Taste Must Be Learned – Steve Bug

For more than 20 years, Steve Bug, who hails from Bremen, has been immersed in the outgrowths of electronic music. Initially as a DJ in Hamburg, then as a producer and label boss, now primarily based in Berlin. We meet Steve Bug at lunchtime in an Italian restaurant very close to his studio in Prenzlauer Berg. The waitress greets the Pokerflat boss by his first name, takes the order and goes about her business. A culinary conversation about work ethic, the “old” Berlin and techno as a niche product. Bon appétit!

Steve, it’s just gone half past one in the afternoon – for many musicians the day is just beginning. How is it for you?
I’ve already done some exercise today and handled a bit of office work. I always go to the studio early and finish around 10pm, rather than, as I used to, staying up all night. I’m simply more productive that way. So for me, it’s more like lunchtime than breakfast time.

Is your regular working routine the reason why you’re so rarely seen manning the decks in Berlin’s nightlife?
No. I’m just away an awful lot. Also, when I moved from Hamburg to Berlin in 2000, I told myself I didn’t want to be another DJ who’s just moved here and then appears in every club all the time. I did play pretty frequently on our Pokerflat night at Sternradio in the beginning, but we decided internally that we’d rather pool our energies for a few select events. That way it’s more fun to play, and people don’t get fed up so quickly. (laughs)

Speaking of fun – you’ve been familiar with the Berlin techno and club scene since the nineties. How do you see today’s club landscape? Do you long for the old days when techno was still a more subversive underground thing?
No, not really. Of course, you get the odd nostalgic moment. I recently watched the documentary “We Call It Techno” with some friends. That was quite funny, but to be honest: I don’t want to play clubs anymore that have a rubbish sound system, strobe lights and a fog machine. Where mould grows on the walls and everything reeks of damp. I’ve done all that and, honestly, I don’t need it anymore.

So you’ve closed the chapter on “old” Berlin nightlife, then?
It was okay to have been there at the start and to have experienced that side of Berlin. But really, the question is, how do today’s kids see and experience things when they come to the city? Do they also have the feeling that they’re starting something small that is growing and that they’re right in the thick of it, just as we did? You can’t tell whether, for them, it’s any less riotous than it was for us back then.

Kids, listen up!
[lacht] Let’s be honest. Techno has existed for such a long time now, and it was definitely bigger in the past than it is today. Back in the nineties, you’d almost be embarrassed to say: I play house and techno. Everyone thought you were Marusha. Nah, it’s good that those days are over. I’m very happy with how it is today. At least you can say deep house again without getting your head chopped off. That wasn’t always the case. (laughs)

Photo ©: Hannes Caspar