Queer, Loud, Doppelgang
- Filip
- 7 days ago
- 6 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
Born together, raised on records, and baptized by the Dutch underground — identical twins Doppelgang have been inseparable since day one. With roots deep in Amsterdam’s queer nightlife and a sound that refuses to stick to one genre, they’ve built a universe where every dance floor becomes a space for connection, chaos, and camp. Ahead of their return to Berlin, they talk about why queer nightlife is more vital than ever.
Full article and interview up now!
You’re both deeply rooted in the Dutch queer nightlife scene — how did Doppelgang come to life, and what brought you together musically?
We - and therefore Doppelgang - came to life on the day we were born. From our birth until this day today, we have walked our path of life together. As identical (twin)brothers we shared similar fascinations and we felt the same love for music, art and fashion. Ever since we can remember we have been collecting music together. We bought records and music magazines with our first allowances and we started building a collection. When moving to Amsterdam from Friesland, we found our place and tribe in nightlife. By being surrounded by people who were really expressive, we both grew in confidence and felt it was time to share our vision on club music and Doppelgang was born.
Your sets often feel like a celebration beyond just music — full of energy, intention, and play. What’s the vibe you aim to create when you're behind the decks?
We often get questions about the vision behind what we do but we can be short and certain about it: we want our music to be an invitation to join our party. Period. Get on the dance floor and let’s explore together. We thoroughly love what we do and are ready to share our music. To be there is to experience. Let’s see where this moment can take us. People mostly are more open in an environment that is made for dancing, so the floor is such a beautiful place to connect. To us this is the true meaning of nightlife.
You're curating Adonis at Lowlands — what does curation mean to you, and how do you approach building a truly queer space?
The fun thing about Adonis at Lowlands is, it never really required a curation process. It started out in 2017 with the idea of our dear friend Thijs Weijland. He figured to start a queer bar at the biggest Dutch festival and asked us to join in. Back then there never really was space on site that was dedicated to -and celebrated queers. After a go from the organisation, we simply gathered our friends and secretly turned a Greek food place into a dance floor overnight. The Adonis quickly became a household name and a place where many people, not only queers, felt like they belonged. Since then, the venue and our crew exponentially grew each year, but it’s still as exciting, chaotic and fun loving as it was at the start. It is very important to us to keep it intimate and personal inside. Adonis is one big collaboration between a group of friends all utilizing their talent adding to the Adonis fantasy. That’s the main thing we are carefully curating there! We think this sincere connection, on and off stage, is what translates to the Adonis crowd and what makes this stage so special.
From Pornceptual in Berlin to Honey Honey in Nijmegen — how do you adapt your sound and energy across such different spaces and cities?
We have a very broad taste in music and aren’t known for one specific genre or sound. This is why it’s so exciting for us to play music together. By visiting these very different cities and playing these very different parties, we are able to dive into our collection over and over again which challenges us to select the best suitable tracks. We obviously have our all time faves and some might say classics - but don’t want to get stuck on one thing too much. As long as we feel the groove, which is leading in the music we play, we can direct it in many ways. Music helped us navigate through life and showed us the way to where we are today.
Skatecafe during Pride is one of your signature events. What makes that night special for you?
One of the main things that makes this night special is the venue itself. Besides the opportunity to program 3 completely different rooms, Skatecafe really feels like a purposeful place and their contribution to Amsterdam’s (nightlife) culture is quite impressive. Whether it serves as a live music venue for bands, a place for secret showcases by big artists or as a platform for emerging (dj) talent - it always feels raw and right. Each year when we start to plan our night together with Sophie (Skatecafe’s programmer), our ideas come together quickly because our values lie in the same area. On top of this, hosting a party at Skatecafe on the Saturday night of Pride Amsterdam - really is a nice escape from the madness in the city centre.
Do you feel there's a shift happening in the way queer artists are shaping nightlife culture in Europe right now?
Queers and underground music have always gone hand in hand, one didn't exist without the other. Nowadays however, being queer is a movement within itself in nightlife. Which, at its base, is a good thing. More and more queer identifying artists are getting the main time slots or center stage spots. And rightfully so. Many of these artists we know, who have gained popularity recently, have been working hard on their careers for years already. The talent was always there! Simultaneously a lot of queer parties have emerged over the past couple of years. The scene has never seemed so diverse as it does nowadays. Now that we’re all here, let’s be collaborative, stay supportive and get inspired. In the end it's the only way our scene will thrive and last as a whole.
Your live recording at Lowlands has a raw and powerful vibe — can you tell us a bit about how you prepare for festival sets versus club nights?
Although we always aim to bring the same attitude in our sets to festivals as we do in clubs, there’s a significant difference between these shows. Usually festival gigs call for shorter sets that are more pumping, drenched in party-ready tracks. It feels like the things we experienced and learned during the club season prior to festival summer, will come out as an explosion on the fields outdoors. Preparing such shows is also fun because you get to select your favorite party tracks that are suitable for bigger audiences. But approaching and preparing sets for more intimate shows in clubs and on smaller stages, with a longer time slot, feels like the best way to show the full Doppelgang potential. These gigs consist of a lot of fun, cheekiness, a little side gag here and there, where house music is our core base which allows us to dive in other directions towards other genres.
You mentioned new releases coming out — what can you tease about the direction you’re heading with your sound production-wise?
We started releasing our own edits on Bandcamp a little over a year ago and we’ve got a few nice ones lined up for that series. Other than that we’re excited to be back in the studio to work on new originals after a long hiatus. More on that to follow! We’ll update on this through our socials.
Outside of DJing and producing, what inspires you creatively — any books, art, or people currently influencing your world?
We feel a creative connection to a lot of different things. We watch a lot of movies together and we have been attracted to the horror genre since we were little kids and are still inspired by it today. This can be the art direction, a certain character, a villain, the atmosphere or styling. Besides film we are oftentimes inspired by subcultures like punk, gabber or the leather community. Also, drag will always be an artform we can’t get enough of. We’re lucky to be around a lot of queens so it’s fair to say our friends inspire us on a daily.
You’ll be playing in Berlin on June 7 for Nothing Special — what can Berliners expect from a Doppelgang night?
A night of excitement! We’re looking forward to taking the Nothing Special dance floor on a trip through a variety of sounds & genres. We played for them in August 2024 which turned out to be a summer highlight for sure. They attract an amazing, dedicated but most of all sexy crowd. One we felt right at home with from the outset. For the next edition we hope to pick up where we left off really. We’ll see you there!
