- The beloved queer party turns five with AYA, Gigsta and Loraine James.
- Festive neon baubles and a unicorn balloon framed the main room of Trauma Bar und Kino on Saturday night. But as much as Room 4 Resistance's dance floor is for uncomplicated, head-spinning fun, it's first and foremost a political space, a space for query and community. The Berlin-based DJ Bella Cuts asserted this early in the night by playing the entirety of UK rapper Lowkey's "Long-Live Palestine," to many cheers from the crowd.
R4R's fifth anniversary was a true extension of its principles, continuing to offer a much-needed, amplified form of intersectional inclusivity and visibility for both artists and dancers. Essential extras included an awareness team, reduced entry for marginalised peoples and a rave care corner decked out in supplies and bean bags, where tired dancers could bask in warm, yellow light.
The Kino was home to the EXPERIENT floor, where Gigsta set the scene to images of demented dystopias with rustling ambient. Later in the night, the space transformed. The door opened periodically to let in shadows of Moesha 13's energetic frapcore from the main room, and dancers dribbled in to rest their necks and prop up their feet. Intent listening turned into whirring conversation as Rroxymore began edging in tessellating percussion, making the audience pulse and nod in their seats. The slo-mo acapella from Blaze's "My Beat" drove one dancer to stand and begin twisting and shuffling.
In the main room, Loraine James, who earlier this year released the For You And I LP, her uniquely abrasive manifesto for queer love, filled the room with spliced pop music by Fergie and Spice Girls, mixed together with woozy footwork and glitchy breaks. AYA (FKA LOFT) then took the lead, contorting and squeezing away before ending on their edit of "Fantas" by Caterina Barbieri.
As I was leaving in the early hours of Sunday morning, I felt reassured of the impact of the dance floor in its reclaimed and reformed state. The deliberate building of a safe space, one that was affirmatively inclusive, where grapes and bananas were handed out, provided a night of untethered freedom for those in need.
Photo credit /
Kasia Zacharko
In the main room, Loraine James, who earlier this year released the For You And I LP, her uniquely abrasive manifesto for queer love, filled the room with spliced pop music by Fergie and Spice Girls, mixed together with woozy footwork and glitchy breaks. AYA (FKA LOFT) then took the lead, contorting and squeezing away before ending on their edit of "Fantas" by Caterina Barbieri. As I was leaving in the early hours of Sunday morning, I felt reassured of the impact of the dance floor in its reclaimed and reformed state. The deliberate building of a safe space, one that was affirmatively inclusive, where grapes and bananas were handed out, provided a night of untethered freedom for those in need. Photo credit / Kasia Zacharko