We recently premiered Patrik Berg’s stunning new cut for Transmit Recordings, which is now riding high in the Beatport top 100 techno charts. We catch up with the German newcomer for a quick chat about his career to date and are proud to have him record a mix for our #essentialmix series.

How old are you, where are you living and how long have you been producing and Djing?

Patrik Berg: I’m 31 years old. I live in Cologne, Germany. I started producing in the beginning 20th and djing later. The first mix I made was in the age of 27 I guess.

https://soundcloud.com/changeunder/c-u-essentialmix-059-patrik-berg

Where do your musical roots lie and what made your get in to dance music?

Patrik Berg: I would say my roots are into dance music! I listened a lot to Michael Jackson, Queen, Jean Michel Jarre and of course I dancing to it since the early days!

How difficult was learning to produce for you in the beginning? Did you take any Audio Engineering programs or production courses to help you out or are you pretty much self taught? And did anyone give any advice early on that really helped?

Patrik Berg: I would never say that it was difficult. If you have the passion for something, you can learn everything. It is just a process and it takes time to refine your skills. I had the honor to studied on the SAE Institute of Audio Engineering. Was a good time and I found a lot of likeminded guys. Another good aspect is that I have some good friends like Rob Hes, Reinier Zooneveld, Matt Sassari or Kane Roth. We are talking a lot about the music or new toys. Always an inspiration for me.

Talk to us about your latest release and the story behind it.

Patrik Berg: Christian Smith is the story behind that release. We are friends and my brother and me did the the tourguide for him in cologne. We talked about music and about new projects. We showed him the new tracks and he said directly: Perfect for Transmit. Sent it to them and a few days later we confirmed the release.

 What’s the music scene like where you live and how often are you playing?

Patrik Berg: Germany has a big scene with great partys and it´s always an inspiration to see how the scene in Germany grows and how many great producers are around the corner. Another big support for me as dj and producer is my residency at one of frankfurts biggest partys. WE ARE TOGETER. My management tim and two of his friends do the partys with massive line ups and residents. I play there monthly and of course I play a lot in cologne.

Which other DJs and producers do you admire right now?

Patrik Berg: I’m always Impressed by the stuff from Pig&Dan. Loving their Productions and their musical variety.

What are your go to labels?

Patrik Berg: There are a lot of nice labels on the market. I love to release on Labels like Transmit, Tronic or Alleanza but I really admire also labels like phobiq, Filth On Acid, Elevate and of course Drumcode.

Do you have any plans to start your own label?

Patrik Berg: Yes of course but not yet! I think if you want to run a label you should have the time to focus on it.

Tell us about your DJ setup? 

Patrik Berg: It depends. Sometimes I play with 4 decks and Traktor and sometimes I play the classical way with Cdjs. Both are fun!

What’s been your biggest achievement to date?

Patrik Berg: Pretty hard question because I´m a newcomer. But highlights are definitely the top 30 track on Christian smiths Tronic or my upcoming release on Transmit and Reinier Zoonevelds filth on acid 2nd of june. The feedbacks are really great and I´m super excited how it works.

What are your aspirations for the future?

Patrik Berg: Creating more music that will make people move und get together! It’s all about to have a good time!

Tell us something about yourself that might surprise people?

Patrik Berg: Before I started with music I was a professional Bodybuilder, and did some championships in Germany. Haha