’s deep dubstep, Deadbeat’s spacious dub-techno, and Radwan Ghazi Moumneh’s ambient textures.
Psicotrópicos Festival – Opening Night
Saturday, 19.07, 10 pm – 5 am. MAAYA, Revaler Str. 99, 10245 Berlin. Ticket: €18
Psicotrópicos brings Brazilian sounds and rhythms to the dance floor with Batekoo, Malfeitona, Eric Terena, Ramonzin, Hiran, and K’Boko. Expect Afro-Brazilian grooves, hip-hop, baile funk, and plenty of Brazilian energy.
🎹 EXPERIMENTAL & AMBIENT MUSIC
Riki Hidaka × Oren Ambarchi – Recording Session
Thursday, 17.07, doors 8 pm / start 8:30 pm. Morphine Raum, Köpenicker Str. 147, 10997 Berlin. Ticket: €21 (presale)
A cozy, one-night-only session where Riki Hidaka and Oren Ambarchi improvise freely—just guitars, space and pure atmosphere. No setlist, no rehearsals, just deep listening in Morphine Raum’s intimate acoustics.
🎧 LISTENING PARTY
nion.playground – Listening Party
Thursday, 17.07, doors 7 pm, music from 7:30 pm. NION Playground, Oranienburger Str. 32, 6th floor, 10117 Berlin. Donation: €5–15
Join an intimate listening session for a cult 1983 Japanese album—slick, poppy, experimental (title revealed on the day). Only 30 spots, register to join.
Psychedelic Gong Sound Journey
Friday, 18.07, 8:30 pm – 11:30 pm. MaHalla, Wilhelminenhofstr. 76, 12459 Berlin. Ticket: €25
A tropical-psychedelic band merges with gongs, violin, and healing instruments for an immersive sound journey. Expect dream-like states, deep relaxation, and regeneration.
🪩 PARTIES
Alocasia TV (Plants & Music) Berlin Showcase
Thursday, 17.07, 5 pm – 1 am. Mom’s Limousine Service, Georgenstr. 184, 10117 Berlin. Free admission.
Alocasia TV blends music and plants in a cozy terrace setting. House and minimal sets from Guille Pinet, Gabs Leyton, and more. Perfect way to start the weekend: stop by, grab a drink and a bite, then keep going.
BUTOH Batoru
Thursday, 17.07, 10 pm – 6 am. Säule Berghain, Am Wriezener Bahnhof 70, 10243 Berlin. Ticket: €14
Butoh meets techno in an immersive night of improvisation, blending dance, sound, and audience. With Makoto Sakamoto, Emika Elena, mu”he, and Berlin’s Butoh artists.
Kontinuum x Movement: ‘Lab Rat’ Release Party
Thursday, 17.07, 10 pm – 6 am. OHM, Köpenicker Str. 70, 10179 Berlin. Ticket: €
A proper club night at OHM celebrating Dmitra’s latest release. Expect a diverse range of dancefloor sounds from Arsen, Miss Parker, FASHION, and Soraya b2b Mika DJ. The dancefloor will be in full swing all night.
TAKTAG008 w/ Tomoki Tamura
Friday, 18.07, 8 pm – 6 am. Urban Spree, Revaler Str. 99, 10245 Berlin. Ticket: €10
A night of selected grooves, from deep house to stripped-back techno. Tomoki Tamura leads the lineup with Frania, Darie, and Vlad Radu live.
35 Jahre Schokoladen Hoffest
Fri-Sat, 18–19.07, from 6 pm. Schokoladen, Ackerstr. 169, 10115 Berlin. Free / donation
A two-day birthday bash for Schokoladen, Ackerstadtpalast & Club der Polnischen Versager: punk, post-punk, noiserock, indie, techno, and glitter-filled dancefloors. Bands and DJs — inside, outside, all night.
Finest Friday
Friday, 18.07, from 10 pm. Panorama Bar, Am Wriezener Bahnhof, 10243 Berlin. Wow, what a line-up. Terrence Dixon plays live with his unique Detroit techno, alongside Axel Boman, John Talabot and Vlada.
