Switzerland has a fascinating scene right now, and we wanted to learn more, so we reached out to Elia Brülhart and Fabian Riccio of Endless Bazaar to create the Nina Switzerland hub, which takes a focus on some of the most exciting music in the country right now. Brülhart’s thoughts are below.

Switzerland is a country that often gets overlooked when it comes to its musical culture, especially when it comes to underground matters, and it even gets overlooked by Swiss people themselves. But this little country surrounded by the Alps remains a peculiar place, with its many dialects, languages, and cultures crammed into a small space. Taking a closer look, you might be surprised by the number of intriguing music projects emerging from it.

What's interesting about the Swiss music scene is that there isn’t really one unified scene. Instead, it's mostly split into different small movements, active figures, and collectives. One factor driving this fragmented structure is the country's political setup, with its system of cantons and federalism. Each canton has its own laws, dialects, or even language and culture. Combined with expensive public transportation, this often leads people to stay put rather than move around, unlike in a metropolis with a similar population to all of Switzerland.

Another key factor for underground scenes in Switzerland is the diversity brought by post-migrant communities, who introduce new impulses and inspire emerging trends and movements. Perhaps the country is just too musically diverse, with too few people for these small movements to truly develop into cohesive scenes. Switzerland offers plenty of financial support for cultural projects. Funding is available for releases, events, international tours, and residencies, which helps drive musical creation forward. However, this comfort can sometimes make people a bit too complacent, and the necessity for invention may be overshadowed by a more pragmatic approach to creating music or organizing events.

That said, Switzerland always sees projects or spaces popping up, disappearing, and creating a fluctuating dynamic that keeps things interesting. Shout-out at this point to venues and festivals like Dampfzentrale, Wurm, Cave12, Bad Bonn, and Les Urbaines and more. Right now, it feels like we're in a time when many projects, ideas, and movements are emerging and drawing attention. There's a sense of a new energy—things are coming up, and visions are being elaborated.