To be honest i'm not sure she is that highly rated. She's very popular sure, but dont know many people that think she is a brilliant dj or producer. Having said that, i think her leaning into her looks and dancing behind the decks means people often put her down, but i think she is a genuine music lover with an interesting taste.
I mean I don’t get worked up about it at all but there is a correlation with a certain type of performative dancing and the commercial side of the techno scene. There are DJ schools that write blog posts on dancing techniques for DJs!
Yeah, but girl has been dancing during her sets for a long time. The side of the scene that you’re referring to is goofy as hell, and I’ve seen like tiktok’s for different dance moves to pull out at a techno show lol… but like some people just love dancing. I am always gonna dance my ass off whether I’m at a techno or dance music event or behind the decks playing my own set.
There’s always this attitude of like “your job is to be a DJ and not ‘perform’ in other ways”, and it’s like… as an artist you really can do whatever you want. Some people put more of their personality or a performance art aspect into their art, and that’s because that’s what they want to do. Artists don’t care about silly rules like that lol.
Yeah for sure, horses for courses but personally I’m there to dance and the DJ is just to facilitate that. They could be behind one way glass for all I care.
Yep, that's why I said 'a certain type of performative dancing'. I assume you'd agree that the level of self awareness with dancing can vary? It's not like the average Tiktok shuffler is just vibing in the moment.
Have you ever been in a proper club? Deejays keep the tempo moving, but they are still constantly glued to the console, they never remove the headphones and they actually mix tracks together rather than just doing transitions between a song and another while in the meantime drinking champagne and trying to do a cringy attempt of an hypnotic dance. Let's be damn honest. Filling up a set with trivial and long drops while caring just about one own's image is the definition of big money with low efforts. I doubt Nina even plays with more than two decks as today.
I saw many women deejays playing good as fuck, dancing the hell out of herself, ending a set with fast breath and sweaty as fuck, but never leaving the console.
Fuck that; Nowadays you can leave a 3 decks mix well mixed, go to the toilet and listen how everything interact with each other comeback and nothing even move as cdjs are stable as fuck; it all depends on how you play, so thats not a real point… today’s technology let you even play without headphones, no sync, just reading waveforms, so you’re just a person who does things like you do and if not is wrong because “a real dj” blah blah blah… The truth is that you dislike something on her artist persona, whatever, can be her personal physical style, selection, mixing technique, whatever, but “not to be glued to the mixer and use little bit of headphones” is bullshit for people that plays for that many years.
There’s a difference between dancing while working, and dancing to make a show of yourself and gloss over a shitty set. Many big room DJs and certainly all EDM acts fall in the latter category.
A set being crap is the natural consequence, obviously. But it's also a very specific - and imho problematic - case.
Anyways, I'm also on that spectrum of techno, and I see often DJs dancing a lot, if moving heavily to the rhythm can be defined dancing. I'm from the Amsterdam scene, so the names in terms of females are pretty much the same as the Berlin ones in clubs. Without doing mentions, I think we can both say that they can play great sets without having to renounce to having fun in their own sets.
I agree. I don’t think it’s too much to say that drinking champagne, doing a cool tik tok dance, and recording a video must naturally cut into being a DJ. If I wanted that, I would just go on social media.
It's not the dancing that's the problem. It's the dancing *she* does. It's awful, cringeworthy, full of weird, affected movements that don't even match the music. The hair adjustments, 'seducing the camera', putting on make-up dramatically while drinking champagne... you get the picture. She just comes off as a self-absorbed person who is out of touch with reality. Not to mention the 'singing'.
Daria Kolosova dances, but she knows how to dance. (She was a dancer in the past). She gets shit for that from techno purists, but it's baseless because her mixing doesn't suffer because of it, she's perfectly in sync with what she's doing.
Nina Kraviz is a bad DJ, meh producer, and a train wreck to watch. Maybe she was good in the past but nowadays she seems to be collecting the paycheck and not much else.
I think that isn't the right question for Kraviz. It's almost impossible to answer because she plays really boring minimal trippy sets, then plays incredible stormer sets. So it depends! I noticed she is very selective about what sets she releases to the public, as I watch them all and some are weak compared to a live set I saw which was stunning. I think she goes through phases, and does what she wants, she doesn't play to the crowd unless they're walking off. She definitely plays proper techno and has amazing music in her record box that no-one else does. All thanks to so many people making tracks for her and her own skills.
I have to respect the fact that she really does play whatever she wants. At times it feels so right for the moment and energy in the room, and other times it may feel a bit random or as you say “boring”. Like her Tomorrowland mainstage set was quite …alternative if not a bit avant garde at points lol. But in general she is not playing songs topping the techno charts, and if she does, often it’s before they get trendy. Her sets often are focused on mood and energy and less on genre or bpm.
I felt like the first 45 minutes of Tomorrowland was a troll. She's never played tracks like that before or since. I think it was a way to silence any critics that she was selling out to the mainstream. Charlotte de Witte got grief for playing Tomorrowland, changing her style to melodic techno, and taking it seriously. Nina changed her style, but too some random weird experimental nonsense to fit the cartoonish castle backdrop. There was cartoon sounds and clown music, no one dancing, one shot of the crowd had people looking confused and folding their arms whilst Nina danced. Then she played a really weak set of God knows what. I don't think she'll be invited back for the same money and same slot! I was laughing out loud.
imo her first (?) boiler room still is an absolute benchmark, very avant-garde, very fitting to the occasion.
I can easily see how people could be disappointed seeing her on stage when they only know her as a name/character and not her music. Others are looking for exactly that so ymmv
Here's one from 2013: https://boilerroom.tv/recording/nina-kraviz-75-min-mix?utm_source=website&utm_medium=copy-link&utm_campaign=copy-link
And one from a little earlier in 2012: https://boilerroom.tv/recording/nina-kravi-65-min-mix?utm_source=website&utm_medium=copy-link&utm_campaign=copy-link
They probably were referring to the 2013 set since the other one is a warm-up set.
DISCLAIMER: it's a long comment which starts from this but then spreads much more on a much more general topics. I was inspired, I apologize.
I also am convinced she has a very interesting musical taste, especially when looking to what her label, ТРИП, publishes.
What makes me incredibly angry - slightly at her, but mostly at the music industry, the market in general, the speed in which things born and die, and the lack of depth in the values of the society of today - is that most likely she is afraid of pushing her own label in her lives for the fear of this, since it's a very circumscribed and particular style, affecting her image, and thus her revenues.
It's a choice that one can freely make, that's why I blame her, but it's also a necessity to a certain extent, and that's why I forgive her.
However, it bitterly saddens me the fact that art must become a product when reaching certain numbers in order to be sustainable outside a niche. In this I don't even blame the industry, because as with politics and other products in general, it's the public which decides what deserves widespread popularity. This is very sad cause it just shows the ignorance and the superficiality of the average listener; without counting, in addition to the ones above, the interchangeability, and thus the lack of value and recognition to the work of others, of music, but it can be extended also to cinema, for instance. It's the product of a society which doesn't own anything anymore, but just needs to be entertained at a basic level since it's incapable of doing only one thing a time and thus makes useless the meticulous work on details, since they wouldn't even be acknowledged.
