The Techno Scene That’s Slowly Taking Over Krakow (Part #2 of #2)

If the sound of thumping bass and dark basements gets you excited, then you’re in the right spot. This is second installment of how techno came creeping from the underground to take the spotlight in Krakow. You can read part #1 here.

We previously spoke about some the city’s bigger spots, but what i really want to talk about are the small basements, with low ceilings that only fit a handful people. Hard to come by now due to the explosion of ‘EDM’, which has made it harder for smaller clubs to remain open and competitive, without losing what makes them so good to all the techno lovers out there. This brings me onto one of my favorite spots BOMBA. From the street it looks like a regular cafe turned evening bar, not known to most that frequent this spot during the day, is the small spiral staircase in the corner. Ducking your head most of the way down so you don’t fall, while it shakes violently like it’s about to collapse, you enter a small room that feels like you’re in a tiny garage. Almost pitch black with a sound system that would be fit for a place 10 times the size, once here you won’t want to leave, and not just because you have to go back up those stairs. BOMBA is one of the few places that regularly supports local and upcoming talent all weekend long.

Now onto the creme de la creme that is Unsound festival. Run by a not for profit organisation and unlike most music related festivals, Unsound is an annual music festival that takes place all over the city. It deals in a little of everything with evolving and mutating forms of music, as well as related visual arts. From late night parties with back to back sets from some of the world’s best underground artists, to day time workshops free of charge. Last year we were lucky enough to have S U R V I V E’s Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein, producers of the Netflix original Stranger Things soundtrack, perform their vintage, synth-heavy music live and for the first time ever. Apart from the main festival, Unsound regularly takes place in cities around the world such as New York & London.

There are too many notable clubs to mention but I will leave you with a few more names including,Szpitalna 1, The Club & Forum.