Telescope: Alex Kelman

I am Alex Kelman.
I come from Siberia.
My last release is called »U17«.
I make music because that’s what I have been doing for over 25 years. Nothing else to do in this crazy world.
If I would have to describe my whole philosophy in only one line from a song, it would be »I am looking to this world of lonely hearts, burning inside, this is the end«.
These three records are on heavy rotation in my tour bus:
My Bloody Valentine – »Loveless«
Aerofall – »Forms«
Blankenberge – »More«
At Pop-Kultur 2019, I am especially looking forward to Lali Puna.
The best thing about Berlin for me is that it’s International and open-minded.
If I were allowed to name a star, I would call it Plavna.

Find out more about Alex Kelman and his performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: UMA

We are Ella and Florian. With UMA, we try to bring together our very different ideas of music.
Our latest release is called »If you fall, someone will notice«.
If we had to describe our philosophy in only one line from a song, it would be »And when I sing loud, it cuts the noise out« from Flotation Toy Warning’s »Controlling the Sea«.
Pop culture for us offers an opportunity to question and reflect realities, test some limits and breaking the habits. Headroom.
At Pop-Kultur 2019, we are especially looking forward to Teresa Rotschopf, Deerhoof, and Shari Vari.
Our remedy for stage fright is a glass of red wine, stretching and song practise.
The best thing we have recently done is tons of new music!
The best thing about Berlin for us are spaces like ACUD MACHT NEU, ZK/U, the many off locations Neukölln and much more.
The future is carrying on!

Find out more about UMA and their performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Dacid Go8lin

I am Dafina Sylejmani aka Dacid Go8lin aka Duff Daddy.
I come from Kosovo.
My last release is called »QART (KLAR-ABGEFAHREN)«.
I make music because it’s my vocation.
If I had to sum up my entire philosophy in only one line from a song, it would be »Riot«!
These three records are on heavy rotation when I’m on the road:
Nina Simone – »Fodder On My Wings«
Maria Callas – »Tosca«
Elita 5 – »Vetëm Për Ju«
If I could give a name to a star, I’d call it Kadime.
The best thing that I’ve recently done was playing in Albania at the independence day parade for its ten-year anniversary.
The future is yet unwritten.

Find out more about Dacid Go8lin and her performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Adelle Nqeto

I am human.
I come from South Africa.
My last release is called »Home«.
I make music because it’s something I’ve gravitated to for a long time, and it’s still one of the few things that makes sense to me. That must mean something.
These three records are on heavy rotation in my tour bus:
Madala Kunene – »1959«
Jacob Collier – »Djesse«
Rainbow Kitten Surprise – »How To: Friend, Love, Freefall«
My remedies for stage fright are breathing deeply, taking my time and sometimes, whisky.
The best things about Berlin for me are the different people and the art this place attracts.
If I were allowed to name a star, I would call it Frangipani in the Sky.
The future is infinite.

Find out more about Adelle Nqeto and her performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Xen

I am Xen, a metalsmith by day and musician and DJ by night.
I grew up in Jerusalem, but currently I live in Tel Aviv.
My last release was released on Garzen records and it is called »Pere Adam«. It’s an EP with four songs that I wrote together with Dori Sadovnik from Red Axes.
I make music because I love to express myself through this medium, it makes me feel connected to myself. I can channel all my sadness through a form of art, which then makes me happier!
If I had to describe my music in only one song, it would be »Pere Adam«, which means »savage«.
These three records are on heavy rotation in omy tour bus:
Fatal Microbes – »Violence Grows«
Catherine Ribeiro – »Paix«
K. Leimer- »A Period of Review«
At Pop-Kultur 2019, we I am especially looking forward to meeting special people and listening to new music. I’m excited to perform with my band to all the new ears that haven’t heard us before and also for the workshop that I will be a part of at the festival this year.
The best thing I have recently done was adopting my dog, Ayuni.
The future is the present.

Find out more about Xen and her performance at Pop-Kultur here.




Telescope: Die Kerzen

We are the Scorpions from Hanover.
We come from Ludwigslust.
Our last release is called »Erotik International«.
If we had to sum up our philosophy in one line from a song, it would be »Mein Magen tut mir weh, ich will nicht in die Schule« (»My stomach hurts, I don’t want to go to school«) by International Music.
On tour, we exclusively listen to »True« by Spandau Ballet.
Pop culture for us is a way out.
The best thing about Berlin is the old expo building near the S-Bahn station Messe Nord/ICC.
If we were allowed to give a star its name, we’d call it Sterni.
The future is e-mobility and air taxis.