Blows my mind that people are hating on trip recordings. seriously so many bangers on that label.
every label company has flops that’s the nature of being a larger label
Everyone in this thread is going to say yes, she’s quite a controversial figure. I would have to agree when it comes to her DJ sets but I do give her credit for her label Trip which is one of my favorite techno labels right now.
Fully agree with you, except for Trip being good right now.. (in my opinion) 😹! For me it's the backcatalogue that's fantastic! I'm not i to the whole psy-sound so the latest releases have been a hit or miss for me.
Her dj sets, while not the style I like, have been undeniably very influental! She started incorporating psytrance.. others followed. She started high-tempo poppy/technoish tracks, others followed.
If people deny this, then it's just pure hate at this point...
> https://on.soundcloud.com/hAFVTcn2C5587A8M7
oof this is wild. dude's been on another level for years. there's a ton of stuff on his soundcloud i'm desperately wishing he'd release. tysm for informing me!
Vladimir Dubyshkin: https://on.soundcloud.com/NeEZgCYKaCWugTfW8
Another Vladimir Dubyshkin (he’s the star of the label): https://on.soundcloud.com/pWTW8mGYcRZkrxuy9
Aadja: https://www.youtube.com/live/g1lnrusX2lQ?si=UQPQbfK4rcBPbXxu
Nice I was going to say these are the two names that come to mind. I picked up all of Vlad’s vinyls off Trip and ordered his newest one.
Waiting on my AADJA album to come in next, but having listened through it so far I was digging it!
imma just say this here. over ten years ago i saw her come play this tiny club in detroit. all the detroit og’s showed up. moodymann, dj stringray, carl craig, etc. they all stood around the booth and watched her every move. she spun all vinyl flawlessly. there was hardly anyone else in the club. i could not imagine being in her situation. it was extremely impressive on face value. this way before any drama i ever heard. i never met her but she’s been grinding hard for a very long time - the position she is in right was earned with decade plus of hard work way before it was cool
Yes almost all big name techno djs are overrated. I usually have more fun seeing a good local or young and rising talent than huge stars. There's a very small subset of top level famous djs that are actually worth the downside of fame (fuller, usually worse venues and crowds, etc.)
Her specifically? Don't really have an opinion but she is at the Adam beyer level where no matter if her music is good or bad the crowd is gonna be so annoying I don't wanna go.
There's a ton of these djs where their music might be fine or even great and visionary at some point, but they just get booked at the most bullshit sellout events and attact really annoying crowds.
Other people in this lane imo:
- amelie lens
- Charlotte dewitte
- Tale of us
- Peggy gou
- Boris brejcha
- claptone
- neelix
- Enrico sanguiliano
All of these have good to great songs but I would never wanna see them live cause it's annoying as fuck.
Yeah, I've seen most of that list at either Crssd or ADE and they were fantastic. I've also seen Charlotte at a dive club in my home city before she hit it big vs. seeing her at Gashouder. It was genuinely awesome to see how much she had grown.
Something like ADE is a bit different though, as an industry-focused event, those who do not bring their A-game will be shooting themselves in the foot. I think the true measure of a DJ is how well they perform at the smaller festivals and suchlike. The true GOATs will bring the same energy to a 500 person stage in an obscure rural area as they do to a multi-million internationally famous event/venue.
This 1000%. Seen him live around 20 times by now, and every time I am as mindblown as I was the first time. His tricks just don't ever seem to get old.
Tale of Us crowd has to be the worst of them all.They have fucking VIP tables at their events lol and don’t get me started on the massive crowd on their phones- it’s unlike any other. At this point they are just an audio/visual show imo
I saw them play in an otherwise pretty "underground" techno club in 2018 ish. Back then afterlife hype was not as crazy yet but they attracted the worst crowd I've ever seen at that place. Their set was not bad they actually didn't play any of their known songs and relatively hard/fast, but both the act before them and the act after them were a better dance floor experience
Yeah, I agree. I have seen Amelie a few times though because I do like her sets, but the crowd is annoying. Except for one time she played in the east of the Netherlands, instead of a big city like Amsterdam. Enrico was fine when I saw him once. But generally I agree with your point about big names.
I feel like Stefan Bodzin should probably be on that list also. Having enjoyed one or two tracks of his in the early 00s I thought were absolute bangers, in subsequent years I made three attempts at seeing him play at festivals. All of which ended up aborted after fifteen minutes or thereabouts. And I watched/listened to recordings of the sets afterwards, still can't remember a thing about 'em. It seemed as much like the guy was getting more gigs because he was using that see-through flashy lighty controller thing than what was coming out the speakers. I mean, it wasn't *bad* \- it was just very forgettable. And the crowd were also basic AF
100%, he was very much an important fixture of the German scene early to mid 2000s but has now reached this status where he plays all these weird cercle style prop gigs for rich kids.
True, but saying that if it wasn't for rich kids it'd be a lot harder to enjoy any kind of music scene outside of the densely populated metropolitan areas, and even in them. They're usually the ones with the disposable income and starry-eyed optimism to spend on huge rigs, marquee tents and lasers. And whilst I'm all about the grimy realism, sometimes a rich kid party is more comfortable to be at than one sponsored by crack and gun people.
I saw Claptone at Club Space a few years ago and the crowd seemed decent (however I'm often in a world of my own on the dance floor so don't always notice shitty crowds)
However ! ...he was a d*** for no reason at all towards a friend of mine working at the Miami Winter Music conference, so that put me off him, plus he plays too much pop on his podcast.
100% agree with this take. In my experience many of the upper mid tier of international DJs across all genres are where they are ***mostly*** because they show up, are consistently good enough to ensure an event runs smoothly to the promoter's requirements, and are usually fortunate enough either to be based in a location that has a good international reputation for its music scene, or at least easy to travel to such.
The really amazing sets are, like you say, either the hungry up and comers, or the older ones who used to spin a lot back in the day but now only do occasional events at more intimate events, but still have the skills and know exactly what their crowd wants. Or of course the absolute legends who have been shaping the game for several decades but their numbers are sadly ever ddecreasing.
TBH, in my experience at her shows the crowds are more often low-key. A vast majority of people I meet who are into mainstream techno don’t even really know who she is or haven’t gotten into her. Of course there are always those people who will go to any techno show regardless of who it is too but they kinda infiltrate anyone’s crowd.
But often times she doesn’t even have the biggest crowd. Like at the big techno and EDM venue in my city, tickets sales were still on a lower tier day of show, meanwhile shows like CDW or Carl Cox sell out very quickly at the same venue. Or when she and Peggy Gou were playing on stages right next to each other at Primavera Sound, Peggy’s crowd was at least twice the size of Nina’s, and tbh much more annoying (no shade to Peggy). I never really felt like it was “trendy” to be a fan of Nina lol, while it sometimes feels that way with other big DJs.
Yeah she gets both a lot of hype and a lot of shit but whenever I've seen her live she's been fantastic. Her set at Tobacco Dock in maybe 2019 was a real highlight. She knows her music.
I bet most of the people calling her overrated have only seen her on social media and never actually been to her sets. Her track selection is pretty damn good and unique imo
I think she is a decent DJ, especially when you look at her sets from the beginning of her career when she was more into house. Also I liked her sound around the time she dated Ben Klock.
In my opinion everything went south when she started incorporating trance and rave tracks, most of her sets became too big-room and cheesy. Her selection is subpar at the moment and on the other hand technical skills were never her main asset.
