A Review: Nachti 2025

Each Nachti is a little different from the last, a small tweak on an experience that has been finely tuned over 25 editions.

We are back! Our first review in two years and the first on our new Substack is for none other than my favourite festival, Nachtdigital aka Nachti.

Message From The Writer: Like the previous 'review' that came two years ago for the 2023 edition, this will unapologetically read more like an ode/tribute/play-by-play of Nachti rather than a review!

Photo Credit 📸 : Timo Haschler

My first visit to Olganitz, the home of Nachtdigital, came in 2018 at 24 years old. The small group that first travelled to the festival from London 8 years ago has now grown to the point that we rent a coach to get to the festival with German, Dutch, and Irish friends that we have made along the way. Over the past 7 years, our group's love and attendance of Nachtdigital means it has now become the locked-in event in all of our calendars. Some friends have even found love at Nachti and moved countries to live together - you know who you are! There is no better way to spend three fun-filled, silly, carefree days of the year without life's many commitments, than deeply immersed in one of the scene’s best music festivals.

Nachtdigital opens with a ceremony that is unique to each edition. This year’s opening ceremony was probably the best I've seen to date. Soundtracked by Barker's “Look How Hard I've Tried” and Octo Octa’s “Can You See Me?”, it began with a group of people drifting out to the centre of the lake on a raft. As the music reached a crescendo, a Nachti flag was then dramatically unfurled from a nearby cherry picker, before the group on the raft dove into the lake and then danced in synchronicity in the water for the next few minutes - impressive, witty and eccentric in equal measure as you would expect from a Nachti opening ceremony.

Photo Credit 📸: Malak Hossam

We then turned our attention to the programme that was handed to us on our way into the festival. This year’s programme contained a timetable for the weekend which was a change from the typical secret or drip-fed schedules that we encountered in previous years. This used to be a nice quirk of Nachti, but in reality it was only a secret until we discovered it on a randomer's phone on the festival bus and took a photo of it - all part of the experience!

Nachti has always embraced intriguing and daring back-to-backs. In fact, reading about Ben UFO playing B2B with Prosumer and then Blawan at the festival in old Resident Advisor event reviews was one of the inspirations behind my first visit in 2018.

Even so, it was still surprising to see that two of the most eagerly awaited acts of the weekend, Helena Hauff and Victor, were first up together on the Main Stage. Back in 2023, Victor delivered one of the festival’s best sets, traversing between tech house, electro, techno, UK Bass, footwork and even hip hop, with Lil Wayne's, “6 Foot 7 Foot” being a standout moment from the set. Pairing him with the legend Helena Hauff, one of Nachtdigital 2019’s best performers, was unexpected as we knew that both DJs would produce amazing solo sets, but were excited by the prospect of what they could do together. Inevitably, Victor and Hauff delivered one of the standout sets of the weekend. Even less surprising was that energy levels were high from the very beginning, as the pair showcased their skills, traversing the spectrum of electronic genres (breaks, garage, bassline, techno) via a slew of unidentifiable bangers.

The pair set the stage perfectly for Special Request aka Paul Woolford, one of the most revered artists in the scene over the past two decades. As mentioned in my 2023 review, there is something fun and novel to me when I see Germans get down to UK-centric genres like jungle, bassline, and garage (shout out Darwin hosting the REEF parties that do this exact thing). These genres are Special Request's modus operandi so we knew we'd be in for a treat.

Towards the end of Special Request's first hour behind the decks, my friends and I took stock at the cocktail bar to the rear of the dancefloor as we waited for our ‘Mystic Mules’ - the best festival drink there is. You can give this recipe a go at home, or wait until Nachti 2027 for the real deal!

Photo Credit 📸 : Timo Haschler

As we sipped away on our mules, in front of us were spiralling visuals and green lights illuminating the DJ booth and surrounding crowd of the Main Stage, located at the bottom of the beach. In the distance were lanterns illuminated in purple, appearing at night as though they were floating above the lake. To the left of the bar and at the top of the beach/dancefloor, two raised podiums were filled with ravers giving it their all. If you could bottle the Nachti experience, this would be it: amazing sound systems, great visuals and lighting, and a crowd who are there for the music, fully immersed in the experience.

