Billed as Europe’s first “music hotel”, nhow Berlin, a brick behemoth on the north bank of the river Spree in Friedrichshain, was built to beguile those exploring Berlin’s music scene. The hotel is equipped with a conference center, music lounge, “guitar room service” and recording spaces run by the co-directors of the city’s legendary Hansa studio, where David Bowie wailed out “Heroes” in the shadow of the Berlin Wall.

Meeting somewhere halfway between 2001: A Space Odyssey and a mid-90s Kylie Minogue music video, the hotel’s Pop Art-inspired interior aesthetic from New York-based designer Karim Rashid certainly goes for the gusto, sporting an eye-popping array of neon colors, curved forms and the occasional gold leather couch. Rooms come in a choice of baby blue, hot pink or a muted gray—pick a room with a river view (60 percent of the 304 rooms have one) in case your eyes need a more placid focal point.

Crowning the building is a three-story, aluminum skinned upper tower for the studios and suites, fronted with double-skinned glass on the Spree side and cantilevered 21 meters out from the building over the riverbank. At ground level, Chef Patrick Rexhausen, a native Berliner, serves up modern interpretations of German-French cuisine at Fabrics restaurant, which also offers fine views of the Spree, albeit from a lower altitude.