While Warsaw provided Maja’s musical education, it was a move to Berlin in 2018 that saw her career flourish. The same year she released her powerful, industrial-imbued EP Self Will via SPFDJ’s Intrepid Skin imprint, followed by the rave-ready, EBM-techno merger Identity Process. These releases cemented her distinctive approach to techno, clearing the way for milestone after milestone: from playing lauded underground festivals like Unsound and CTM and dropping a Resident Advisor mix to joining the Discwoman roster and getting behind the decks at Berghain. Throughout Europe, Maja found a community within crowds looking for a more urgent techno experience. The harder and faster, the better.
But this period wasn’t all positive for Maja. Describing the Berlin scene as “cliquey, both musically and in terms of people”, she confides that she felt stifled by the city’s austere techno culture. “I was always a bit more playful and adventurous, which would sometimes get me into trouble,” she says. “Obviously there are a lot of expectations, especially with stricter genres like techno.” What exactly does she mean by trouble? “Oh, just people saying things online about how I should be eliminated from the techno scene,” she replies flippantly. “You know, I can’t imagine being so serious about any music genre that you’d send threats to people that play differently to how you like – just go to another party.”