The Lake Stage is usually my favourite area on the site. In years gone past, its positioning has meant you can dance whilst standing knee-deep in the lake, get down on the springy wooden decking, or chill on an inflatable on the lake itself, all whilst still immersed in the experience. However, its use has typically been limited to the daytime. This year, the Lake Stage provided a much-needed alternative to the faster BPM, and often heavier, Main Stage at night. Since 2019 there had been no alternative to the Main Stage, but it was nice to finally have a replacement for the Tent that was retired in 2019, which despite its amazing atmosphere, was extremely hot and uncomfortable to dance in for extended periods. There's something refreshing about dancing outdoors on a warm summer’s night or early morning - why would you bother going inside (other than due to the unpredictable Saxony weather?!).

Prosumer was the litmus test for this year’s tweaked stage setup. He was trusted with a 3 hour set, meaning we left Special Request early and missed the vast majority of the incredibly skilled, DjRUM. Something had to give, as it often does at a festival where you are likely to miss an act you had been looking forward to - unfortunately you cannot enjoy the benefits of multiple stages without the drawback of an occasional clash.

As expected, Prosumer didn’t disappoint, delivering a set perfect for the time and place whilst playing the combination of classic jackin’ house (Roach Motel - Happy Bizzness), acid (TV Out - 0303am), and disco (Nightriders - A Love Feeling) for which he has become so respected and revered. I have admired the former Panorama Bar resident ever since seeing him tear it up at NYC Downlow (Glastonbury 2019). The bookers must feel the same as I do about his skills and ability to deliver the goods as he has played Nachti on several occasions.

Back at the Main Stage, Ayesha delivered a stupendous, hour-long minimal techno live set. A bit of a sudden change in vibe from the disco that Prosumer had closed with, but still brilliant in its own right. Ayesha was followed by Tasha, founder of Neighbourhood, one of the UK's best labels and parties. Tasha delivered one of my favourite sets of the weekend, a techno masterpiece, expertly building and releasing tension on the dancefloor as night transitioned into day as the sun rose above the lake. Anyone who has been to Nachti will know this is one of its magic moments. Amongst the 3 hours of quality selections and mixing, my personal favourite moment came as the inimitable crunchy kick drum of Head High aka Shed aka Rene Pawlowitz’s classic ‘It's a Love Thing (Piano Invasion Mix)’ was brought into the mix - a track that perfectly combines house and techno elements in a way that only Pawlowitz can. After Tasha, Sarkawt Hamad closed out the first night/morning on the Main Stage. She perfectly wound things down with some weird and wonderful minimal tracks over the course of her set in a beautifully mellow way.

Photo Credit 📸: Malak Hossam

As some ravers went to bed and others arose from their stupor, the start of Job Jobse on the Lake Stage was my signal for some respite on our dinghy - we figured we could soak in the atmosphere from afar whilst floating on the lake. Jobse played the kind of progressive, euphoric house and trance we have come to expect from him in this setting. He is never shy about adding some poppier tracks to his set, this time featuring an extended edit of Pinkpanthress's “Illegal”, and Whitney Houston's “Greatest Love of All (Club 69 Extended Mix)”. Jobse reinforces the feeling of Nachti being a festival that never takes itself too seriously.

The Nachti bookers always curate a balanced line-up that will feature some of your favourite artists, but also give you the chance to discover new talent in a much more adventurous way than many other festivals. This year’s fresh faces included Doudou MD and Zombies In Miami on the Lake Stage on Saturday afternoon. Both played the kind of progressive house music that has become synonymous with these slots keeping energy levels and vibes high throughout. This consistency in quality from both new and old faces is a core reason for our regular return despite there being so many alternatives available worldwide.

Photo Credit 📸 : Timo Haschler

The changeover between stages on Saturday afternoon is a chance for everyone to recharge. We often take advantage of this minor lull with a trip to the Ambient Stage, but this year we headed up towards the woods to relax on the hill overlooking the site and enjoy some temporary calmness. Attendees of Nachti can also fill their time on the Saturday afternoon with a myriad of other activities away from the dancefloor, such as a triathlon, karaoke, bingo, a B2B DJ battle hosted in the Rave Cave (that’s a whole other story), and swimming in the lake - a pretty unique collection of things to experience in one day!

Photo Credit 📸: Malak Hossam

Neel & .Vril was the first must-see act of the Saturday evening. Unfortunately, .Vril was a no show so Neel appeared alone for the duration of their set. This was one of several cancellations this year alongside Alex Kassian and james k - three of the most exciting names on the original line-up. Whilst disappointing and seemingly unlucky to have this number of dropouts, it did not dampen the mood, with other highly capable artists stepping up to fill the void. Even playing solo, Neel played a brilliant deep techno live set. To this day, his hybrid set at Village Underground with the maestro Donato Dozzy is one of the best performances I have seen in a club environment. His set here went some way to replicating that, made all the more impressive by the absence of .Vril.