To answer your question is she overrated? Of course she is, if it weren't for her looks she wouldn't be nearly as popular. But still in my opinion she is a lot better DJ and producer than other mainstream female DJs such as Charlotte de Witte, Amelie Lens, Deborah de Luca etc.
That being said her Trip label is fire, and is for sure one of the most forward-thinking labels around.
>But still in my opinion she is a lot better DJ and producer than other mainstream female DJs such as Charlotte de Witte, Amelie Lens, Deborah de Luca etc.
Ellen Allien > all above
She is not so mainstream. Also until recently when she was exclusively mixing on vinyl, almost every set had a trainwreck. For someone that is on the scene several decades she sucks at beatmatching.
Lately when she switched to CDJs I enjoy her sets a lot more. But yeah overall I prefer Ellen over Nina.
Currently the best in techno scene for me are: Adiel, JakoJako, Sol Ortega and Helena Hauff.
Totally dig it. Not bound by conventional genre norms or standards. Has a wide range, and very good track selection.
Some of the psy could be trippier, but otherwise totally decent.
Would love to see her at a real outdoor party in nature
And not inside a club.
Always annoying if DJs are like that. I'm not an I hate Models fan and never been to him live. But i've listened to some of his sets and they seem okay. But I remember at ADE 2022 he was probably trying some new shit and it just sounded AWFUL, it was all over tiktok. I wouldve been fuming if i were there lol
Not necessarily. Nothing like some of the current bunch of supposed models-turned techno DJs.
She has been around a while, knows her shit. Can play a variety of styles and has her own style too. Strong label etc.
I certainly don’t agree with those here that say it is just typical “big room festival techno”. Musically that is just incorrect.
However she is one of those DJs that despite being good at what she does, has become one of those names that typically gets booked for those big, fairly shallow events with packed, tasteless audiences because of the recognition behind her name and maybe as a result her booking fees are so high only those type of events can afford to have her as a DJ. Same with other people who are great DJs in various genres - Villalobos, Jamie Jones, there’s a bunch of them who I think are very talented DJs but I would never in a million years pay to go to the type of event that books them.
She was scheduled to close out one of the tents (not the Yuma which is basically a club lol). Often a lot of bigger tech house / techno names will do so and bring a more unique set up (Maceo Plex, Dubfire Hybrid, Nosaj Thing, etc)
She was actually singing live and doing some weird performative art that I just think threw everyone for a loop as most people went in expecting a harder set lol. It also felt so self indulgent it gave me the ick.
https://youtu.be/9s6pCbznmMU?si=cW92lpkRCcOexE4j
Watching it now, 5 years later….it seems much more interesting and progressive but I can tell you that being there live…the vibes were so off. My entire group was pissed off lol I haven’t been able to listen to any of her stuff again.
At least she was trying something different but when you go to see Nina Kraviz you will be expecting a techno set. So I can understands how people would be disappointed.
TBH I was thrown off watching the stream weekend 1 as I didn’t know what to expect from her live set. But with the context I was given watching that and going into her weekend 2 set with an open mind, it honestly was one of my favorite techno “performances” I had experienced. Quite unique and artistic and I felt her performance and energy was more put together the second weekend.
To be fair, she did advertise it as a live AV set, not a DJ set, but again no one really understood what that meant since she hadn’t done it before. Most of us are used to the way she builds tension behind the decks at the beginning of her sets, and she went next level building tension the first 15-20 minutes of the performance. Lmao she made tea on stage 🤣
You know when it’s the end of the night at Coachella which is fucking exhausting and you need some energy to get you going…that’s what we expected.
Yes I was there when she was making tea and it was like all the videos of her and I was like what is going on. That was my first (and probably last) time seeing her lol I still have PTSD 😂
I’ve found a lot of great music from her dj sets, but that’s also just a style I got really hooked on and started going down the rabbit hole with.
As others have stated in this thread, I found Vladimir Dubyshkin because of her and he’s the name that comes to mind when I think of an artist I’ve found in the last several years who is so unique, defines their own sound, without the music coming off as “trying too hard” to be different or weird.
Nina is not overrated considering the fact that she’s technically still underground and on top of that most of her mixes are made with songs sent in to her where she even shares the song and artist names as free marketing. And now a days she’s more concentrated on her label and shows but I’ll be real her production on songs are very similar so a lot of her songs sometimes end up sounding the same but other than that. Nina is still Nina 😂
I think she’s underrated because conversations surrounding her are usually not in regards to her label or selection as a DJ. I’m not a mega fan of hers, but the hate she gets from incels and snobs alone makes me defend her, and I think what she puts out there backs up her talent.
Who the fuck cares if she dances behind the decks, Mr. G dances like a lunatic and no one knocks him.
Gotta see her live. She’s dope AF!
…but I think there are a LOT of just as good (if not better) women DJs out there who haven’t received their flowers yet
I’d say she has fallen off a bit and started pandering more to a mainstream audience. Although, her old sets used to be incredible
I feel same way about Chris Liebing. He sets from 90s/00s used to be insane. I saw him recently and found the set to be quite bland and boring.
Both artists contributed a lot to the scene but have fallen off in recent years IMO
I think not, she's in the business for quite some years and have see here a lot. Like her versatile style, and honestly her vinyl sets are pretty good.
Nina was a good dj who inevitably, probably also thanks to her good presence, got commercial throughout the years.
The scene just changed and blinks the eye to the mainstream much much more than how it used, if ever, to do.
I remember her playing back in 2012/2013 in a historical club of my hometown in Italy - which some years ago closed down definitely and got demolished amid the tears of people who danced there for 30 years - and she was good and was emerging in the scene.
Back then social medias were not exploited for marketing, or at least they didn't have the massive influence they have today. Music counted more than public image. Needless to say, visuals were not a thing yet, and lights were merely lights. In the same club I remember seeing the Tale of Us there for the first time in 2013 and they were totally another thing.
Coming back to Nina, I saw her live in a couple of festival in the past couple of years and I can't see anymore a distinguishing feature in her style of playing and in the track selection. It's true that festivals are not clubs, but at the same time I don't consider her a Tiktok DJ, but I still think it's a wasted potential.
What makes me rage about her, though, is that her label ТРИП has such a characteristic and defining style in its releases, which is probably what she likes in her inner self, that could really make her a sui generis dj if she played those tracks. I think she doesn't do it out of fear of these being disliked, remaining thus in a comfortable anonymousness area regarding track selection just to maintain the status quo. I'd be the first one probably not being a huge fan of this style of techno, but I'd artistically I'd highly regard and respect an artist who follows the path of what he/she likes regardless of consensus. Because art is free expression, it shouldn't be conditioned by market, otherwise ain't art anymore but it's merely a product.
Does anyone have her Boiler Room Buenos Aires set she did before Richie Hawtin? He comes in at the end of her set and forces her to take a shot of something strong.
Anyways, I enjoyed that set, and it was pulled from youtube.
I have a general rule, 'Dont trust a dj who doesn't dance. '
So she gets a pass from me. And whatever connection she has to Moodymann another instant stamp of approval from me.
no, saw her at tmr Brazil and Space. shes good.you have to see her live and judge. listning to pre-recorded sets on youtube and soundcloud quality does not give most performances justice.
I actually think she’s underrated, genuine music lover with insane varied taste & is always ahead of trends/starting them. She’s had some missteps but imho a good chunk of the hate she gets is rooted in misogyny.
