Where and how was the mix recorded? In what state of mind have you been in?
First of all hello and thanks for the opportunity. The mix was recorded at home using my turntables and a digital vinyl system. As for my state of mind regarding the mix I was super nervous since I really look up to this podcast series. So I wanted the mix to be good and I wanted it to represent the different styles of music I like. I stressed out over the tracklist for a long time until I finalized it. My approach here was to pick some of my all-time favorite tunes and some current stuff i like. In general I have been pretty contemplative these days. Reading the news and following what’s happening around the world can be really challenging. Especially since the racist murder of George Floyd i have been evaluating my own behavior and place in this world as a white European cis male. I came to the obvious conclusion that i am very very privileged and that i need to sensitize myself for the voices of the underprivileged.
And this can only be the first step. Because injustice is not only happening far away on another continent, it’s happening before our eyes every day. Seeing the ‚I can’t breathe‘ sign between a bunch of wasted ravers on boats in Berlin really opened my eyes to the fact that our beloved scene is full of selfish idiots. We often romanticize the dancefloor as a place for equality and unity and fortunately this is true for some of them. But it’s also true that a lot of them are used by self-absorbed people to enjoy themselves and by big companies to enrich themselves. All of them are exploiting a culture that came from queer and black people. To close the circle i am doing that too. We all do to a certain extend. It’s time to acknowledge that and therefore to give back whatever and however you can.
What have you been up to recently?
I moved to Leipzig last year and I am enjoying it so far. Right now I’m about to write my Bachelor thesis and finish this university thing once and for all. My DJ life got cancelled by Corona as it has for everybody. So I concentrate on producing these days. I just finished a remix for an upcoming O*rs release by Nico Bulla. Furthermore I contributed a track to a sampler representing electronic music from Chemnitz (where I lived before). I also helped a little bit with the organization side of things but the credits have to go to Daniel aka Kokoro. Thanks Daniel. The profits will go to local Clubs so it was a really nice experience to help out and be able to give something back. Also I have to admit that I did not know that Chemnitz had such an interesting variety of producers although I was part of the scene for 10 years before I moved. All the more I’m really looking forward to the release which will be on July 9th. Check it out! Last but not least we will release a fresh O*rs Vinyl very soon. It’s a collection of our favorite recent digital releases and my track Dune made it on there. It’s the first time for me to have an original track of mine on a 12“ so I am very excited about it.
Is there an occasion that triggered your interest to dive deeper into music and to perform in front of an audience?
Not really, I don’t have a romantic story of how I fell in love with DJing. I was always interested in music though. It all started when a friend of mine moved in with me and bought one of these tiny cheap controllers. We were sitting in the kitchen and synced the shit out of our favorite Bloody Beetroots tunes. Some time passed and my friend was booked for his first ever warm up slot. I remember him coming to me in the middle of his set. He had only prepared music for two hours but the headliner had not arrived yet. So he asked if I could help him with the now spontaneous selection and I did. I was literally hiding on stage and picked out the tunes and he was mixing them. I really liked it and I knew that if I wanted to do this, I had to do it the right way. So I saved up enough money and bought myself a pair of turntables and a mixer. Soon after I had my first gigs too and took it from there.
Are there certain people / crews / places / clubs that had an early impact on you?
Well I have to mention Weltecho, which is a club in Chemnitz. I had my first gig there and I had my first own parties there. I’ve been a resident and promoter there until I moved last year. I also had one of my first dancefloor epiphanies when Roman Flügel was playing there. As I mentioned I was heavy into really aggressive and more mainstream Electro and had no real clue about the many facets of electronic music. I didn’t even know who Roman Flügel was. So when he played, it was for the first time I experienced a ‚deep‘ Set which I enjoyed a lot. And I just thought: Wow, so this is how it’s done, this is the real deal! I danced first row the whole time and after he was finished I went to Mr. Flügel to thank him for the set. He told me that he took me as a kind of indicator if he was playing the right music. He said something like: „If you danced to it I went with it“. This legend looked at me – an uneducated guy with no clue and a very questionable taste in music – as his reference. To this day it seems unreal to me that this really happened.
Finally, what’s the last song before the lights are switched on?
Well, it’s always tough to choose, but I gotta got with a hit on the last track. Some of my classic enders were Africa by Toto or George Michael’s Careless Whisper. So yeah, I like my last tracks obvious and if everybody is singing along I achieved my goal. For the mix I chose Power of Love. The reason being that it was the last track played at the final edition of Nachtidigital. Since it was my absolute favorite festival ever it was a really emotional goodbye I will never forget. I was just standing there watching the scenery and had tears in my eyes. To this day I get goosebumps when I hear the track and immediately have to think about this moment while my eyeballs get wet. Nachti4Eva!
Tracklist
DJ Healer – Planet Lonely
Supreems – Us Together
OUER – Inside
Dennis Ferrer & Jerome Sydenham – Sandcastles
Furious Frank feat. Ivy Barkakati – Ahora Sì (Frank’s Sunrise Mix)
DJ Carmel – Summoned
A1B – Scars
Charlotte OC – Hangover (Moodyman Mix)
Roman Flügel – Wilkie
Tv.Out – Slippery Slope
Off The Meds – Belter
Skee Mask – Muk FM
Andrea – TrackQY
Anunaku – Teleported
Champion + Four Tet – Flip Side
Gesloten Cirkel – Insummer
Interceptor – Hyperion
Brassica – Wryders
Randomer – Huh
Daniel Avery – Water Jump
Kraftwerk – Radioaktivität
Interviews – Thirds
Frankie Goes To Hollywood – The Power Of Love (Extended Version)
