Maki Polne is Polish DJ, producer and sound engineer. Beginning his career in 2005 as Akisensei, Maki started the Sunday day parties Moje Niedziele in Poland. Soon after he started playing in Ibiza at The Zoo Project, Privilege and many other clubs around The White Isle. His record bag contains a variety of techno, house and minimal sounds, which he mixes together into energetic and soulful sets. He is the man behind the My Sundays party and a part of MPLC project. Based in Berlin, he works on his sound and hold his residency and a monthly MPLC party at Club der Visionaere.
Maki Polne on Facebook
Our questions:
Tzinah Records: To start with, please, recommend us something to listen to while we go through this interview. It can be anything.
Maki Polne: My newest podcast should work, or? You can also check some earlier mixes of mine, there is some selection online.
Tzinah Records: Could you remember when and where have you felt it for the first time that you were to become a music artist?
Maki Polne: It’s was a long process and it’s really hard to point out one particular moment. I think it came gradually, the change from a raver with music production hobby to music producer with raver hobby.
Tzinah Records: Why did you choose to create and play this particular type of music? Are there any artists that touched you deeply while developing your own style?
Maki Polne: I was already for some years a part of the techno scene in Poland, though not as an artist yet, when I went to Ibiza and heard Ricardo, Luciano and Richie playing at Amnesia terrace and Arpiar boys doing DC-10. It was not the very first time that I heard this kind of music, but it was this moment that I got completely lost in it, that didn’t change much till present.
Tzinah Records: Please, briefly, describe for us, the current state of the underground music scene in the place you come from. Is it any good?
Maki Polne: If you mean Berlin, where i live now, it doesn’t need much description I guess, the scene is buzzing and underground is what defies it. Asking for Poland it’s bit more complicated as I don’t stay there much, the scene there is still very young and there was a little slowdown some years ago, but now I can see it’s coming back to life. New clubs are opening and local artists are slowly getting the international recognition.
Tzinah Records: Without giving out too much about your secret weapons, please tell us how does the magic work in your production routine. Software? Analog? What does your DJ set-up imply?
Maki Polne: It’s all about the analog sound for me. I play mainly vinyl and use almost only analog machines. Nevertheless we live in XXI century so I use CD/USB stick to bring the newest stuff to the dance floor and in the studio I use my computer as a tape recorder and postproduction hub, sometimes even using a good sample or two. The most important part of the studio setup is my modular synth, it gives me an absolute freedom of creating new sounds and their quality is uncomparable with any digital ones made.
Tzinah Records: What are the aspects of your daily life that are influencing the shape and sound of the music that you currently make?
Maki Polne: As I mentioned before I live in Berlin, the city where party never stops, surrounded by other artists like me. In big part it’s this crazy party cycle and a chance to listen to the worlds best djs/producers on a daily basis, giving the basic foundation to the sound in general. Except of that its all about waking up, having fast breakfast, coffee and then staying all day and sometimes night in the studio trying to translate experiences of the night into my own personal interpretation.
Tzinah Records: Which underground house DJ or producer would you love to take out for a summer picnic? With which artist (from any music genre) would you spend 24 hours stuck in an elevator?
Maki Polne: We actually do those a lot, I mean underground house picnics. There is always a lot of djs and producers, we make a big BBQ in the park that all friends are welcome to join, it’s better to have picnic with more friends or?
I’d prefer to not get stuck in elevator at all, especially for such a long time, ahhahah… But having to choose I’d prefer to stay with someone like Philip Glass or Steve Reich, I’m pretty sure they’d have some good story to tell.
Tzinah Records: Have you already played in your most-dreamed about venue? Which one is that?
Maki Polne: It’s so many of them… One of the clubs that defined my music style most is Club der Visionaere, I was dreaming to play there for years, coming to so many parties, now since last year I’m really happy to have there my own regular night called MPLC.
Tzinah Records: What motivates you to be an active part of the underground movement?
Maki Polne: It’s all about music, and party, or other way around.
Tzinah Records: What’s your favourite type of breakfast?
Maki Polne: Table full of little snacks like some selection of good cheese and hams, best some cured sorts, some fruits, fresh juice and a well roasted coffee, good coffee is very important. I also love to have pancakes every now and than, with maple syrup and bacon bits, bacon is good.
Tzinah Records: What do you do when the music is not playing?
Maki Polne: I try to go to the art exhibitions as much as possible and catching up with friends, sometimes though it’s all about sofa and relax.
Tzinah Records: What’s the story behind your Tzinah Podcast? How did you record it and are there released or unreleased tracks?
Maki Polne: It’s been a longer while since I’ve recorded something new and my release on recent Tzinah VA seemed a good time for it. I’m not the biggest fan of home prepared podcast, they just don’t have this live feeling, but I decided that for this one I want to present a bit more organized structure, so I took some days to work on it. It’s mix of released and unreleased music coming mostly from friends of mine that make something really great.
Tzinah Records: Are there any of your plans/upcoming projects that you would like to share with us? Where can we see you play next?
Maki Polne: Recently I’m mostly focusing on the studio work. I prepare some bigger amount of music that should start seeing daylight soon.
After really good feedback of our releases on Vinyl Club, Delooped, Vekton and just recently Sensibil together with Lorenzo Chiabotti we brought MPLC to life. It’s our artist moniker, a name of our party and soon also …. Surprise :)
I’ll be playing on Christmas Dec 25th in Munich in the Kong Club, come and join me.
Tzinah Records: Supposing you come back reading this interview in 10 years from now; could you try saying something to your future-self?
Maki Polne: Relax and take it easy.