Mary Lake followed in a similar vein to Neel, playing deep techno with a wicked hypnotic groove that had us glued to the dancefloor. We left Mary Lake just before 12am to make the 2 minute walk between stages for Spray's live set under his Spritzz alias. This was one of the most anticipated performances of the weekend. Spray has put out some of the best dance music of the past few years, including the infectious, “Where R U? (Ibiza Mix)” that Job Jobse played on the Sunday afternoon in 2023. Hearing Spritzz close with an extended version of this iconic track in this setting felt like we had come full circle two years later.

Another newbie, lindos xp, followed on from Spray, closing the Lake Stage on Sunday morning, playing one of the sets of the weekend. She opened where Spray left off with some progressive house rollers (Cameron Audio - Westy), before moving into percussion-heavy UK techno (La La - what ur looking for (Amaliah Remix)), and some cheekier tracks/edits (Tim Schlockermann - Locked (Chris Gerber's Kylie Mix)), before concluding with a hard house classic (Cache - Don’t Hurt Me) and a complete curveball (Omar Souleyman - Warni Warni). Transitions between tracks were swift and smooth, with the set full of variety whilst flowing perfectly. When we saw it had been released on SoundCloud after the festival, one friend dropped a message in our group chat asking if the set was “as good as we remember it being”, a common thought after the event for festival-goers - thankfully the answer on this occasion was a resounding “Yes!”.

There is some music that I love, but would rarely go out of my way to see in London. This was the case for the minimal techno brilliantly showcased by Lea Occhi, which made seeing a masterclass in this type of music even more enjoyable. Then up stepped Nachti regular, Lux, who provided the first reminder of why the residents and other recurring artists are so critical to this festival. Whether it be Nachtdigital Mint, Nachtiville 2023, or Nachti 2025, Lux always produces a set worthy of the time and place she is playing.

Fellow long-time residents, Sevensol and Map.ache, were paired with two exciting new artists to the festival, and key contributors to the dance music community in recent years, Richard Akingbehin and Yarmour. Richard Akingbehin is one of the co-founders of Refuge Worldwide, one of the World’s best independent radio stations, whilst Giegling/Hard Wax affiliate, Yarmour co-founded the exciting new Saxony-based festival, Good2U.

Photo Credit 📸 : Timo Haschler

Sevensol and Richard Akingkehin were up first. The pair glided through dub techno and house of the deep, soulful, and tech varieties over the course of 3 hours. It was refreshing to hear the DJs follow a more mellow, atmospheric approach, capable of inducing deeper emotions in the dancers, rather than “shelling it” in the 8am - 11am slot. This was perfect for the calm, bright morning on the beach, allowing time to reflect on the past few days.

Sandwiched between these back-to-back pairings was the returning Sonja Moonear. Moonear played a slightly later slot than she did in 2019, and went more peak time with a set that featured Jhobei’s deep-tech banger “Defusion Solution”, Harry Will’s summer festival anthem “Sweatbox”, and the OG classic, Camisra - “Let Me Show You”.

The closing slot on the Lake Stage was left to the second pairing, Map.ache and Yarmour. This closing was less “hands in the air” house than the most recent editions, but made a nice change after many of these moments over the previous day. It was also a small drop in energy from Sonja’s set that had preceded it on the same stage, but felt more like a chance to wind down than a dampening of the vibe. As a wise woman once said “All Good Things (Come to an End)”! Hearing deep house tracks like Trevino’s “Backtracking” paired with the classics that you can expect from a ND closing like Roger Sanchez’s “Another Chance” was a satisfying way to bring the festival to a close.

Photo Credit 📸 : Malak Hossam

Each Nachti is a little different from the last, a small tweak on an experience that has been finely tuned over 25 editions. Everything we see and experience is made with love by a small group of organisers and volunteers, and constructed in the weeks leading up to the festival - which is amazing given the exceptional attention to detail. This is what keeps drawing us back to Nachti when there are hundreds of other festivals on offer. I don’t know what will happen in the next few years, but I do know I will be heading back to Olganitz for Nachdigital if I can!

Review by: James Acquaye Nortey-Glover

Check out some of our favourite tracks from the festival in the playlist, below.