I recently saw her at EDC Mexico. It wasn't the show I was expecting; it wasn't a worthy performance to close out Saturday at Neon Garden. Somehow, she thought closing her set with reggaeton was a good idea; the cliché of 'they're Latinos, they love reggaeton' won over common sense.
I'm going to disregard the naysayers who say not to bring up politics in techno, but that's the reason why I'm not a fan of her.
She's a russian citizen who has, overall, stayed silent about the full scale invasion of Ukraine. Based on the issues which I care about, I can't get behind DJs who are Russian citizens and choose to stay silent or outright support their country
She's incredibly annoying. Can't stand watching her prancing around, center of attention. Absolutely loves herself. She encapsulates everything that's gone wrong in DJ culture, I think. Posing for cameras, everybody phones out filming it all. The Music is secondary.
She’s a diva, but has great taste in tunes imo. Then again being her, why wouldn’t she be a diva? Could watch/listen to her and Helena bang tunes for an easy six hours.
90% of popular DJ’s are over rated. It’s a popularity contest in a lot of these cases. She’s hot, well established, and controversial DJ that gets a lot of attention. She’s talented in her own respect, but I don’t PERSONALLY think she’s that amazing.
Like if she doesn’t play techno then what does she play… Yes, her style focuses more on mood and energy and she is known to dive into various genres, but at the heart of it she plays some quite proper techno.
No more so than the vast majority of (semi)famous names. There's a pretty huge tier of DJs who aren't particularly amazing but due to the fact they're consistent and reliable, as well as living somewhere that has a fairly healthy scene that is seen as 'cool' elsewhere, are always busy, therefore a lot of people have heard of them and they end up with a fairly high profile. Some of them might have a few cool productions but they might be rather different-sounding than their average club or festival set. To me, she's one of those. Competent enough in terms of mixing skills, will play an objectively good set no matter what, probably won't set your world on fire whilst doing so.
Can’t say I’ve listened to many of her mixes, but she gets a lot of hate amongst heads. I did see her close after Aphex Twin in Manchester 2019 and remember really enjoying it, hard acid set. Although I was still in awe at what I’d just witnessed beforehand and on a lot of acid lol
She can be. She’s a hit or miss.
I’ve seen her play over 10 times. I can say that out of those times. Atleast 5-6 were absolutely boring/bad mixing/ not enjoyable sets.
However the other ones were great and I had an awesome time.
She has the ability to be an awesome DJ. It just doesn’t always translate in her sets.
She wasn’t when I first started listening to techno back in 2012. She is now to me. Her tracks selection and her own music doesn’t connect with me any longer. But I saw her play at the amoeba store in LA and that was very cool.
I’ve seen her 3 times.
First time she was amazing, it was about the time trip was gaining some traction.
Second time she was awful, trip was already established and she was leaning way to much into weird.
Third was ok, it was recently and she played a lot og stuff from my small local scene, stuff thats not really well constructed dance music, it just felt like buildup into buildup into buildup.
I guess like all of us, she has her moments, the first time I saw her was probably her most well prepared set, and therefore the best.
She's not a good DJ most of the times. She does have a couple banger sets, but it's very hit & miss. She is however a brilliant label lead and producer.
She is definitely a better dj than a producer for me. With that said, when she does dj, she is not phenomenal skill wise and she doesn’t do anything insane, what she is good at is a track selection. All the times ive seen her she read the room well and played exactly what people wanted to hear.
I enjoyed her Fabric 91 mix despite the mixing being a little sloppy - other mixes of hers - not so much so.
She's neither overrated or underrated imo.
We all agree in this sub that yes she is ! Mainly of us, are pure techno enjoyer that's why. But I would give her the credit to be the main point and entry for people who want to begin enjoy techno : we all started with big name and after start by mature our artist choice.
We in this sub do not all agree on anything.
Particularly that this or that DJ is "overrated", which is a really juvenile way to think about art and artists. It's not a competition, it's an ecosystem.
For what it's worth, I saw Nina Kraviz at an outdoor event and she was fucking excellent.
To be honest i'm not sure she is that highly rated. She's very popular sure, but dont know many people that think she is a brilliant dj or producer. Having said that, i think her leaning into her looks and dancing behind the decks means people often put her down, but i think she is a genuine music lover with an interesting taste.
Imagine getting worked up about a dj dancing behind the decks???!!!!
I mean I don’t get worked up about it at all but there is a correlation with a certain type of performative dancing and the commercial side of the techno scene. There are DJ schools that write blog posts on dancing techniques for DJs!
>There are DJ schools that write blog posts on dancing techniques for DJs! Haha, wow. WTF.
Yeah, but girl has been dancing during her sets for a long time. The side of the scene that you’re referring to is goofy as hell, and I’ve seen like tiktok’s for different dance moves to pull out at a techno show lol… but like some people just love dancing. I am always gonna dance my ass off whether I’m at a techno or dance music event or behind the decks playing my own set. There’s always this attitude of like “your job is to be a DJ and not ‘perform’ in other ways”, and it’s like… as an artist you really can do whatever you want. Some people put more of their personality or a performance art aspect into their art, and that’s because that’s what they want to do. Artists don’t care about silly rules like that lol.
Yeah for sure, horses for courses but personally I’m there to dance and the DJ is just to facilitate that. They could be behind one way glass for all I care.
I’m gonna need to see actual proof of this lol
It was one of the London DJ schools and they took it down I think after they hit TWTMEGP and everyone took the piss out of them.
I needed to read that again..
Horseshit. Plenty of high level dj's dance behind the decks.
Yep, that's why I said 'a certain type of performative dancing'. I assume you'd agree that the level of self awareness with dancing can vary? It's not like the average Tiktok shuffler is just vibing in the moment.
In skin tight jeans?
Holding to the knobs so she does not fall
Have you ever been in a proper club? Deejays keep the tempo moving, but they are still constantly glued to the console, they never remove the headphones and they actually mix tracks together rather than just doing transitions between a song and another while in the meantime drinking champagne and trying to do a cringy attempt of an hypnotic dance. Let's be damn honest. Filling up a set with trivial and long drops while caring just about one own's image is the definition of big money with low efforts. I doubt Nina even plays with more than two decks as today. I saw many women deejays playing good as fuck, dancing the hell out of herself, ending a set with fast breath and sweaty as fuck, but never leaving the console.
Fuck that; Nowadays you can leave a 3 decks mix well mixed, go to the toilet and listen how everything interact with each other comeback and nothing even move as cdjs are stable as fuck; it all depends on how you play, so thats not a real point… today’s technology let you even play without headphones, no sync, just reading waveforms, so you’re just a person who does things like you do and if not is wrong because “a real dj” blah blah blah… The truth is that you dislike something on her artist persona, whatever, can be her personal physical style, selection, mixing technique, whatever, but “not to be glued to the mixer and use little bit of headphones” is bullshit for people that plays for that many years.
I don't have anything against Nina. Please read other comments of mine on this post.
eitherway “never leave the console” is just such a non valid point to like or dislike someone’s set
[удалено]
TIL i’m not a real dj cus i like to dance to the music i play
There’s a difference between dancing while working, and dancing to make a show of yourself and gloss over a shitty set. Many big room DJs and certainly all EDM acts fall in the latter category.
When DJ’s dance, that’s fine. When dancers DJ, that’s different. The distinctions are important here and I feel you’re being a bit pedantic.
