Fandango at Plötzensee: The party serving Berlin sunny side up.
On the outskirts of a brutalist city, a technicolour party thrives.
Sitting on a lakeside beach in Berlin, Aperol spritz in hand, warmed by the early summer heat of a Tuesday in April- it’s hard to imagine life could get any better than this. Unless, of course, Palms Trax just happened to be DJing from a sunken speedboat, and you’d only paid €5 to see it. These are the unreal settings that backdrop Fandango parties, showcasing a more casual and playful side to Berlin’s music scene.
With their low-profile social media presence and out-of-town location, Fandango parties stand in stark contrast against much of Berlin’s typical club culture. Open-minded, colourful and sexy, there is something quintessentially casual and free about these events. Many of those attending arrive equipped with towels, swimwear and picnics, ready to make the most of all that the glacial lake at Plötzensee has to offer.
Though its weekday scheduling means that many visitors can only travel out of the city after work, Fandango’s unorthodox timetabling caters to a slightly different demographic than most parties. There is an entire city’s worth of nightlife for the people who work 9-5, but those who work in the hospitality and nighttime industries that underpin this arrangement have far fewer options. Fandango gives people who can’t usually attend parties the chance to enjoy an experience of the same magnitude and vibe during daylight hours. It’s also perfect for people like us- the (f)unemployed. With the standard entry for most clubs in Berlin being between 20 and 25 euros, Fandango is a budget-friendly guarantee of a perfect day out.
The music is always uplifting. One set could be back-to-back disco bangers- a surreal soundtrack to the vibrancy of the crowd - the next a driving set of acid and trance keeps everybody moving as the sun begins to set. Similarly to Alfredo Fiorito and the Ibiza greats of the past, the DJs tend to play any style that suits the sunny setting. It’s a melting point of soulful genres, a nice change from the industrial landscape that defines the majority of nights in Berlin. Some of the organisers also run a label, Púca Sounds, its dreamy releases weave organic sound design with retro dance music blueprints, making for some modern Balearic masterpieces. This is a style often overlooked these days, and we highly recommend you check the label out. Linked below is one of our favourite tracks from Murrin, an alumnus of Fandango.
Even when the weather isn’t so clement, you’re guaranteed to have a good time. If anything, make the most of a shorter queue for the bar. Set back into the beach, the main stage is well covered, along with the speakers and the booth. There is always a faithful crowd of punters, thrilled to be there whatever the weather.
As the sun sets and chillier winds blow across the open water, the Cave offers the perfect retreat for revellers to enjoy the final set. As a space curated by the scenographers at Studio99, also overseeing the installation of the technicolour Lighthouse room that houses Fandango in the winter, it doesn’t disappoint. Entering this room is like stumbling into a Hollywood Hills party in the 80s, the crowd silhouetted by neon pink lights and the biggest hemisphere disco ball you have ever seen. It’s hot as hell, and just as electrifying.
The style of Djing tends to be different in the Cave compared to outside. The intimate setting caters for a more playful set, full of lulls and then electrifying moments of madness. As the last of the crowd has committed to the busy room, the DJ has the opportunity to reach for the lesser-heard side of their collection. A particularly memorable set was from Peachonfuse, who confidently took us on a journey through her sound. Morphing groovy chuggers with Japanese dance hits, it was a rare treat to hear her unique style in such a great setting.
We usually make our exit just before midnight, when the night ends, to make sure we catch the last train home. Looking over the site on the way out reminds us of what we always used to imagine parties were like long before we went to any- a construct of novels and coming-of-age American movies. A place where people gathered around the campfire on the shore of a moonlit lake, thumping bass and whistles of joy in the distance. But Fandango is far from fiction.
We would like to say a huge thank you to Yelyzaveta Zaza, the photographer behind the beautiful images in this article. As always, if you liked what you read, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter to receive live updates about new posts.