Neoteric.
A good night takes more than a headliner.
Martin and Markus on Pink Noise, awareness in practice and strengthening Vienna’s underground together.
Martin (Ridgie) & Markus (M41RH) · Neoteric
A thoughtful progression on the dancefloor, a table of small essentials and room for a conversation: for Neoteric, club culture also lives in the details. Martin (Ridgie) and Markus (M41RH) explain how an idea in Zagreb became a Vienna collective and what they want their nights to make possible.
Through Pink Noise, the crew combines music with visibility for queer and FLINTA* artists. On 8 August, Neoteric co-organised the entire Free Spaces event, including its afterparty. Martin and Markus answered our five questions together in November 2026.
Coming together through the music
How did you come together as Neoteric, and what did you want to do at your own nights that you would enjoy experiencing as guests?
Neoteric began with Martin’s idea in Zagreb, Croatia: bringing the right people together through the right music. When Martin moved to Vienna shortly afterwards, he gradually found friends with a similar vision. After continuing the collective with Markus for a while, we grew into a group with Tizian (LTO), Sarah (Voltmarie) and Andrej (Anthrax), keeping that same focus.
We want to keep making parties where everyone feels comfortable easy to access. It does not matter who you are. People should be able to leave their everyday worries behind without being judged by anyone.
A progression that makes sense
Anthrax, M41RH and VOLTMARIE played the first Pink Noise at Lucia. How do you bring the crew’s different musical preferences into a shared progression through the night?
We are all connected by our love of similar music. Our DJs’ sounds still differ somewhat in intensity and direction. When planning a timetable, we make sure the night has a good progression that ultimately makes sense. Our guests have often told us exactly that. The DJs can adapt to their slot, but they never have to pretend to be someone else.
The DJs can adapt to their slot, but they never have to pretend to be someone else.
Visibility that makes a difference
Pink Noise was intended to give queer and FLINTA* DJs space. For the first edition, you announced that proceeds would go to Aids Hilfe Wien and the Queer Vienna Mutual Aid Fund. What did that night show you about what a small local crew can achieve?
At Pink Noise, we want to offer visibility to queer and FLINTA* artists. For our first edition, held the day before Vienna’s Rainbow Parade, we used an image by Mishu Mishu for our poster and exhibited a selection of their work. Queer and FLINTA* DJs were also on the line-up. We want to continue this at future editions. All proceeds from that particular edition were donated.
The party showed us how much our guests appreciate this approach and that they were willing to donate more.
Awareness in the small things
At Vienna Club Commission’s Free Spaces on 8 August, you co-organised the entire event, including the afterparty, with four other collectives. Which idea from another crew would you now like to try at your own events?
At Free Spaces, we learned a lot from Yannick’s ideas about awareness — bluest from the innig collective. With his help, a table was put together where people could pick up various goodies and essentials for free: glucose sweets, tampons, small snacks, juices and more. The table was also somewhere to find a little peace or someone to talk to.
Little things like that can make a real difference after a long night.
A scene that grows from within
Looking ahead over the next few months, what would you like to try with Neoteric that has not yet found a place, musically or as an event format?
Next year, we would like to try organising a panel discussion about our local club culture, inviting the collectives that are bringing movement to the scene.
The idea is that talking about it makes the subject tangible, rather than letting it float vaguely in the air as a term that is used too casually.
We believe that supporting local underground culture is more important than ever. Increasingly, we see events revolving entirely around a booked headliner, pushing ticket prices up. We are convinced that this is not necessary for a good party. People often save up for an expensive multi-day festival, making it harder and harder for smaller parties to be financially viable.
Neoteric
Interview by email · Editorial and image art direction: SCENE:ID. Neoteric