ITM talks to Aksel Schaufler, best known under his production and DJ guise Superpitcher about the art of a pulling off a marathon mix, what he’s looking forward to on his current Australian tour and how his new album Kilimanjaro took a solid five years from conception to release.

Last time you were in Australia was 2008, where you were playing as Supermayer. I understand that it was your request to play some very long sets, sometimes upwards of eight hours. What is it about playing such a marathon set that appeals to you? Does it give you more freedom to get into the night and make it your own?

“That’s right, if we are playing together we normally request a minimum playtime of 4 hours. We love that and we love to create a certain atmosphere and take people on a long and exciting journey. That takes some time. We like to trip.”

Can we expect similarly epic sets when you play in October or are they just too exhausting?

“That’s depending on the night. Sometimes it’s so crazy, you’re coming from the other side of the world to play music and after exactly two hours there’s a guy installing his laptop and insisting to play even if nobody else is asking for that. It just happened again last night in New Zealand. I find it almost rude. So I guess it could be anything between two and five hours.”

Kompakt artists always receive a warm welcome here in Australia, what do you personally enjoy about touring here?

“The warmth! Especially right now when it’s getting really cold in Germany. I’m just glad to be back and to catch up with my people.”

Michael Mayer is touring Australia later this year, do you guys have plans to reunite under the Supermayer guise at some stage and release new work?

“We will definitely work together again. We are waiting for the right moment, It’s just a question of timing and you can’t really force it too much. Actually it’s kind of frustrating lately because we are so busy with our own stuff and touring around constantly.”

Let’s talk about Kilimanjaro, the record you released earlier this year. It’s several years since Here Comes Love so you obviously didn’t want to rush its release. How long would you say you were working on it, from start to finish?

“I never want to rush it, I really need to take my time, let it ripe nicely, just like some good red wine… I started to work on Kilimanjaro almost five years ago. On and off, collecting ideas, doing recordings and so on in between touring and doing Supermayer, remixes etc. The last year I was working on it constantly, that´s when it all came together and I did all the final production, mixing, arranging and recordings. So I really wasn’t lazy, I don’t think.”

Is the time it took to make referenced in the title? Like you had to climb a mountain to complete it?

“Also but not only. Many challenges in life are like climbing a mountain to me. It is also some kind of mystical place, a place in my head, a place to get lost and a place where you eventually find yourself. Also it sounds so beautiful!”

How difficult is it to actually finish something? You know, to let it go and resist the urge to keep tweaking and perfecting the details?

“Oh boy it’s very difficult. Especially when doing everything on your own. I am thinking too much most of the time, that’s why I probably wrote songs like Don’t Think Too Much and The Art of Letting Go. That was helping a little bit. I have learned that it’s impossible to be perfect and also it shouldn’t be ones final goal. A little imperfection, some beautiful mistakes…isn’t that what makes the difference?”

I always wonder how artists view their early work. Do you listen back to your old productions and look at them fondly? Can you see/hear how far you’ve developed in that time?

“I always try to not stroll in the past too much but sometimes I still do. I am really happy with everything I did so far. I couldn’t really tell if it has developed it any way. I just do how I feel, it all comes from the heart, I’m only me.”