monday mixtape: sascha funke
the first blossom
Sascha Funke, true Berliner, true Berlin Techno activist since the nineties, with a truckload of releases on Kompakt, Bpitch Control and others, countless remixes for the likes of Guy Boratto, Paul Kalkbrenner, Superpitcher or Foals, official Boogybytes and Watergate DJ Mixes, a collab with partner Julienne as Saschienne and as a globetrotting DJ in clubs and on festival stages, Sascha doesn’t really need an introduction. After the Saschienne album and some releases and remixes on Kompakt it felt a little quiet until his staggering In Relationen EP on Multi Culti and this year’s incredibly good IFA EP on Turbo got released.
Sascha has found some time to give us a small insight on what he’s up to with a superb mix and a little chit-chat.
Listening to your very eclectic and really refreshing Monday Mixtape, starting off with some krautish Lucas Croon and Delia Gonzales & Gavin Russom material then moving on to Autarkic, a dreamy „Twerk It“, some twisted straight dance stuff, Tornado Wallace and slower ones at the end, it feels very different from the Sascha Funke people might know from dance floors, your mix CDs and your Kompakt and Bpitch Control releases. Is that the new Sascha or do you just love to escape the common dancefloor laws every once in a while?
I've always been interested in music that goes beyond the dancefloor. This interest has intensified in recent years as my taste has also changed. In the past, I often just didn’t feel confident enough to leave the dancefloor on my mix CDs. Nowadays when I’m selecting music for podcasts, the temptation for me is always to add a few tracks that usually don’t fit in the club context.
Do you also feel that the crowd (at least in smaller clubs) is more open to left field material that doesn’t follow the straight four to the floor norm today, like you do here?
Yeah, I think it evolved in that direction over that last few years. Resident DJs play more varied music and the audience is also more open-minded towards things that go beyond the average Tech-House standard.
Is that the stuff we can we expect from your new album? Tell us a little about it.
A lot of time has passed since my last solo album, it’s almost 10 years. In the meanwhile there’s been lots of ideas and inspiration. Also my way of making music has changed. I’ve got a lot more instruments and sound sources than at the time and you definitely can hear that in the music. The album, I believe, has become quite versatile. It was a lot of fun to produce it. It’s going to be released at the end of June on Endless Flight.
What else is upcoming for Sascha Funke?
As a solo artist, I will definitely put out a few remixes and another single this year. And also I am currently working with Julienne on a new Saschienne album.
Talking about that: the last song’s voice sounds familiar to us. Is that her?
Yes, that track is from Julienne's solo project Fantastic Twins. The title will soon appear on a limited edition 7” edition on Astrolab recordings.
Thanks, Sascha, for your time and that awesome mix!
Thank you, it was a pleasure.
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