Energetic trio Dina Summer on 5.04 will be playing in Wrocław. We talk to the band about why they like visiting Poland, their new album ‘Girls Gang’, and how Dina’s personal history and experiences as a young DJ have influenced the project’s work
JOANNA D’ARK: Hello, we are glad to welcome you to our pages and that we will have the opportunity to see Dina Summer live. On April 5th, you will visit Wrocław. What made you decide to come to our country, and do you have any previous experience with Polish audiences?
DINA: Thank you! We’re really looking forward to it. For now, Wrocław is our only announced show in Poland for the first half of the year, but there might be another concert later on. We’ve all played in Poland multiple times and absolutely love it! The last time was a Local Suicide gig at Transformator on New Year’s Eve, and it was nothing short of epic. It was actually our second time playing there, and we love the club and the city so much that it felt like the perfect place to host our first-ever Dina Summer live show in Poland. It’s going to be an Iptamenos Discos takeover with Dina Summer and Kalipo live and a Local Suicide DJ set.
And we just confirmed another gig: The night before (april 4th) Max and me will be playing a Local Suicide DJ set at Sixa in Katowice with local heroes Candy Doctors and Filip Sonik.
Visiting Poland is always a great experience—stunning cities and countryside, delicious food, and amazing audiences. So, it’s a guaranteed recipe for an unforgettable weekend!
You are on tour promoting your latest album “Girls Gang.” This is your second album after the well-received “Rimini” (2022). What can you tell us about the new LP, and how does it stand out from the previous one?
JAKOB: The second album has become overall darker. The influences of EBM, Wave, and Post-Punk are more distinct. Additionally, we focused more on song structures and the album format. As a result, this album is darker and even more diverse than the first one.
While creating „Girls Gang,” you also collaborated with Curses on „Promise Me.”
MAX: We are close friends with Curses ever since we met him in 2016. We’ve collaborated with him countless times over the last years and of course we couldn’t do without him for our Dina Summer album either. We first showed him the album demos when we played together at a festival in Crete in the summer in the morning after our sets in the hotel and got in trouble with the neighbours since he was singing/improvising on it along too loudly.
“Rimini” was warmly received and described as a tribute to 80s disco. I guess you could say that you rode the first wave of the returning retrosynthpop fashion, which is your advantage since many artists now decide to adapt to the trend. What made you choose such an old-school path?
JAKOB: When we started in 2018/2019, I think we were all a bit bored with a certain type of electronic music that had dominated the club scene in the years before. For us, it just felt somewhat exhausted. So our sound developed independently. We simply wanted to create something different.
For me personally, it was also about reconnecting with my roots but giving them a fresh twist. In my early days with electronic music, around the turn of the millennium, I was especially influenced by sounds that blended techno and punk, with strong Italo disco and 80s elements. Later, this was often called electroclash. That sound has never really let go of me and continues to shape my work today.
Your inspirations span various genres: darkwave, EBM, new romantic, and italo. It is also difficult to classify you into one genre. How would YOU describe your music?
MAX: I tend to describe it as club music for people who grew up listening to indie bands or generally guitar music. It is very much inspired by late 70s new wave and krautrock but also 80s italo disco and 00s electroclash so some tracks could probably also just be described with those genre names. Nowadays many call our style dark disco which is a bit too broad for me personally as that seems to include everything from downtempo, nu disco and indie dance to melodic house & even techno.
And what do you think about italo disco itself? Once considered a kind of „guilty pleasure,” this genre has become iconic in recent years. Do you sometimes enjoy listening to any representatives of italo?
JAKOB: It wasn’t that I traveled to Italy back then and discovered italo disco in the clubs there. Rather, it was music that had been influenced by italo disco that, in turn, influenced me. It was only later that I recognized the connections and started exploring the genre more deeply.What I especially love about it is its simplicity—it gets straight to the point. And above all, I just love the melodies.
Initially, you were thinking about a different title for the album. You wanted to call it „Disco Goth” after one of your songs from the new album. Was it supposed to be a nod to the goth audience? We can only guess that they appreciate your music, just as Polish DJs who enjoy playing you at goth afterparties. I witnessed this firsthand when my friend, who never dances at parties, hit the dance floor for the first time to „Girls (Remixed for Black Light Smoke).”
DINA: Oh, thank you—really happy to hear that! It was actually my idea to call the album „Disco Goth” because I felt it represents us pretty well.
Yes, our music definitely has its goth elements, and it’s often played at goth events or on goth radio shows, but it’s so much more than that. We mix everything we love and never feel the need to fit into a specific box. To me, being an artist is all about the freedom to express yourself.
„Disco Goth” might sound like a combination of two opposites, but in reality, not everything is black and white. You can be both disco and goth—and that goes for every aspect of life. It’s really about living life your way, not letting society dictate how you should be or dress. We only live once, so it’s important to follow your heart and forge your own path. Ultimately, „Disco Goth” is a nod to not taking yourself too seriously while embracing who you really are.
Dina, your journey began as one of the first female DJs in Thessaloniki. How did Greece meet Germany, and how did you end up in Berlin?
DINA: I started out as a radio DJ in my teens. While studying away from home, I joined my university’s radio team, and when they needed a DJ for a fundraiser for the station, I eagerly stepped in. That one night ignited my passion—I knew DJing was my calling.
After moving to Thessaloniki to finish my studies, I hustled at every venue, asking if anyone needed a DJ. It wasn’t easy—many people were incredulous that a young girl wanted to be a DJ, with some even suggesting I work at the bar instead. But I kept pushing until I found a spot that took a chance on me. After just one night, I became a resident, playing once a week. Being the only female DJ playing underground music at the time, word spread fast.
