label profile: BPitch Control.

Did you know, Germany has the largest electronic music scene in the world? No, me neither. However, when you take into consideration the amount of outstanding electronic labels that are based in Germany today, it does not surprise me one bit. Amidst this impressive Deutsch collective are popular labels such as Studio !K7, Mille Plateaux and Kompakt. However, my personal favourite comes in the form of BPitch. 

BPitch Control is a techno and IDM label founded in 1997 in Berlin by DJ and produce Ellen Allien. Ellen started her music career as a DJ at legendary Berlin club Tresor back in 1992, from this spawned her own Berlin radio show and record label, both under the moniker of "Braincandy".However, due to poor sales, Allien was forced to shut down all Braincandy operations in 1997 and began organizing parties under the name of BPitch instead. In 1999 she ventured back into the world of record distribution and founded BPitch Control, which was highly successful from the word go, with heralded releases from the likes of Sascha Funke and Tok Tok. The label has since launched the careers of popular production outfits such as Modeselektor and Apparat. Starting with Ellen Allien, I'm going to take you through the core members BPitch family, exploiting their lovechildren and sharing a couple of mp3s along the way. Genießen.

Ellen Allien.

The creation of BPitch allowed Ellen to distribute her own music, which is best described as a distinctive blend of techno and dance, with noticeable experimental tendencies. She released her debut album Stadtkind (an ode to her beloved Berlin) in 2001, and has since released 3 more LPs to much critical acclaim, as well as a collaboration with fellow BPitch family member Apparat (more from that later). She is also famed for a number of alarmingly popular Mix CDs, produced for the likes of Fabric and Boogybytes, as well as BPitch's own Control Camping Compilation. Her fifth studio album Sool is due for release next month. In the meantime, here are some mp3's for yo' asses.

Ellen Allien - Sehnsucht

Ellen Allien - Its

Apparat.

Next up is Berlin-based Apparat, who started out making dance-floor orientated techno, however, but over time has leaned more toward ambient and IDM music, stating "I've become more interested in designing sounds than beats". Apparat has released five solo albums, the first of which was highly praised by the late John Peel, as well as a joint album with Ellen Allien Orchestra of Bubbles. Although signed to BPitch, Apparat co-owns popular German electronic label Shitkatapult. Here are some mp3s from his much-loved 2007 album Walls as well as a couple from Orchestar of Bubbles.

Apparat - Arcadia

Apparat- You Don't Know Me

Ellen Allien & Apparat - Jet

Ellen Allien & Apparat - Bubbles

Modeselektor.

Now for my favourite of the bunch - Modeselektor, who too hail from - you guessed it - Berlin. The boys - Gernot Bronset and Sebastian Szary - draw heavily from IDM, glitch, hip-hop and electro, and produce all their material with self developed software. The band have released two superb albums, as well as material in collaboration with Apparat under the moniker of "Moderat". Modeselektor are a favourite of Thom Yorke, who frequently speaks of them in the press. Yorke even provided guest vocals on the bands 2007 album Happy Birthday!. Here is some Modeselektor (and Moderat) for you to enjoy.

Modeselektor - Kill Bill (Vol. 4)

Modeselektor - Sucker Pin

Moderat - Mode2

Well that brings us to the end of our BPitch journey, I hope you get as much pleasure reading/ listening to the mp3s as I did writing this shit. Thank you.

For more BPitch information, check their official site here.