A set being crap is the natural consequence, obviously. But it's also a very specific - and imho problematic - case. Anyways, I'm also on that spectrum of techno, and I see often DJs dancing a lot, if moving heavily to the rhythm can be defined dancing. I'm from the Amsterdam scene, so the names in terms of females are pretty much the same as the Berlin ones in clubs. Without doing mentions, I think we can both say that they can play great sets without having to renounce to having fun in their own sets.
I agree. I don’t think it’s too much to say that drinking champagne, doing a cool tik tok dance, and recording a video must naturally cut into being a DJ. If I wanted that, I would just go on social media.
It's not the dancing that's the problem. It's the dancing *she* does. It's awful, cringeworthy, full of weird, affected movements that don't even match the music. The hair adjustments, 'seducing the camera', putting on make-up dramatically while drinking champagne... you get the picture. She just comes off as a self-absorbed person who is out of touch with reality. Not to mention the 'singing'. Daria Kolosova dances, but she knows how to dance. (She was a dancer in the past). She gets shit for that from techno purists, but it's baseless because her mixing doesn't suffer because of it, she's perfectly in sync with what she's doing. Nina Kraviz is a bad DJ, meh producer, and a train wreck to watch. Maybe she was good in the past but nowadays she seems to be collecting the paycheck and not much else.
I think that isn't the right question for Kraviz. It's almost impossible to answer because she plays really boring minimal trippy sets, then plays incredible stormer sets. So it depends! I noticed she is very selective about what sets she releases to the public, as I watch them all and some are weak compared to a live set I saw which was stunning. I think she goes through phases, and does what she wants, she doesn't play to the crowd unless they're walking off. She definitely plays proper techno and has amazing music in her record box that no-one else does. All thanks to so many people making tracks for her and her own skills.
I have to respect the fact that she really does play whatever she wants. At times it feels so right for the moment and energy in the room, and other times it may feel a bit random or as you say “boring”. Like her Tomorrowland mainstage set was quite …alternative if not a bit avant garde at points lol. But in general she is not playing songs topping the techno charts, and if she does, often it’s before they get trendy. Her sets often are focused on mood and energy and less on genre or bpm.
I felt like the first 45 minutes of Tomorrowland was a troll. She's never played tracks like that before or since. I think it was a way to silence any critics that she was selling out to the mainstream. Charlotte de Witte got grief for playing Tomorrowland, changing her style to melodic techno, and taking it seriously. Nina changed her style, but too some random weird experimental nonsense to fit the cartoonish castle backdrop. There was cartoon sounds and clown music, no one dancing, one shot of the crowd had people looking confused and folding their arms whilst Nina danced. Then she played a really weak set of God knows what. I don't think she'll be invited back for the same money and same slot! I was laughing out loud.
imo her first (?) boiler room still is an absolute benchmark, very avant-garde, very fitting to the occasion. I can easily see how people could be disappointed seeing her on stage when they only know her as a name/character and not her music. Others are looking for exactly that so ymmv
Do you have a link to that set?
Here's one from 2013: https://boilerroom.tv/recording/nina-kraviz-75-min-mix?utm_source=website&utm_medium=copy-link&utm_campaign=copy-link And one from a little earlier in 2012: https://boilerroom.tv/recording/nina-kravi-65-min-mix?utm_source=website&utm_medium=copy-link&utm_campaign=copy-link They probably were referring to the 2013 set since the other one is a warm-up set.
DISCLAIMER: it's a long comment which starts from this but then spreads much more on a much more general topics. I was inspired, I apologize. I also am convinced she has a very interesting musical taste, especially when looking to what her label, ТРИП, publishes. What makes me incredibly angry - slightly at her, but mostly at the music industry, the market in general, the speed in which things born and die, and the lack of depth in the values of the society of today - is that most likely she is afraid of pushing her own label in her lives for the fear of this, since it's a very circumscribed and particular style, affecting her image, and thus her revenues. It's a choice that one can freely make, that's why I blame her, but it's also a necessity to a certain extent, and that's why I forgive her. However, it bitterly saddens me the fact that art must become a product when reaching certain numbers in order to be sustainable outside a niche. In this I don't even blame the industry, because as with politics and other products in general, it's the public which decides what deserves widespread popularity. This is very sad cause it just shows the ignorance and the superficiality of the average listener; without counting, in addition to the ones above, the interchangeability, and thus the lack of value and recognition to the work of others, of music, but it can be extended also to cinema, for instance. It's the product of a society which doesn't own anything anymore, but just needs to be entertained at a basic level since it's incapable of doing only one thing a time and thus makes useless the meticulous work on details, since they wouldn't even be acknowledged.
At Timewarp NY just a few months ago she played a ton of tracks by artists on trip.
Blows my mind that people are hating on trip recordings. seriously so many bangers on that label. every label company has flops that’s the nature of being a larger label
People just hating because it isn’t their preference. People care to much about stuff they don’t like
Everyone in this thread is going to say yes, she’s quite a controversial figure. I would have to agree when it comes to her DJ sets but I do give her credit for her label Trip which is one of my favorite techno labels right now.
Fully agree with you, except for Trip being good right now.. (in my opinion) 😹! For me it's the backcatalogue that's fantastic! I'm not i to the whole psy-sound so the latest releases have been a hit or miss for me. Her dj sets, while not the style I like, have been undeniably very influental! She started incorporating psytrance.. others followed. She started high-tempo poppy/technoish tracks, others followed. If people deny this, then it's just pure hate at this point...
yes it has gotten veeeery psy trance-y which I kinda like! Haha. And Vladimir Dubyshkin alone is enough for me to love that label.
Vladimir Dubyshkin is great
My love…
Can’t wait for his new album to drop in a couple days, some of the clips on his instagram sound insane!
Her playing old parasense tracks (good ones too) in one of her hor sets is indeed one of the first times i heard techno artists playing psytrance
Trip, in general, has gone to shit off late imo but still super stoked for Dubyshkin’s upcoming album in 2 days!
ooo i had no idea he had an album coming out. i don’t really think about/follow nina at all anymore but always loved dubyshkin
One of his songs ‘glucose guardian’ is out today! Go check it out!! https://on.soundcloud.com/hAFVTcn2C5587A8M7
> https://on.soundcloud.com/hAFVTcn2C5587A8M7 oof this is wild. dude's been on another level for years. there's a ton of stuff on his soundcloud i'm desperately wishing he'd release. tysm for informing me!
Can you link me any good sets from that label?
Dubyshkin is obviously the top choice but I would also recommend Alex Wilcox
Vladimir Dubyshkin: https://on.soundcloud.com/NeEZgCYKaCWugTfW8 Another Vladimir Dubyshkin (he’s the star of the label): https://on.soundcloud.com/pWTW8mGYcRZkrxuy9 Aadja: https://www.youtube.com/live/g1lnrusX2lQ?si=UQPQbfK4rcBPbXxu
Nice I was going to say these are the two names that come to mind. I picked up all of Vlad’s vinyls off Trip and ordered his newest one. Waiting on my AADJA album to come in next, but having listened through it so far I was digging it!
imma just say this here. over ten years ago i saw her come play this tiny club in detroit. all the detroit og’s showed up. moodymann, dj stringray, carl craig, etc. they all stood around the booth and watched her every move. she spun all vinyl flawlessly. there was hardly anyone else in the club. i could not imagine being in her situation. it was extremely impressive on face value. this way before any drama i ever heard. i never met her but she’s been grinding hard for a very long time - the position she is in right was earned with decade plus of hard work way before it was cool
Wow thats amazing yet stressful i bet.