Kinder Rave: Endless Summer
Sunday, 20.07, from 12 - 4 pm. Klunkerkranich, Karl-Marx-Str. 66, 12043 Berlin. Ticket: €10-12 (kids are free - open to all ages, 0 and up)
A family-friendly daytime rave with groovy house and techno at kid-safe volumes, activities for little ones, and lots of space to dance and explore.
🎭 PERFORMING ARTS
KW x TROPEZ – Pogo Bar Reading Performance
Thursday, 17.07, 5:30 pm. TROPEZ at Sommerbad Humboldthain, Wiesenstr. 1, 13357 Berlin. Pool entry required.
A special open-air reading on the lawn, curated with CUTT PRESS, featuring Sam Cottington, Sanja Grozdanić, Elin McCready and NCUBE. Bring a towel or blanket, browse zines, and maybe take a swim after the readings.
Lash – Acts of Love
Friday, 18.07, 7:30 pm. Directed by Dead Centre. In EN with DE and EN surtitles. Deutsche Oper Berlin, Bismarckstrasse 35, 10627. Tickets: €24-€92.
A woman suspended in grief relives love, sex, sickness, and loss. LASH, Rebecca Saunders’ first opera, merges Ed Atkins’ vivid texts with sound and haunting visuals in a visceral exploration of mortality and desire.
Glaube, Geld, Krieg und Liebe (Faith, Money, War and Love)
Sat-Sun, 19-20.07, 6 pm. In DE with EN Surtitles. 285 minutes with intermission. Directed by Robert Lepage. Schaubühne am Lehniner Platz, Kurfürstendamm 153, 10709 Berlin. Tickets: €7–€60.
Canadian director Robert Lepage uses the four suits to explore love, faith, war, and money, weaving characters and stories across eight decades of German history.
Die Katze auf dem heißen Blechdach (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof)
Saturday, 19.07, 7:30 pm. Directed by Anne Lenk. In DE with EN Surtitles. Deutsches Theater, Schumannstraße 13 A, 10117. Ticket: €8-€15.
A family gathers for Big Daddy’s birthday, but secrets, rivalries, and desires erupt. Tennessee Williams’ classic lays bare love, lies, and power struggles in a Southern household.
🎨 VISUAL ARTS
Slater Bradley: DRAGONSLAYER
Thursday, 17.07, 5 pm – 9 pm. Concert 7 pm. Parochialkirche, Klosterstr. 67, 10179 Berlin. Ticket: €7-12.
An immersive installation merging art, mysticism, and sound. Crystal labyrinths, cosmic symbolism, and Dustin O’Halloran’s soundscape fill this 17th-century church. A striking, meditative experience where sculpture meets sacred space.
Breathing Matter(s) – Exhibition & Opening
Thursday, 17.07, 7 pm (opening); 18.07–24.08, Mo–Fr 2–8 pm / Sa–Su 11 am–8 pm. Betonhalle, silent green, Gerichtstr. 35, 13347 Berlin. Free admission.
A major solo exhibition tracing the radical work of Véréna Paravel & Lucien Castaing-Taylor, blending cinema, anthropology, and visual art into sensory, immersive experiences that challenge documentary conventions.
Techno-Ecologies and Bodies of Memory: The Environment as Battleground
Opening: Friday, 18.07 from 5 pm. 19.07–05.10, daily 10 am – 8 pm. Kunstraum Kreuzberg, Mariannenplatz 2, 10997 Berlin. Free admission.
A multilayered exhibition exploring the environment as a contested space shaped by political, social, and technological forces, with international artists, live programs, and workshops on memory, colonialism, and ecology.
In Sight! Lovis Corinth, the Nationalgalerie and the “Degenerate Art” Campaign
From 18.07 until 02.11, daily 10 am – 6 pm. Alte Nationalgalerie, Bodestr. 1-3, 10178 Berlin. Ticket: €7-14
Marking 100 years since Lovis Corinth’s death, this exhibition explores the fate of works by Corinth and Charlotte Berend-Corinth in the Nationalgalerie’s collection, focusing on provenance, Nazi-era seizures, and post-war restitutions.