Find out more about Die Kerzen and their performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Mauvais Œil

We are Sarah Benabdallah and Alexis Lebon.
We are from Paris.
Our last release is called »Constantine«.
We make music because it feeds our souls and makes us happy. it is a way to connect with other human beings without necessarily having to speak the same language or to speak at all, it is universal.
If we had to describe our music in only one song, it would be Baden Powell’s »Samba Triste«: timeless, melancholic yet dancey.
Pop culture for us as a term can sometimes have a negative undertone to it but there is something very humble and pretty straightforward about it that goes with how we see making art and especially making music. It doesn’t have to be too intellectual but it definitely has to resonate with deep emotions that everybody goes through.
If we were allowed to name a star, we would call it Warda.
The best thing we have recently done was finishing our first EP, »Nuits de velours«.
The future is hopefully paved with velvet and as sweet as a baklava.

Find out more about Mauvais Œil and their performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Iotaphi

My name is Ilia Darlin. Iotaphi is my new project, a platform I get to explore and live, parallel to a more practical life. I aspire to make it my only life. Francesco IX has been the main producer of the project.
I come from Athens Greece, this exciting, chaotic and undeciphered city.
Our last release is called »Dark Blue«.
We make music because there’s no other way to live.
If we had to describe our music in only one song, it would be »Kids Of Chaos«.
These three records are on heavy rotation in our tour bus:
Frank Ocean – »Godspeed«
The Bug, Flowdan & Killah P – »Skeng«
Maria Callas – »Casta Diva«
Our remedy for stage fright is to let go. For me stage fright is control abandon. You just have to accept that you have no control of what is about to happen and just flow in the experience. Obviously you can at a certain point control your performing, but not absolutely, live performance is so much more than execution.
If we were allowed to name a star, we would call it Aphaia (Aphaea). She was a daughter of Zeus and Kharme and her name translates as the »invisible«. She was a mother-goddess and her sanctuary would have been a place principally of female cult. I feel the oxymoron of being invisible yet a star could be interesting.
The future is fortunately unknown.

Find out more about Iotaphi and their performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Juicy

We are Juicy, a duo from Brussels. We met at jazz conservatory in Brussels 8 years ago where we started to sing together in differents projects.
Our last release is our second EP »CRUMBS«. It talks about people’s troubles, people like you and us who have unresolved issues or buried impulses.
We are making music because it’s what we’ve been doing forever. We both started to play the piano when we were four years old. Our parents are artists too, musicians and comedians.
The one song that best represents our sound is »COUNT OUR FINGERS TWICE« since it’s the first song we wrote together. We like to blend every kind of music we love: hip-hop, jazz, classical, R’n’B… We think all our influences are in that song!
If we were to describe our philosophy in only one line from a song that would be »Poopy-di scoop / Scoop-diddy-whoop / Whoop-di-scoop-di-poop« from Kanye West’s »Lift Yourself«.
These three records are on heavy rotation when we’re on tour:
Hiatus Kaiyote – »Tawk Tomahawk«: One of our favorite bands! We are in love with their music!
A Ravels compilation: Like we said, we both began to play the piano when we were very young, and we are still listening to a lot of classical music today.
John Coltrane – »A Love Surpreme«: There are no words to describe how beautiful this record is. We love when you’re able to follow a real story trough a record. We try to do this with our own music.
For, us Pop-Kultur is a great opportunity to export our band. We really want to travel with our music, share it with other people, discover new places. That is our best hope for Juicy’s future. We are sure we’re gonna meet other amazing artists. It’s gonna be our first time in Germany!
If we were allowed to name a star, we would call it Mouldystar.
The best thing we have recently done was releasing our second EP »CRUMBS« and throwing a huge release party in Brussels! We sold out vk, a concert hall in Molenbeek. We had the chance to program the line up for all the evening! We invited Commander Spoon, a Belgian mutant jazz band, Darrell Cole, a Belgian rapper, and LEFTO, a Belgian DJ.

Find out more about Juicy and their performance at Pop-Kultur here




Telescope: Someone Who Isn’t Me

We are Someone Who Isn’t Me.
We come from Athens, Greece.
Our last release is called »Dance With You«.
We make music because life is not worth living without music.
If we had to describe our music in only one song, it would be: »Heads Will Roll« by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
These three records are on heavy rotation in our tour bus:
Débussy – »Orchestral Works«
M.I.A. – »Matangi«
Air – »Talkie Walkie«
At Pop-Kultur 2019, we are especially looking forward to be amongst great artists.
If we were allowed to name a star, we would call it Pinku.
The future is female.

Find out more about Someone Who Isn’t Me and their performance at Pop-Kultur here