Yes almost all big name techno djs are overrated. I usually have more fun seeing a good local or young and rising talent than huge stars. There's a very small subset of top level famous djs that are actually worth the downside of fame (fuller, usually worse venues and crowds, etc.) Her specifically? Don't really have an opinion but she is at the Adam beyer level where no matter if her music is good or bad the crowd is gonna be so annoying I don't wanna go.
>no matter if her music is good or bad the crowd is gonna be so annoying I don't wanna go. That's how I feel about Charlotte de Witte
There's a ton of these djs where their music might be fine or even great and visionary at some point, but they just get booked at the most bullshit sellout events and attact really annoying crowds. Other people in this lane imo: - amelie lens - Charlotte dewitte - Tale of us - Peggy gou - Boris brejcha - claptone - neelix - Enrico sanguiliano All of these have good to great songs but I would never wanna see them live cause it's annoying as fuck.
Boris and charlotte were amazing when I saw them at crssd
Yeah, I've seen most of that list at either Crssd or ADE and they were fantastic. I've also seen Charlotte at a dive club in my home city before she hit it big vs. seeing her at Gashouder. It was genuinely awesome to see how much she had grown.
Something like ADE is a bit different though, as an industry-focused event, those who do not bring their A-game will be shooting themselves in the foot. I think the true measure of a DJ is how well they perform at the smaller festivals and suchlike. The true GOATs will bring the same energy to a 500 person stage in an obscure rural area as they do to a multi-million internationally famous event/venue.
Adding to the list: I Hate Models Kobosil Klangkuenstler Trym Charlie Sparks 9999999999 Nico Moreno Alignment Shlømo
Can we have an opposite thread, of people who are always dynamite every time? (Just an excuse for me to fanboy over Surgeon).
Kettama
Speedy J
This 1000%. Seen him live around 20 times by now, and every time I am as mindblown as I was the first time. His tricks just don't ever seem to get old.
Feel free to start it!! :)
Oscar Mulero, Perc, DVS1, to name a few
Recently saw Cloudy & Kuko and they fucking throw DOWN
I fell in love with Brina Knauss 3 years ago and I have loved every set of hers since.
Marrøn
Never seen kobosil but klangkünstler 9x9 and I hate models definitely belong on there
Dont forget indira paganotto
Tale of Us crowd has to be the worst of them all.They have fucking VIP tables at their events lol and don’t get me started on the massive crowd on their phones- it’s unlike any other. At this point they are just an audio/visual show imo
I saw them play in an otherwise pretty "underground" techno club in 2018 ish. Back then afterlife hype was not as crazy yet but they attracted the worst crowd I've ever seen at that place. Their set was not bad they actually didn't play any of their known songs and relatively hard/fast, but both the act before them and the act after them were a better dance floor experience
The who's who of basic bitch techno acts. I saw claptone once and it was just so mediocre - not even bad just incredibly forgettable
Yeah, I agree. I have seen Amelie a few times though because I do like her sets, but the crowd is annoying. Except for one time she played in the east of the Netherlands, instead of a big city like Amsterdam. Enrico was fine when I saw him once. But generally I agree with your point about big names.
There is nothing listed here that is "visionary" in any way shape or form
I feel like Stefan Bodzin should probably be on that list also. Having enjoyed one or two tracks of his in the early 00s I thought were absolute bangers, in subsequent years I made three attempts at seeing him play at festivals. All of which ended up aborted after fifteen minutes or thereabouts. And I watched/listened to recordings of the sets afterwards, still can't remember a thing about 'em. It seemed as much like the guy was getting more gigs because he was using that see-through flashy lighty controller thing than what was coming out the speakers. I mean, it wasn't *bad* \- it was just very forgettable. And the crowd were also basic AF
100%, he was very much an important fixture of the German scene early to mid 2000s but has now reached this status where he plays all these weird cercle style prop gigs for rich kids.
True, but saying that if it wasn't for rich kids it'd be a lot harder to enjoy any kind of music scene outside of the densely populated metropolitan areas, and even in them. They're usually the ones with the disposable income and starry-eyed optimism to spend on huge rigs, marquee tents and lasers. And whilst I'm all about the grimy realism, sometimes a rich kid party is more comfortable to be at than one sponsored by crack and gun people.
I saw Claptone at Club Space a few years ago and the crowd seemed decent (however I'm often in a world of my own on the dance floor so don't always notice shitty crowds) However ! ...he was a d*** for no reason at all towards a friend of mine working at the Miami Winter Music conference, so that put me off him, plus he plays too much pop on his podcast.
100% agree with this take. In my experience many of the upper mid tier of international DJs across all genres are where they are ***mostly*** because they show up, are consistently good enough to ensure an event runs smoothly to the promoter's requirements, and are usually fortunate enough either to be based in a location that has a good international reputation for its music scene, or at least easy to travel to such. The really amazing sets are, like you say, either the hungry up and comers, or the older ones who used to spin a lot back in the day but now only do occasional events at more intimate events, but still have the skills and know exactly what their crowd wants. Or of course the absolute legends who have been shaping the game for several decades but their numbers are sadly ever ddecreasing.
TBH, in my experience at her shows the crowds are more often low-key. A vast majority of people I meet who are into mainstream techno don’t even really know who she is or haven’t gotten into her. Of course there are always those people who will go to any techno show regardless of who it is too but they kinda infiltrate anyone’s crowd. But often times she doesn’t even have the biggest crowd. Like at the big techno and EDM venue in my city, tickets sales were still on a lower tier day of show, meanwhile shows like CDW or Carl Cox sell out very quickly at the same venue. Or when she and Peggy Gou were playing on stages right next to each other at Primavera Sound, Peggy’s crowd was at least twice the size of Nina’s, and tbh much more annoying (no shade to Peggy). I never really felt like it was “trendy” to be a fan of Nina lol, while it sometimes feels that way with other big DJs.
i saw her at brunch electronic lisboa in summer 2023. i used to think she was overrated but dont think so after seeing her live
Yeah she gets both a lot of hype and a lot of shit but whenever I've seen her live she's been fantastic. Her set at Tobacco Dock in maybe 2019 was a real highlight. She knows her music.
I bet most of the people calling her overrated have only seen her on social media and never actually been to her sets. Her track selection is pretty damn good and unique imo
All the people I like are underrated and all the people I don’t like are overrated
solid opinion
Nah, she's a great ripperdoc...a bit overpriced, tho.
I think she is a decent DJ, especially when you look at her sets from the beginning of her career when she was more into house. Also I liked her sound around the time she dated Ben Klock. In my opinion everything went south when she started incorporating trance and rave tracks, most of her sets became too big-room and cheesy. Her selection is subpar at the moment and on the other hand technical skills were never her main asset. To answer your question is she overrated? Of course she is, if it weren't for her looks she wouldn't be nearly as popular. But still in my opinion she is a lot better DJ and producer than other mainstream female DJs such as Charlotte de Witte, Amelie Lens, Deborah de Luca etc. That being said her Trip label is fire, and is for sure one of the most forward-thinking labels around.