🚇 BEYOND BERLIN
WHOLE New World – Edition #7
Fri-Mon, 18–21.07, Ferropolis Gräfenhainichen. Ticket: Available on Ticketswap
WHOLE is a queer festival for underground electronic music, taking over the dystopian landscape of Ferropolis with techno, house, ambient and experimental sounds across six stages. Highlights include Ellen Allien, Blessed Madonna, Dr. Rubinstein, Shanti Celeste b2b Jennifer Loveless, and others.
Nation of Gondwana Festival 2025
Fri-Sun, 18–20.07, Schönwalde-Glien, Grünefeld bei Berlin. Ticket: €75.90-239.90
An open-air escape into techno, house and deep dancefloor vibes, Nation of Gondwana returns with sets from Helena Hauff, John Talabot, Eris Drew, Soichi Terada (live), DVS1, Mano Le Tough, Yen Sung, and others.
Art Biesenthal 2025 – Some Degree of Friction
Sat-Sun, 19.07–31.08, 12 pm – 7 pm. Wehrmühle Biesenthal, 16359 Biesenthal. Ticket: €20
An evolving exhibition of contemporary art, sound, and performance in the beautiful Wehrmühle, a perfect day trip to explore cutting-edge works and enjoy a picnic in the gardens — over 25 artists, including Anne Imhof, Alicja Kwade, and Precious Okoyomon.
🍽 FOOD & DRINK
Sfera x Surfin’ Mushrooms Pop-up Dinner
Fri-Sat, 18–19.07, from 6 pm. Sfera, Schudomastr. 42/44, Neukölln, 12055 Berlin.
A cozy mushroom dinner featuring Lion’s mane burgers, the return of Sfera’s oyster mushroom ceviche, and harissa wedges. DJs both nights. No booking needed, just drop by!
🧠 FOOD FOR THOUGHTS
Candice Breitz: Fluid Identities – Artist Talk
Wednesday, 16.07, 6 pm – 7 pm. Neue Nationalgalerie, Potsdamer Str. 50, 10785 Berlin. Free
Candice Breitz joins sociologist Eric Otieno Sumba to discuss identity, media, and representation across her three-decade practice. A sharp, timely conversation in English—no registration needed.
Späti Stories x The Next Day Berlin – Book Swap Picnic #1
Tuesday, 22.07, 6 pm – 9:30 pm. Körnerpark, Neukölln, Berlin. Free (registration required)
Looking for your next life-changing book? Join us for a cozy book swap picnic. Bring one meaningful book, write a dedication, and take home a new story—plus good conversations and a relaxed summer evening with fellow book lovers.
📌 SAVE THE DATE
🪈 Psicotrópicos brings a landmark lineup of Brazilian sounds. Opening with Batekoo: 19.07, 11 pm - 5 am at Maaya. Ticket: €18. The main program features Hermeto Pascoal and Letrux, in one of the most beautiful locations in Berlin. Sunday, 27.07, Neue Nationalgalerie. Ticket: €35.
💥 Berlin Atonal is a bold festival of experimental sound, art, and future-facing club culture in one of Berlin's most iconic spaces. Kraftwerk. 27-31.08. Tickets: €55-€278.80
🎹 Alva Noto turns precision into emotion: his audiovisual sets blend glitch, ambient, and minimalist electronics with generative rhythms and large-scale visuals. 24-25.09, 9 pm, Berghain. Ticket: €36.
✨ No one blends chaos and beauty like ¥ØU$UK€ ¥UK1MAT$U. Every set is a wild, genre-defying trip. CTM program, 02.10, Haus der Visionäre. Ticket: €22-37.80.
🎤 Zaho de Sagazan at Philharmonie! Chanson. Synth. Drama. Grit. 04.11, 8 pm. Tickets from €39.90. Twenty minutes of electronic music with her here.
🎸 Wolf Alice at Columbia Halle presenting their upcoming album “The Clearing”. 19.11, 8 pm. Tickets: €45.75.