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MARC POPPCKE

Making a mix for Modyfier wasn’t an easy job for me. If I do a promo mix for my myspace page or a club promoter, I choose more tracks for the mix which I would play at the main time in a club. For a radio set, I tend to choose more warm-up tracks, because it’s intended more for listening than dancing.

However, for Modyfier, I wanted to do something really special – a mix that is more timeless. To record a club set was too boring for me. This was the reason why I thought for a long time about what I could do that would personally be more interesting. This is how the idea came about to compile the tracks that have been the most emotional for me over the course of my career as a DJ.

Most of these are not tracks that I would play during main time in a club. These are tracks that are intended for those special moments in an evening. As a DJ, I wait for these times. They are the reason why I became a DJ in the first place and now I think of myself as one more than anything else. I like to produce music, too, but the thing I love best is to play a DJ set at a good party with an open minded crowd.

However, I think these special moments are extremely rare. I had one of them last November at Watergate during the Diynamic label night. My playtime was 7:00 – 12:00 and I was a little bit nervous before, because it was the first time I played the end at Watergate. However, my worries were groundless. An exceedingly positive energy existed which is very hard to put in words. It was amazing and I will never forget it. I played a lot of the tracks that are part of this mix at the end of my set. It was one of those magic moments when time stands still, when all worries of the everyday life are forgotten and everyone becomes one with the music.

While I write these lines, the mix plays just in the background and one cold shower after another runs over my back, reminding me again and again of this special night at Watergate. It also brings on so many memories from my life. Each track on this mix tells a specific story from my life. Each one connects to personal moments or reminds me of people who are (or were) important for me. To tell the story of each track would require writing a novel, but as an example, I will write about the opening and closing track, ‘Breathe’, by Télépopmusik.

Actually, there are two. The first reminds me of when I began in the record shop where worked for three years (2002-2005). It was a very exciting and beautiful time for me – being engaged in new music every day was wonderful. When ‘Breathe’ was released, we listened to it in the record shop continuously – from morning to night – and the track is still one of my absolute favorites to this day. I can’t really say which I like more: the original track or the remix by Jori Hulkkonnen. I simply love both (fortunately, they are on the same side on the vinyl so you can hear them one after the other.)

The second story reminds me of New Year’s Eve, 2003. It was the closing night of the most important club for electronic music in my hometown of Hannover. Being a resident at this club was an important chapter in my life. I learned much of what characterizes me today as DJ. There was a good balance between big-name DJs (very often I would play the warm-up sets for them), and the local residents who were experienced and very good. One of these was Andi de Luxe, who was also my boss in the record shop at the time. His understanding of music and his way of playing was an influential model for me and I learned a lot from him. To this day, he is one of the best DJs I have ever heard.

So on this night (NYE 2003), I started my set with the original of ‘Breathe’ and finished it with Jori Hulkonnen’s remix (just I have done now for Modyfier). Both versions are simply so meaningful to me that they deserve to be on this mix.

There are many other tracks that I associate special moments in my life with, but they didn’t really fit in with the musical context here. As an example‚ ‘Break in the Clouds’ by James Holden or ‘Nights of the Jaguar ’ from DJ Rolando. It would interest me to know what tracks other people connect with in this way and why. Perhaps some readers would like to post them in the comments section?

marc poppcke - process part 126 by modyfier

01. Télépopmusik – Breathe (Extended Mix) – Catalogue
02. Unai – I like your style – Force Tracks
03. Blaze – Lovely day – Playhouse
04. Nina Simone – Here comes the sun (Francois K. Rmx) – Innervisions
05. Justin Martin – The sad piano (Charles Webster Rmx) – Buzzin’ Fly
06. Trentemoller – Le Champagne – Naked Music
07. Lindstrom – I feel space – Feedelity
08. DNTEL – (This is) the dream of Evan and Chan (Superpitcher Rmx) – Plug Research
09. Erlend Oye – Sudden Rush (Ewan Pearson Rmx) – Source
10. Chelonis R. Jones – I don’t know? – Get Physical Music
11. Morgan Geist – Super – Environ
12. Moloko – Sing it back (Herbert’s Tasteful Dub) – F-111
13. Sebastien Tellier – La Ritournelle (Sven Love & Catalan FC Rmx) – Record Makers
14. Télépopmusik – Breathe (Jori Hulkkonen Rmx) – Catalogue

Lastly, I want to say thank you to all the artists and remixers for this beautiful music which has became such a big part of my life.