KEEP IT GOING
KEEP IT SEXY
KEEP IT DARK
Lineup
Banu
Fxggxt
Don’t underestimate the warmup at the start - we recommend going from open to close.
Art
Photography exhibition by Kaeto Sweeney / asterisk
Dress
Fetish wear and kink wear is encouraged but there is no strict dress code.
Possible materials include: latex, vinyl, leather, fake leather, lycra, spandex, plastic, see-through, mesh, lace. Extreme make up and DIY costumes are also welcome.
If you don’t own anything like this then get creative!
There is a large wheelchair accessible bathroom that can double as a changing room when not in use.
Message the Keep it Dark instagram or email Østre if you have any outfit questions!
You
The party is a shared creation. The DJs and organisers set the scene, but it is you who brings it to life. Bring great dancing energy, dive in and dress up. Look after your friends, respect everyone’s space and contribute to the dance floor.
Important
⦿ No photos or videos inside the club
⦿ We want all our guests to feel comfortable and safe. Be sure that you and any of your friends are not giving anyone unwanted attention.
⦿ Avoid getting phones out on the dancefloor
⦿ If someone is bothering you or you have any questions please speak to a member of the Keep it Dark team, bar staff or security.
⦿ ID 18+
Tickets
A limited number of tickets can be bought online in advance. All other tickets can be purchased on the door. Advance tickets can be purchased through the Østre website
Pre-Party
Reclaim Pride Bergen will be hosting a Get Ready With Me party at the Bergen Assembly Open Office just around the corner. Free Entry 20:30 - 23:00 (more info coming soon)
Banu
Born in Southeast Anatolia and now living in Berlin, Banu straddles the line between trippy techno, experimental electronics and activism. Her debut album TransSoundScapes, released in 2022 on Intergalactic Research Institute for Sound, is not an album in the classical sense, but rather a condensed soundscape of analog synth textures, field recordings and voices. Central to this is the ARP 2600, which Banu sees not as a tool but as a partner in dialogue: a breathing, resistant organism that screams, trembles and responds. In collaborations with trans artists, she opens up her platform without appropriating their voices.
A good friend of Keep it Dark, she brought her sound to Østre for a sensational party last year. In January we saw her play a blinder of an opening set on the main Berghain floor (it was wild!).
Fxggxt
Chris Stavaas aka fxggxt is a much loved figure in Bergen’s nightlife scene. He is the mind behind the semi legendary KINcKen parties at Fincken Bar— a party that could easily be called the precursor to Keep it Dark.
His sound is rooted in different flavours of techno while drifting through hard hitting house, bass-heavy electronic sounds and dubby noises. We won’t say how many hours/days/years he has spent in some of the worlds most serious clubs but it’s a lot! He brings this extensive knowledge to his sets, knowing the importance of a solid warm up and when to bring out the bangers.
For years he has dedicated himself to organising, supporting and facilitating queer nightlife and culture in Bergen. A familiar face at Østre from both sides of the booth, we’ve been waiting for the right moment to bring him onto the Keep it Dark lineup…and now feels perfect.
Kaeto Sweeney / asterisk
Kaeto is particularly interested in symbols of freedom from a queer lens. He is a film maker and party maker whose work is shaped around the ways we tell stories and the way we receive them, often referring to queer and trans narratives. In those works creating intimacies and understanding the society from a personal point of view is central.
Kaeto is the founder and artistic director of queer platform, ASTERISK a Bergen-based queer multidisciplinary event series and platform celebrating our talented local and international queer artists and performers, it is an alternative event/production project with the aim to create safer spaces for queer and transgender people within institutions and public spaces to showcase artistic interdisciplinary work, such as happenings, performance, sound, and visual art and films.
Reclaim Pride Bergen
Reclaim Pride Bergen is a queer anti-capitalist, anti-racist, sexworker friendly, trans-inclusive solidarity space. Saying no human is illegal, sex-work is real work, no pride in parades : that includes cops and the military, no terfs, and no sponsorship for good optics and no pinkwashing of queer struggles. The festival is organized by activists and organizations on a voluntary basis. It is for and by the queer community.
Keep it Dark
Keep it Dark is an experimental party which takes place regularly at Østre in Bergen. Like the name suggests, the music policy is dark, with a focus on bass, leftfield techno, breakbeat and electro. The dance floor is smokey, very dark and hot and often sexy.
The aim of the party is to create a space where people can freely express themselves and feel part of a friendly and respectful community. The organisers are continuously trying to develop ways of making the party safer for the guests as well as a place where the queer community feel welcome and supported. With a strict no photos policy this night is a place where people can experiment beyond the everyday version of themselves. Wearing fetish / kink clothing is encouraged and most outfits and ways of dressing up are very welcome.
Keep it Dark is also a platform for visual artists, presenting works around the building, spatial interventions, installations and performances.
The same organisers run a sister party called Keep it Freaky. This is more playful and colourful with a music policy of house, weird groovy post-punk, power disco, obscure 80s bangers… basically anything goes!
Keep it Dark is grateful to be Supported by Bergen Kommune
Språk