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DJ Mag Top100 DJs
91
Paul Kalkbrenner
4

Emerging from the Berlin techno scene during the late ’90s, Paul Kalkbrenner first became known thanks to releases on Ellen Allien’s Bpitch Control label. However, the trajectory for the German DJ changed when he landed the lead role in the 2004 cult movie ‘Berlin Calling’ — a project that he was also providing the soundtrack to. This sequence of events propelled him onto the mainstream stage, where he has remained ever since.

Kalkbrenner’s energetic live show saw him selected to appear at the ceremony to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall at the Brandenburg Gate, where he performed to over 400,000 people. He also possesses a rare ability to fuse raw techno with radio-friendly melodies and vocals, audible on his 2018 album ‘Parts Of Life’. Despite this mainstream success, Kalkbrenner has not forgotten his underground roots, and most recently, Paul Woolford remixed ‘No Goodbye’, turning the German artist’s original into a piano house anthem.