Over the course of 20-plus years, Ellen Allien has furrowed a path through the knotty undergrowth of electronic music, gifting us some of the finest records of the past decade, both as a producer and label proprietor. We can’t wait to have her return to Boiler Room for an enormously special Ibiza broadcast, appearing alongside fellow polymath (and BR first-timer!) Guy Gerber. For more information on this Friday’s show, HEAD HERE, or read on for an extensive retrospective on the Berlin doyenne’s storied career.

Let’s be honest: Berlin as the international Mecca of electronic music wouldn’t be the same without BPitch Control. Like no other music label, Ellen Allien’s platform is deeply connected to the capital while essentially shaping the sound of the city for more than a decade now. After the fall of the Berlin Wall it was both the early techno clubs like E-Werk, Bunker and Tresor as well as labels like BPitch Control that brought up the typical Berlin techno sound in the late 90s. The Grand Dame of the Berlin scene was already from the beginning a talented producer, A&R manager and passionate DJ. From a residency at the place to be at that time, the Fischlabor, the first Berlin bar for Berlin DJs and offshoot of the legendary Fischbüro, to their own radio show Brain Candy on KissFM – Ellen Allien underpinned early on her status as a creative all-rounder, who pursue her own visions.

From 1997 on, Ellen hold her own parties under the banner BPitch Control and caused a positive stir with her futuristic sound and the concomitant visuals that staked a fast reputation in the scene. Rising from the idea to capture the sound of the parties, BPitch Control Records was founded two years later. On the first release now well-known names like Heiko Laux, TokTok and Paul Db+ alias Paul Kalkbrenner were already showcased. A clear case of being at the right place at the right time, because BPitch Control blossomed like wildfire to one of the hottest addresses for electronic music in Germany. In the early years of the label especially Berlin artists stood at the center of attention.

Whether looking at Paul Kalkbrenner, Housemeister, Sascha Funke, Apparat, Modeselektor or Ben Klock, an incredible density of the contemporary music scene’s heavyweights started their careers on BPitch Control, and more pertinently in Berlin. In the early noughties BPitch served as a creative hotbed, which acted as a mirror of the current development of techno and house music.

The catalogue of Ellen Allien productions reflect that the label never fixates over a particular sound for too long: from the minimal grooves of her debut Stadtkind (2001) to the industrial-infected Thrills (2005), via club-orientated breakout Berlinette (2003), her range shines through. After long players by Modeselektor, Sascha Funke and Ellen herself, Paul Kalkbrenner’s album Berlin Calling and the associated movie further bolstered the label’s international importance as minimal dominated the 2006-8 era.

Little by little BPitch Control expanded its portfolio with fresh faces, both embodying the same spirit of the early days while adding value by infusing new genres and influences into the melting pot. Venezuelan performance artist Aérea Negrot – part of the nascent Hercules And Love Affair crew – came first, followed by recent signings such as the DC-10 dwelling duo System of Survival, the Belgian band Joy Wellboy, or the mysterious Snuff Crew, the label proves even 15 years after its inception, they’re still interested in sidestepping any attempt at pigeon-holing. Wide-ranging compilations like Werkschau and Where The Wind Blows, further legitimises BPitch Control’s reputation for independent autonomy.

The label’s free-spirited credo is also found on LISm, the last recent long-player released by Ellen Allien: a highly emotional and associative soundtrack for cinema, performed as a 45-minute whole on March 2011 under the leadership of Alexandre Roccoli and Sevérine Rième at Centre Pompidou in Paris. As not only a label owner, but DJ, musician, designer and creative weapon, the charismatic Berliner embodies the spirit of BPitch Control to the last. It all comes as a holistic concept – whether party series, label work or visualisation, the binding glue is a true love for music. All of which will become apparent when Ellen joins us tomorrow in Ibiza.