Trip to Dublin to visit Index
So I am always keeping track of when Rune might be playing in the UK to try and catch his sets, https://www.Kölschofficial.com/shows/ and I clocked that he was playing in Dublin in April at Index https://www.indexdublin.com and I thought that’s on my excellent friend and neighbour Matt’s birthday (happen to actually be the day before anyway that a small detail) So I just suggested we should jump on a flight Friday afternoon, go to Dublin, see Kölsch and flight back in the morning and worry about sleep maybe on the flight home, for his birthday. Well, he thought that was a great idea, so we did it, booked the flights and headed off and it was well worth it for sure.
We had a successful flight over and made it into the city centre and took in some of the sights of this amazing place, grabbed a bite to eat and headed over to what is a new venue for Index in Dublin at the academy. We got there for the start, and with a quick search we were in. Everyone was super friendly and the staff and security was very polite can’t fault that. Also, the place was kept super clean and tidy with people tidying up everywhere. We got to see the warm up DJ and he created a great vibe and the place filled up quickly with some amazing happy, up for it and well-dressed people, and I did spot a number of Kölsch t-shirts in the crowd and some great customised suits and hats. People of Dublin definitely put in the effort.
While there we were lucky to be able to hop backstage and join Rune, as he set the room on fire with an amazing section of tracks including new demos, remixes and classics. More important than that was he played in my opinion the greatest Kölsch track of all time “Woohman”! Outstanding, to hear this LIVE again is just EPIC! Also, a fist pump with Rune to note the sheer quality of this track!
Here is a short clip of this track on the night. (sorry but I was dancing and trying to hold my phone down as I don’t want to use it too much as I want to have the experience live and I never look at the screen) however I thought it was worth sharing the audio.
So now is a rough list of what I remember music wise of epic notable tracks including
- Rex the Dog – Not going home 😊 outstanding track by Jake
Also, one track that the crowd and myself went crazy for was Scorchio by Sasha/Emerson – to hear this again from back in 2000 was quality as I have great memories of this track being the first track I ever played on pirate (sorry community) radio back in the day.
This amazing ID – waiting and hoping for a release
- A remix of Madonna’s – Ray of light
- The Orchestra version of Grey – Outstanding and the crowd LOVED IT!
- Waste my time – The new CamelPhat and Kölsch Collaboration
- Mind Dimension
- Loreley
- Goldfisch
- Kids
- Remember Me
- Hell to the Lairs
- Der Alte
- I Talk to Water
- And tons of other amazing tracks
After the set we caught up with Rune and had a chat about music and new releases on the cards for 2025 (Keep an eye out in May for a collaboration release!) Also, we chatted about some other amazing releases that will be dropping throughout the year before a new album which I am looking forward to. We also chatted about favourite tracks & albums and that it’s almost impossible to choose, as well as gigs and shows past and present with what is up and coming over the year and what he is looking forward to, such as Tomorrowland and Ibiza. Finally, I asked if Rune would be so kind for a CD signing to almost complete my Kölsch collection of signed CDs, but I have completed my trilogy of signed CD’s – 1977 – 1983 – 1999. Thank you. (Photo to follow once I have it framed and on the wall). I might have to start to track down some of the older Rune RK CDs to get signed next.
So, it is now about 3:30am and a couple of hours until the flight home, so time for a quick McDonald’s stop and a coach back to the airport, followed by a safe flight back and short car journey home with lots of talk about the amazing night we just had. Ready for later that day I headed over to Ninja Warrior UK for a couple of hours with the kids. Yes, I slept well Sunday night! So finally, here is a selection of photos taken of the whole experience to share.
Thanks to Rune and Index for a total epic night and we have said we will 100% go back to Dublin and explore what the city and country has to offer. We will be back!
New Music (Remix) - Kölsch & Neon Capital – Kids – Undercatt Remix
So, this quality new track for 2025 has been remixed by Undercatt and has put an excellent spin on the 80’s feel track. When I was in Dublin and was speaking to Rune, I was saying that “Kids” has to be one of the greatest tracks to be elevated when played loud in a club and when dancing on a dance floor compared to listening at home or in the car. It takes on a totally different sound when you hear it in that type of environment, just takes it up a level or 2.
Undercatt has also got some amazing tracks and remixes in his back catalogue and well worth a listen.
Radio 1 – Pete Tong History of Dance – Melodic Techno – Top 3 tracks
So, I have been enjoying the series Pete Tong History of Dance on BBC Radio 1 Dance
There have been some amazing journeys of music covering many different types and styles of music including house, tech house, rave, techno, UK garage, dubstep and many more. Also, there is a melodic techno episode in which Kölsch was asked to pick his top 3 influential melodic techno tracks.
- DJ Rolando – Knights Of The Jaguar (A great track and was a brilliant closing track at the Fabric)
- Domino – Oxia (Such a great track for being so different and is one track that seems timeless when you play, it has also had some great remixes over the years.
- Kölsch – All That Matters (feat. Troels Abrahamsen)
Here is a link to the show
Also, a repress has been release of the vinyl version of all that matters over at Kompakt https://kompakt.fm/releases/all_that_matters
YouTube set uploaded
This is a link to an unofficial upload of Kölsch’s 2025 first set of Pacha in Ibiza (not sure who made it but I thought it was worth a share).
Kölsch talks about exclusive edits and collaborations | Tomorrowland Winter 2025
Other Music - Polygon LDN
I managed to visit the Polygon LDN https://polygon-productions.live/listing/polygon-live-ldn/ on the Saturday 3rd May and managed to experience some amazing 360 degree and spiral sounds from some amazing artists along with Matt.
I really want to experience this new type of sound and what this would be like, I guess to listen to the music as the producer had always envisioned it, also after listening to the amazing music from Halina Rice https://www.halinarice.com I saw she was performing on the Saturday so we booked our tickets (VIP) and head up for the day. I can say the set was totally amazing and she played my three favourite tracks as well a huge number of tracks from her EP’s & new album. Check them out below.
It was a great setup and run really well, great venue, great staff, some excellent food and drink stands as well. Not sure the Mushroom tea was worth the price at £6 but it did warm me up as it was cold and cheaper than a £60 hoodie.
The sound system and lighting in the venue was outstanding. The artists really seemed to know how to get the best out of the setup. Every artist we saw offered something different in sounds, effects and lighting. The crazy thing was we both felt it was super loud but was so clear you could still talk and hear each other even in a super loud space and I had no ringing in my ears after, crazy but also amazing.
If you ever get to experience this, I would highly recommend it as I don’t think you could ever easily replicate anywhere else easier. The light and environment of the people dancing made it a great experience.
As always, thank you to everyone who takes their time to read my updates. I super enjoy writing them up, even though I don’t get to do them as quickly as I would like. I love to share with fans of Kölsch.
Remember to keep safe and keep raving into 2025 and beyond.
John
