 The former power plant in which the Natraj Temple was located | |
 | |
| Address | Grafinger Str. 6, Kunstpark Ost |
|---|---|
| Location | Berg am Laim,Munich,Germany |
| Coordinates | 48°7′24.2″N11°36′31.1″E / 48.123389°N 11.608639°E /48.123389; 11.608639 |
| Type | Nightclub |
| Genre(s) | Psytrance |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1970s |
| Opened | October 1996 |
| Closed | 2008 |
| Website | |
| Natraj Temple | |
Natraj Temple [natˈrɑːʒˈtem.pəl] was anightclub inMunich, Germany from 1996 to 2008.[1] Germany's first steadypsytrance nightclub belonged, besides theTresor andE-Werk in Berlin, theDorian Gray andOmen in Frankfurt, and the Munich-based clubsUltraschall,KW – Das Heizkraftwerk andMillennium, to the most renowned clubs of Germany's 1990stechno culture,[2] and was considered an international centre of the Goa trance movement.[3]
The significance of the Natraj Temple for the rave culture is due to the fact that it was one of only a few clubs that specialized completely in a single subgenre, in this casepsytrance. In the Goa and psytrance scene, decorations based on Hindu, Buddhist or shamanic motifs and symbols as well as spirituality and often excessive intoxication play an important role. Accordingly, the media coverage about the nightclub mostly focused on the psychedelic design of the venue, the elaborate art installations and the alternative scene clientele. ThusDer Spiegel described the Natraj Temple as a place "where many colourful cloths decorate the high walls and long-haired people can smoke their joint under purple light and listening to Indian music".[4] TheSüddeutsche Zeitung described the interior of the club as "ghost train ambience, fluorescent cobwebs, an Indian, four-armed goddess is rotating in the semi-darkness", and reported about women sitting cross-legged, visitors who talked for hours with the decoration of the club, and about "Goa freaks who left the Natraj Temple half-naked and barefoot in the deepest winter, wallowing in the snow and then calling for an ambulance".[5] Also travel guides and cultural guidebooks reported, besides the musical specialization on psytrance, mostly about the artistic design of the nightclub.[6][7][8] TheKulturverführer München reported about a dragon above the dance floor, "cuddly cushions in mysterious niches" and an intense palette of colours in the decoration.[6] Due to these special features the psytrance club made a name for itself also outside the scene throughout Europe.[9]
The musical program of the club concentrated on electronic music of the styles psychedelic trance and Goa trance.[10][6] Often international DJ's and live acts of the psytrance scene played at the Natraj Temple.[11] Regular events at the club carried names likePsychedelic Trance andSpecial Experience.[12] The Natraj Temple regularly presented his ownlovemobiles at Munich'stechnoparadeUnion Move and was known for the elaborate and psychedelic design of thefloats. The club also organized open air festivals under the nameNatraj Summer Dance.[11]
The club was located on the grounds of the Kunstpark Ost factory site in Munich'sBerg am Laim district in a disused former power plant.[9] It consisted of a main area with a wooden dance floor, which was surrounded one floor above by a large gallery with the so-calledchill-out area, and an adjoining bar room with a kiosk where exotic spices were sold in addition to drinks.[10] In 2003 the Natraj Temple moved into the rooms of the former clubK41,[13] and in 2007 once again into the rooms of the formerOctagon club.[14]
The club regularly releasedcompilation albums with names likeNatraj Summer Dance orWinterdance.[15]
Media related toNatraj Temple at Wikimedia CommonsDE-BY_type:landmark48°7′24.2″N11°36′31.1″E / 48.123389°N 11.608639°E /48.123389; 11.608639