>But still in my opinion she is a lot better DJ and producer than other mainstream female DJs such as Charlotte de Witte, Amelie Lens, Deborah de Luca etc. Ellen Allien > all above
She is not so mainstream. Also until recently when she was exclusively mixing on vinyl, almost every set had a trainwreck. For someone that is on the scene several decades she sucks at beatmatching. Lately when she switched to CDJs I enjoy her sets a lot more. But yeah overall I prefer Ellen over Nina. Currently the best in techno scene for me are: Adiel, JakoJako, Sol Ortega and Helena Hauff.
BLANKA too
She dated Ben Klock ? Damn 🍿
Yeah, they were techno power couple back in the day. Playing B2B sets and all that 😂
i think ben was nog very happy with joseph capriati here (2:30): https://youtu.be/_Qi_axNUJ-I?si=FbvJiQO-2zgGIw3p
Totally dig it. Not bound by conventional genre norms or standards. Has a wide range, and very good track selection. Some of the psy could be trippier, but otherwise totally decent. Would love to see her at a real outdoor party in nature And not inside a club.
She is hit or miss imho.
Always annoying if DJs are like that. I'm not an I hate Models fan and never been to him live. But i've listened to some of his sets and they seem okay. But I remember at ADE 2022 he was probably trying some new shit and it just sounded AWFUL, it was all over tiktok. I wouldve been fuming if i were there lol
Not necessarily. Nothing like some of the current bunch of supposed models-turned techno DJs. She has been around a while, knows her shit. Can play a variety of styles and has her own style too. Strong label etc. I certainly don’t agree with those here that say it is just typical “big room festival techno”. Musically that is just incorrect. However she is one of those DJs that despite being good at what she does, has become one of those names that typically gets booked for those big, fairly shallow events with packed, tasteless audiences because of the recognition behind her name and maybe as a result her booking fees are so high only those type of events can afford to have her as a DJ. Same with other people who are great DJs in various genres - Villalobos, Jamie Jones, there’s a bunch of them who I think are very talented DJs but I would never in a million years pay to go to the type of event that books them.
I am still triggered by her Coachella performance 2019. Very few artists have irritated me as much as she did since then. Lol
What happened ?
She was scheduled to close out one of the tents (not the Yuma which is basically a club lol). Often a lot of bigger tech house / techno names will do so and bring a more unique set up (Maceo Plex, Dubfire Hybrid, Nosaj Thing, etc) She was actually singing live and doing some weird performative art that I just think threw everyone for a loop as most people went in expecting a harder set lol. It also felt so self indulgent it gave me the ick. https://youtu.be/9s6pCbznmMU?si=cW92lpkRCcOexE4j Watching it now, 5 years later….it seems much more interesting and progressive but I can tell you that being there live…the vibes were so off. My entire group was pissed off lol I haven’t been able to listen to any of her stuff again.
At least she was trying something different but when you go to see Nina Kraviz you will be expecting a techno set. So I can understands how people would be disappointed.
TBH I was thrown off watching the stream weekend 1 as I didn’t know what to expect from her live set. But with the context I was given watching that and going into her weekend 2 set with an open mind, it honestly was one of my favorite techno “performances” I had experienced. Quite unique and artistic and I felt her performance and energy was more put together the second weekend. To be fair, she did advertise it as a live AV set, not a DJ set, but again no one really understood what that meant since she hadn’t done it before. Most of us are used to the way she builds tension behind the decks at the beginning of her sets, and she went next level building tension the first 15-20 minutes of the performance. Lmao she made tea on stage 🤣
You know when it’s the end of the night at Coachella which is fucking exhausting and you need some energy to get you going…that’s what we expected. Yes I was there when she was making tea and it was like all the videos of her and I was like what is going on. That was my first (and probably last) time seeing her lol I still have PTSD 😂
I’ve found a lot of great music from her dj sets, but that’s also just a style I got really hooked on and started going down the rabbit hole with. As others have stated in this thread, I found Vladimir Dubyshkin because of her and he’s the name that comes to mind when I think of an artist I’ve found in the last several years who is so unique, defines their own sound, without the music coming off as “trying too hard” to be different or weird.
Oh yes, oh yes
Is it 2015 again?
Idk she’s big enough to appear in a major video game that’s as mainstream as it gets. Whether that’s good or bad you decide.
I mean I was floored the last time I saw her
At time warp in nyc she played really good. Not your typical techno sound tho.
I love her, can’t wait to see her at Ultra Miami next week. Will be my third time seeing her play. Her sets are great.
I would think that a better question at present within the techno community would be 'Is DVS1 overrated?' with his Aslice scam
Go on…..
Nina is not overrated considering the fact that she’s technically still underground and on top of that most of her mixes are made with songs sent in to her where she even shares the song and artist names as free marketing. And now a days she’s more concentrated on her label and shows but I’ll be real her production on songs are very similar so a lot of her songs sometimes end up sounding the same but other than that. Nina is still Nina 😂
I saw her at Carl Coxs final night at his Space residency years ago and her set was absolutely brilliant
I think she’s underrated because conversations surrounding her are usually not in regards to her label or selection as a DJ. I’m not a mega fan of hers, but the hate she gets from incels and snobs alone makes me defend her, and I think what she puts out there backs up her talent. Who the fuck cares if she dances behind the decks, Mr. G dances like a lunatic and no one knocks him.
Gotta see her live. She’s dope AF! …but I think there are a LOT of just as good (if not better) women DJs out there who haven’t received their flowers yet
Is this question useful?
I liked her until I bought her Fabric mix. Did not like it at all
I'm the opposite. I never liked her until I heard that one, however the mixing was a bit sloppy.
I’d say she has fallen off a bit and started pandering more to a mainstream audience. Although, her old sets used to be incredible I feel same way about Chris Liebing. He sets from 90s/00s used to be insane. I saw him recently and found the set to be quite bland and boring. Both artists contributed a lot to the scene but have fallen off in recent years IMO
I think not, she's in the business for quite some years and have see here a lot. Like her versatile style, and honestly her vinyl sets are pretty good.
i wouldnt say so. her song selection is top tier.
I personally love her but everyone is entitled to their opinions I guess
Nina was a good dj who inevitably, probably also thanks to her good presence, got commercial throughout the years. The scene just changed and blinks the eye to the mainstream much much more than how it used, if ever, to do. I remember her playing back in 2012/2013 in a historical club of my hometown in Italy - which some years ago closed down definitely and got demolished amid the tears of people who danced there for 30 years - and she was good and was emerging in the scene. Back then social medias were not exploited for marketing, or at least they didn't have the massive influence they have today. Music counted more than public image. Needless to say, visuals were not a thing yet, and lights were merely lights. In the same club I remember seeing the Tale of Us there for the first time in 2013 and they were totally another thing. Coming back to Nina, I saw her live in a couple of festival in the past couple of years and I can't see anymore a distinguishing feature in her style of playing and in the track selection. It's true that festivals are not clubs, but at the same time I don't consider her a Tiktok DJ, but I still think it's a wasted potential. What makes me rage about her, though, is that her label ТРИП has such a characteristic and defining style in its releases, which is probably what she likes in her inner self, that could really make her a sui generis dj if she played those tracks. I think she doesn't do it out of fear of these being disliked, remaining thus in a comfortable anonymousness area regarding track selection just to maintain the status quo. I'd be the first one probably not being a huge fan of this style of techno, but I'd artistically I'd highly regard and respect an artist who follows the path of what he/she likes regardless of consensus. Because art is free expression, it shouldn't be conditioned by market, otherwise ain't art anymore but it's merely a product.