Soon enough, I got a call from the legendary dance bar Lucky Luke for a trial night, and I ended up handling Saturday and Tuesday nights. My bold mixes—combining Bauhaus, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Blur, The Scissor Sisters and The Hacker in one set—drew both excitement and some skeptical glances, but it all added to the thrill of breaking new ground.
A visit to London further validated my approach when I saw DJs like Erol Alkan at his Trash nights and Jonny Slut at his Nag Nag Nag parties, both seamlessly blending diverse sounds in a similarly daring way.
My nights in Thessaloniki became very popular and I found myself DJing five-seven nights a week, and when Franz Scala, who is now also living in Berlin, joined Thessaloniki on Erasmus, we immediately connected and began organizing our own parties.
After finishing my studies, I spent a summer month in Berlin with two of my best friends while visiting my sister, who was there on an exchange program. I had the time of my life and knew I had to make Berlin my home. I applied for a master’s program and got accepted, so off I went to start fresh.
Despite starting with zero connections, Berlin’s open-minded atmosphere welcomed me. I secured some trial nights and eventually became a resident at two of my favorite clubs at the time—Kaffee Burger and Magnet Club. It was at Magnet Club that I met Max, and it was love at first sight. We soon decided to start DJing together, as he was a Dj as well, and that’s how Local Suicide was born.
Then, a few years ago, Jakob invited me to add vocals to some of his darker tracks. What started as a simple collaboration evolved into full-blown jamming sessions. Sharing a similar vision and vibe—and knowing Jakob’s live credentials (with his projects Kalipo and Frittenbude), we naturally decided to create a band and perform our songs live. That’s how Dina Summer was born.
You are known for your energetic live performances. How does your DJing experience influence your current music with Dina Summer and your connection with the audience?
MAX: Since the very beginning of our Local Suicide project in 2008 we have regularly included live instruments in our DJ Sets and we both also often added additional vocals when playing our own tracks so we were both used to performing live and after playing thousands of DJ gigs we know what kind of songs people want to hear in certain situations so we are always trying to adapt our live sets to the crowds/time of the day/locations as well.
“Girls Gang” is about female empowerment and solidarity. Dina, you mentioned the influence of female role models in your life. Which specific figures or artists have influenced you, and how have they inspired this album and your music in general?
DINA: I’ve always been drawn to the strength and spirit of independent women, and my biggest inspirations come from within my own family. My mom, for instance, grew up in Kokkinia — a small village in northern postwar Greece — where life was far from easy. Despite coming from a modest farming background, she broke every mold. At just 13, she was the first girl from her village to leave home and attend junior high, and later the first from her village to attend law school with her family always having her back.
Even when people raised eyebrows at her choice to wear pants and mini skirts, her father simply remarked that she dressed how she liked and looked great doing it. That rebellious spirit, combined with her ability to balance a successful career, be an amazing mom and run a household made her look like a superwoman in my eyes. It showed me that anything is possible—it’s up to you to make it happen.
My extremely open-minded grandmother played an equally pivotal role. I remember when I was a kid and sporting a Guns N’ Roses-inspired look with my ripped jeans— the other older ladies might have frowned, but she would laugh and say, “Why not? You’re just getting some air in the summer.” Later on, when I went through a phase of changing my hair color every month—from purple to pink to blue and red – she was always enthusiastic, calling me up to ask, “So, what color is your hair now?” Her unwavering support helped me embrace my individuality without fear of judgment.
Beyond my family, pop culture and cinema have provided a veritable gallery of strong female icons. Watching Madonna on MTV as a teen was eye-opening. Her strength, empowering lyrics, and rebellious attitude showed me that women don’t have to conform to anyone else’s expectations.
I’ve also drawn inspiration from a wide range of cinematic characters—icons like Morticia Addams and Wednesday from The Addams Family, Lydia Deetz from Beetlejuice, Catwoman, Trinity from The Matrix, Sarah Connor from The Terminator, Leia Organa from Star Wars, Ellen Ripley from Alien, The Bride from Kill Bill, Leeloo from The Fifth Element, Cher in Clueless, and Charlie’s Angels. Each of these characters embodies a unique strength and an unyielding spirit that has encouraged me to push boundaries and forge my own path.
In addition, literature played a big role in shaping my perspective. I was completely captivated by Agatha Christie’s novels, devouring her entire bibliography as a child. Known as the mistress of plotting, Christie’s novels go beyond clever mystery twists—they present a groundbreaking take on female empowerment. In an era when women were often seen as second-class citizens, her female characters are diverse, dominant, and fierce, challenging traditional gender expectations. Immersing myself in her work taught me that true strength comes from intelligence, wit, and the courage to defy societal norms.
And from the DJ/electronic world, my first idol was Miss Kittin. I was drawn to her unique approach to electronic music—her cool, detached vocal style combined with bold, genre-blurring productions felt fresh and exciting. Seeing her perform in Thessaloniki in the early 2000s only deepened my appreciation for her.
Thank you for sharing this amazing stories. What can we expect from the performance in Wrocław? Is there anything you would like to say to the Polish listeners?
JAKOB: With a Dina Summer show, we always aim for an ecstatic and high-energy experience—but that also depends a lot on the audience. What you can expect from us is that we’ll turn your concert stage into a techno club or, conversely, bring a live concert into your club. I think we often find ourselves right in the middle of those two worlds.
Facebook Dina Summer: Facebook
Bandcamp: Girls Gang (IDI021) | Dina Summer
CONCERT IN WROCŁAW: Dina Summer live / Kalipo live / Local suicide / Filip Sonik (05.04) | Facebook
