Since he released his devastating remix of Super8 & Tab’s Need to Feel in 2007, it was crystal clear that German DJ/producer Wippenberg was two steps ahead of the trance curve, and that was exactly where he was going to remain. It was a return to the spotlight after a decade working as a producer in the scene, but he’s remained there since as one of the leading trailblazers bringing trance together with electro, techno and house. Last year’s single Chakalaka was another landmark, hammered by everyone from Paul van Dyk to Above & Beyond to Angello & Ingross, and now he’s back with his brand new tune Pong. Here he chats with ITM ahead of his Australian dates this weekend.

Your remix of Super8 & Tab’s Needs to Feel in 2007 and your own single Chakalaka were massive hits, but what do you prefer – DJing, producing or remixing?

I’d say that the mix of all three is what makes it most interesting. Like doing a track or a remix in the studio, and then taking it to a DJ gig to test it and see how the crowd reacts to it. There’s nothing better than getting direct feedback from the crowd.

When producing now, do you feel added pressure to live up to the success of Chakalaka?

Yeah, definitely! That’s actually the reason why it took me so long to get Pong done. When I did Chakalaka I didn’t much think about it, and whenever you have a very successful track and you start producing a follow-up track you start to think about it too much because you just want it to be as good or even better than the one before, and that really can drive you nuts.

What does Paul van Dyk think of your take on his recently released single Home, and how did remixing for a superstar DJ make you feel?

I think he’s not a big fan. Too housey for him, but at least that opens up a new kind of fanbase for him when people like Guetta or Ingrosso start playing my mix. As for how I felt remixing him, I have to say that usually I don’t make a difference between remixing well known and less well known artists. The track itself is more important to me. Of course it’s nice if the artist is very popular, but to be honest, PVD is not the first popular artist I had the honour to remix.

Your music crosses boundaries between house, electro, trance and techno, but if you had to choose just one, which would it be?

Fortunately I don’t really have to. You know my problem is that I’m some king of restless regarding music. I do always try to keep my eyes open for a lot of different styles and I get bored pretty fast when dealing with only one style.

Who are you most musically inspired by?

It’s not a special artist or person. I’d say it’s by listening to a lot of music that has nothing to do with my own stuff. For example, it might be that I listen to some minimal tracks (very popular in Germany at the moment) and like the way they work with some special groove elements, and then try to do something similar in my own tracks. Another example is that there’s a beat in the breakdown of Chakalaka which reminds a lot of people of Prince’s When Doves Cry. One day I was driving in my car, listening to some cheesy old-school German radio when suddenly that song came up and I realized how cool this beat was. When back in the studio I tried to recreate the beat and then used it in Chakalaka.

When did you first get into electronic music?

I would say that was back in the 80s with all its synth pop, electronic body music and New Wave stuff. It was around the same time that I found out that we had a small synth in our school, but nobody knew how to use it. Fortunately my music teacher was also my neighbor so he let me play with it between the lessons.

What’s been the proudest moment of your musical career so far?

Hmmm, difficult question. Maybe seeing so many DJs playing Chakalaka or seeing how people react to it when I play it myself. Just because nobody expected it to be that huge. I remember when I gave the track to my label I was pretty unsure about it, as it was very, very different at that time. My label just said something like ‘yeah, it’s ok, let’s release it’. So they did a first promo mailout to some of the big key DJs but didn’t get any feedback for 6 weeks, which is pretty unusual. So I already thought that nobody would like the track and that it would be a huge flop. But it was summertime and most of the DJs were to Ibiza or on tour so we decided to do a second mailout to make sure they didn’t miss it. After that suddenly everybody started playing it and it became my biggest hit so far and that makes me very proud.

Do you have an all-time favourite record? If not, out of all the records considered as ‘classics’ (ie they feature on compilations with the word ‘anthem’ in the title), which one is the best?

That’s definitely a track called Technotrance by D-Shake (do a search on YouTube for it). It’s from 1989 and that was the time when I had my first clubbing experience. That track was a huge club hit back then and it definitely got me into club music. Also it’s a very good example about the original meaning of trance, which is not all about uplifting melodies, but tracks that simply ‘put you in a trance’.

Do you prefer the music scene of the 90s or the cross-over sound we hear now?

That would for sure be the sound we hear now. Saying everything was better in the 90s is close to my parents saying techno is shit and there’s no real music but The Beatles.

With regards to the electronic music debate, do you think that digital music is good or bad for the industry?

Well, if I take a look at my bank account I’d say it’s definitely not good for new or upcoming artists. But it has good and bad sides. I remember having my first gig in Canada around 2001 when the whole filesharing stuff just started. After my gig some people talked to me about how much they like my music and they told me they knew it from Napster, which was the first and most popular filesharing client around that time. When I told them that I won’t get any money from illegal downloads like that, they just said that they simply wouldn’t have known about me without it. So for promotion the whole internet thing is the best that could happen, especially nowadays with things like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and stuff like that. It’s great to be in contact with fans from all other the world. As for illegal downloads, I think there’s not much you can do about it because it’s already normal for most of the people, although it’s illegal. If you want to change that you have to change people’s mind regarding those things. But therefore it’s too late for our generation, so you really would have to start teaching it in school for the next generation.

What’s been the best gig you’ve played so far this year?

Oh well there have already been a lot this year. Trance Energy and Mysteryland have been highlights for sure. But it’s not all about the big festivals, sometimes smaller clubs can even be more fun. For example, I had a gig in a very small town close to Belfast, Ireland in a small club for only 150 people. It was totally packed and people were real fans and knew every song I played, and they were making party like there’s no tomorrow. I also expect a lot when coming down to Oz again. I can very well remember a sick crowd from my last gigs.

Do you take time out to go clubbing or attend gigs and festivals yourself?

Not much to be honest. If there is some time off which is rather seldom I’m happy to stay at home and relax. When going out it’s mostly all about business, even if I’m not playing myself.

What record is on your iPod right now?

New album from Simian Mobile Disco.

Wippenberg tour dates below, check out his mix in ITM-FM:

Fri 6th Nov – Freefall, Perth
Sat 7th Nov – Freedom Festival, Sydney