Few cities have shaped underground music with such quiet authority as Cologne. The Kompakt label, born from a techno record store opened here in 1993, exported the city's minimal electronic sound globally, while Can laid the groundwork for Krautrock in Cologne's basements as far back as 1968. That same restless experimentalism runs through the live scene today, from the jazz-focused Stadtgarten, designated a European Center for Jazz and Current Music in 2018, to the industrial grit of Essigfabrik and the long-running Blue Shell. For bigger draws, the Lanxess Arena handles crowds of up to 20,000, and the E-Werk, notably purchased by local rock band BAP in 1989, remains a cornerstone mid-size venue. Cologne rewards the curious: its musical identity spans Kölsch-dialect carnival songs, classical avant-garde, post-punk, and contemporary electronic music, all operating in parallel rather than competition.
Upcoming concerts in Cologne
DeVotchKa - A Celebration of the Music of Little Miss Sunshine
Sat 17 Oct · 18:00
Sat 17 Oct · 18:00
Mo-Torres - Kinderkonzert 2026
Sun 18 Oct · 10:30
Auch 2026 heißt es wieder: Bühne frei für die jüngsten Fans!
Sun 18 Oct · 14:00
Sun 18 Oct · 16:00
Sun 18 Oct · 18:00
Tue 20 Oct · 18:00
Wed 21 Oct · 18:00
Thu 22 Oct · 17:00
Erleben Sie ein außergewöhnliches Konzert mit der Musik von Ludovico Einaudi!
Thu 22 Oct · 17:00
Thu 22 Oct · 18:00
Fri 23 Oct · 18:00
Planschemaloer lädt auch 2026 wieder zum Plansch und Gloria ein.
Sat 24 Oct
Sat 24 Oct · 16:30
Sat 24 Oct · 17:00
Sat 24 Oct · 17:30
![Nitrovolt [Köln] / Puke'n'Grin [Aachen]](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Ff4.bcbits.com%2Fimg%2F0014721232_23.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
Sun 25 Oct