Lovebox - A soundclash of European Music

At last! My Letter of Admission from Heidelberg arrived this week. Now my plans for next year are set in motion, I aim to enjoy the summer with my nearest and dearest before leaving for Heidelberg.

Yesterday I attended Lovebox, a music festival in Victoria Park, London. The festival is a mash-up of the latest trends in fashion, art and most importantly music that the capital has to offer. Its slogan – ‘Heart, soul, rock and roll’ reflects the diverse crowds Lovebox attracts and the positive vibes that everyone from its artists to ravers enjoys. 

My sister and I went to our third Lovebox this summer and the line-up didn’t disappoint. The best act was Rudimental who got the crowd jumping in the sunshine and singing along to their trumpet playing. 

There was also a massive display of electronic dance acts this year which featured Duke Dumont and Disclosure. Even Azealia Banks who graced the crowd in a lime green bodysuit and neon pink megaphone had a set inspired by the German electronic dance scene, most evident in her song ‘Bambi’. 

I’m still waiting to find out if I have been successful in gaining a room in the university-run student halls. Although there are alternatives, being offered a room in the student halls is more convenient. Private rents in Germany vary, starting at a reasonable €200pcm and peaking at an eye-watering €500pcm. 

In the meantime, I’ve joined the University’s Facebook page for incoming international students. If you’re going on a year abroad, joining the university’s official Facebook group is an easy way to keep up to date with important developments and get a fast response to any questions you may have. I’ll keep you posted!

German Culture

I’ll be departing for Germany in under a month, and its nearness has gotten me thinking about leaving one community and joining another. I’ve devoted this latest post to German culture. 

This week the BBC aired the documentary, ‘Make Me a German’. It’s a must watch and provides a great insight into the varying cultural norms of European cities. The show a social experiment takes a conventional British family and gives them the identities of average German citizens. Situated in Nuremberg, a city with a staunchly nationalist past, the family must act out their lives as conventional Germans to the tiniest detail. This includes housewives with four hours of daily cleaning, husbands who are the sole bread-winners, and being efficient, especially at work where in some companies phones are prohibited for the duration of the day. 

One key point the documentary highlighted was the familial tensions created when the British family were expected to conform to rigid gender roles. The wife’s desire to detach herself from the identity of a housewife was most evident as she shook off her inability to reach daily housekeeping quotas with nonchalance, while the husband who was given a job at a pencil factory, also struggled to maintain the average work ethic of a German male. In the factory where success is determined by the performance of the whole team, he was frequently picked up by the factory supervisor for punctuality, slowness and using his mobile. 

‘Make Me a German’ which sought to find out why Germans are so successful perhaps unsurprisingly concluded that as an industrial nation, teamwork and ‘doing your bit’ is an integral part of German culture.  In the UK, when it comes to achieving success greater emphasis is placed on the individual and reaching goals independently. The documentary made me consider whether the freedom to make your own choices independent of the group outweighs making sacrifices for the greater good. Although in reality these two factors would not be mutually exclusive, at least for me personal agency is paramount. 

This being said, it would be ridiculous to assume to know everything about a country’s culture within the space of an hour length documentary.  I hope my own experiences in Germany over the next year will give me a positive impression of the country. 

On a lighter note, electronic dance music is also a big part German culture. Laserkraft 3D’s ‘Nein Mann’ is a funny take on the scene, their video has gone viral with over twenty-seven-million hits on Youtube. It’s well worth checking out for the dancing and neon faces alone!

And if you have watched ‘Make Me a German’, what did you think? Share your comments below!