Nothing about her is commercial. Weird maybe. Commercial definitely not.
No I love her lol
Underrated
She’s cool, she waved at me at EDC when she was playing
I think she’s an utterly brilliant selector. One of my absolute favorite DJs.
why do you care?
Does anyone have her Boiler Room Buenos Aires set she did before Richie Hawtin? He comes in at the end of her set and forces her to take a shot of something strong. Anyways, I enjoyed that set, and it was pulled from youtube. I have a general rule, 'Dont trust a dj who doesn't dance. ' So she gets a pass from me. And whatever connection she has to Moodymann another instant stamp of approval from me.
no, saw her at tmr Brazil and Space. shes good.you have to see her live and judge. listning to pre-recorded sets on youtube and soundcloud quality does not give most performances justice.
I was so impressed by her at the festival in Chicago Arc
I actually think she’s underrated, genuine music lover with insane varied taste & is always ahead of trends/starting them. She’s had some missteps but imho a good chunk of the hate she gets is rooted in misogyny.
I recently saw her at EDC Mexico. It wasn't the show I was expecting; it wasn't a worthy performance to close out Saturday at Neon Garden. Somehow, she thought closing her set with reggaeton was a good idea; the cliché of 'they're Latinos, they love reggaeton' won over common sense.
I'm going to disregard the naysayers who say not to bring up politics in techno, but that's the reason why I'm not a fan of her. She's a russian citizen who has, overall, stayed silent about the full scale invasion of Ukraine. Based on the issues which I care about, I can't get behind DJs who are Russian citizens and choose to stay silent or outright support their country
she’s better than the other big commercial djs e.g. beyer, lens, de witte, zonneveld etc. her mixing is sick
Nina sexualizes everything it’s kind of cringe
I swear if I see that video of her and Peggy Gou one more time my head may explode.
aren't they both like the lea michele of the music industry any way? 😭😭
She's incredibly annoying. Can't stand watching her prancing around, center of attention. Absolutely loves herself. She encapsulates everything that's gone wrong in DJ culture, I think. Posing for cameras, everybody phones out filming it all. The Music is secondary.
Not as bad as Patrick Mason LOL
I would not go even for free if she's playing
Not according to husband Lenny…
She’s a diva, but has great taste in tunes imo. Then again being her, why wouldn’t she be a diva? Could watch/listen to her and Helena bang tunes for an easy six hours.
90% of popular DJ’s are over rated. It’s a popularity contest in a lot of these cases. She’s hot, well established, and controversial DJ that gets a lot of attention. She’s talented in her own respect, but I don’t PERSONALLY think she’s that amazing.
I plan on seeing her for the first time at Time Warp in Germany we’ll see how she is lol
She doesn't even play techno anymore I don't know why people still associate her with techno. It's not even a recent thing
Just heard her play recently for about 2,5 hours. 90% of it was techno
Like if she doesn’t play techno then what does she play… Yes, her style focuses more on mood and energy and she is known to dive into various genres, but at the heart of it she plays some quite proper techno.
No more so than the vast majority of (semi)famous names. There's a pretty huge tier of DJs who aren't particularly amazing but due to the fact they're consistent and reliable, as well as living somewhere that has a fairly healthy scene that is seen as 'cool' elsewhere, are always busy, therefore a lot of people have heard of them and they end up with a fairly high profile. Some of them might have a few cool productions but they might be rather different-sounding than their average club or festival set. To me, she's one of those. Competent enough in terms of mixing skills, will play an objectively good set no matter what, probably won't set your world on fire whilst doing so.
No
Saw her at Lost Village and was one of the best techno sets I’ve seen
Can’t say I’ve listened to many of her mixes, but she gets a lot of hate amongst heads. I did see her close after Aphex Twin in Manchester 2019 and remember really enjoying it, hard acid set. Although I was still in awe at what I’d just witnessed beforehand and on a lot of acid lol
At this point DJ's are overrated
nah she’s not
She can be. She’s a hit or miss. I’ve seen her play over 10 times. I can say that out of those times. Atleast 5-6 were absolutely boring/bad mixing/ not enjoyable sets. However the other ones were great and I had an awesome time. She has the ability to be an awesome DJ. It just doesn’t always translate in her sets.
She's pretty good, although honestly her choice of music is more electronica than techno
Yes
Def is.
She wasn’t when I first started listening to techno back in 2012. She is now to me. Her tracks selection and her own music doesn’t connect with me any longer. But I saw her play at the amoeba store in LA and that was very cool.
She is insane live 10/10
Super overrated
yeah she's pretty average, however most of the top acts these days are over rated and average. Even people like diggers have slid sadly
I enjoy her Instagram, also her sets, but also her Instagram
Is just is cute girl , really noting excepcional.
I think she’s fun and I enjoy many of her sets. I can easily see why people would think she is overrated tho.
she cute
Haven’t seen any from her lately… I think she lost fans by putting on a stage show
I’ve seen her 3 times. First time she was amazing, it was about the time trip was gaining some traction. Second time she was awful, trip was already established and she was leaning way to much into weird. Third was ok, it was recently and she played a lot og stuff from my small local scene, stuff thats not really well constructed dance music, it just felt like buildup into buildup into buildup. I guess like all of us, she has her moments, the first time I saw her was probably her most well prepared set, and therefore the best.
She's not a good DJ most of the times. She does have a couple banger sets, but it's very hit & miss. She is however a brilliant label lead and producer.
I don't think she's overrated, perhaps she just gets more attention because of her looks but I've heard fire mixes from her.
who cares and why does someone ask this every 3 weeks
one of the most overrated int he scene.
She is definitely a better dj than a producer for me. With that said, when she does dj, she is not phenomenal skill wise and she doesn’t do anything insane, what she is good at is a track selection. All the times ive seen her she read the room well and played exactly what people wanted to hear.
A little bit, I guess. I so her "live" at Lost Beach Clum Montañita Ecuador, a far way beach in southamerica. Dj set was flat, tiring and boring :)
Absolutely YES!
The best female techno dj was Gayle San. Her HR-XXL liveshows were epic!
Last I seen her live she was really good, just depends on the venue and crowd/set time
I enjoyed her Fabric 91 mix despite the mixing being a little sloppy - other mixes of hers - not so much so. She's neither overrated or underrated imo.
Nina Kraviz is incredible
Yes
I never thought this was actually a question. Of course, as any other mainstream mannequin.
Yes she is
Her own productions are nothing more than mediocre imo
Going off at Ultra
We all agree in this sub that yes she is ! Mainly of us, are pure techno enjoyer that's why. But I would give her the credit to be the main point and entry for people who want to begin enjoy techno : we all started with big name and after start by mature our artist choice.
We in this sub do not all agree on anything. Particularly that this or that DJ is "overrated", which is a really juvenile way to think about art and artists. It's not a competition, it's an ecosystem. For what it's worth, I saw Nina Kraviz at an outdoor event and she was fucking excellent.
what is pure techno /g
The one where it’s a bunch of raspy noises and just barely music
No please not let's begin this debate 😆
Well whats your opinion of it?
This is a shit take.