charliebertsch

Charlie Bertsch

Music & Film Editor
Charlie Bertsch is The Battleground's Culture Editor. A co-founder of the pioneering internet magazine Bad Subjects: Political Education for Everyday Life, he has also written for Punk Planet magazine, The San Francisco Bay Guardian, Phoenix New Times, Tikkun, ZEEK, Alternet, Souciant, The Tucson Sentinel, and The Battleground.

114 articles

Charlie Bertsch / 05 May 2023

The Long 1980s

Molchat Doma in America

When Belorussian dark wave band Molchat Doma began to play their viral TikTok hit Судно at their recent Tucson, Arizona show, I looked out over the tightly packed crowd filling the floor in front of me and was struck by how happy and how diverse it was, from race to age to fashion.(...)
Charlie Bertsch / 12 Apr 2023

Fear of Fascism

Carl Dreyer’s Vampyr

Carl Dreyer’s 1932 film Vampyr is as remarkable for what it leaves out as what it puts in. Although full of shots that linger in memory like a bright light does after you close your eyes, the film’s greatest achievement is its refusal to follow the rules of its genre.(...)
Charlie Bertsch / 05 Apr 2023

Turkish Future Past

Aşk, by Altin Gün

There are far worse things than sounding like a B-movie soundtrack from the 1970s. But when you combine that aesthetic with excellent musicianship and a willingness to experiment, the results are bound to bring pleasure.(...)
Charlie Bertsch / 23 Mar 2023

All About the Heimat

Music as Politics in 1980s Germany

Teenagers were milling about. Bright colours shot off the portable mirror ball. The DJ stepped up to his console to cue the first track.(...)

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