Ellen Allien has been DJing for a long time—more than 30 years. But when I met her at Soho Warehouse in Los Angeles, less than 12 hours after her gig Downtown, she was a picture of youth: giggling, pigtails flying, a big smile plastered across her face. "You can do that?" she claimed incredulously when I ordered a cocktail instead of a coffee. Excited to talk, she switched her order to her usual: tequila, on the rocks, with agave syrup and lime juice. Fresh lime juice only.

"My three passions are music, food and kissing," she said at one point in our conversation, which was filled with entertaining diversions, heartwarming stories and a clear, possibly endless passion for DJing and sharing music. I never got the vibe of someone 11 albums deep into their career. She sounded as excited about music as a newbie.

Of course, as with anyone who's been around a long time, her sound has morphed over time, though never that much. What I saw the night before at Exchange LA—where she DJ'd in the middle of the crowd—was one of the best straight-up techno sets I've seen in recent memory. The tempo and energy spectrums dipped up and down, bringing in some of the hardest shit you've ever heard and then softening with extended, pillowy breakdowns. She pulled in familiar vocals from unexpected places before clobbering you all over again. Her style is a vibey balancing act that brings hints of pop and approachability to techno without losing any edge. ("Sorry, but I don't play Madonna," she told me.)

The Berlin-based maven also thinks about DJing differently to anyone I've ever met. It's not only about the music she plays or how she plays it—the environment is just as important, dictating what she might pull out on any given evening. When we sat down to talk, the first thing she mentioned was club lighting, and how different lights can severely affect her mood. In some ways, she's on another planet from most DJs—but what else would you expect from Ellen Allien?

More than three decades into her career, Ellen Allien still approaches DJing with a keenly youthful enthusiasm.

How was your gig last night? I thought it was interesting that you played in the middle of the crowd, like a punk show.

They asked me to do it in the middle because they wanted it to feel like a warehouse. I was really thankful for not being on the stage—it was more clubby and intimate. It was a good idea. Sometimes the light was a little too bright. I forgot to ask them to lower it because I was really busy with my knobs!

I have lighting requests on my rider. It makes me nervous when they change colour or when they're changing all the time, because I can't concentrate. I'm very sensitive. When the light changed from purple to yellow I freaked out. I said, "Please, can you stay in one place," because I can really get into the music then. If the light is changing all the time I don't know where to go. The colours do something to me—they change my mood. Blue is very cold, more metallic, yellow is lighter and trancey. Green and red are my favourite colours. Green is more like a jungle and red is like my own body, my flesh, blood circulation, heartbeat—it all fits perfectly to give me space, music-wise.

So if a club had mostly red lighting over the whole night, or blue lighting the whole time, would that change what you play?

I can't play with blue light all night. I'd ask them to change it. Blue light would change me, I'd feel unsure. I'd just stare at the mixer then. Or maybe I'd put my sunglasses on.

You can mix in the club with sunglasses on?

Well, I need a lot of light on my mixer—I always ask for that. I have to see what I'm doing. Sunglasses help if there are too many lasers, or if people are doing certain kinds of drugs. People wear sunglasses because they can't take the light anymore, or if there are big, bright screens. It's very distracting and can hurt your eyes. People don't wear sunglasses at the club for fashion, they do it not to stress their eyes.

Isn't playing in the middle of the crowd distracting? How do you stay focused?

It's up to the lights, again. If there's too much light around me it's difficult. But I like it when the people are close to me. I feel the energy from their bodies and movements so I can adapt better to how they feel. If there's someone behind me it doesn't disturb me unless they start talking to me while I'm mixing, telling me stories or showing me something that I have to read. "I saw you last time and you played this edit!" It's very cute. I try sometimes to take their hand and not be rude. It's important that I can connect with the crowd and that we have a nice, friendly community thing going.

"DJing is my addiction. Music opens the channel for creativity, for an emotional journey. You can cry, jump or puke."

How much planning do you do? Will you change course depending on the crowd?

I change all the time. I play different genres and sometimes I push the pitch and the tempo, from 145 up to 270 BPM. When I see they're getting tired I can change. It also depends on which country I'm playing and what time of night. So I can do different things. Maybe I'll go down in tempo, make them talk or go to the bar, or start kissing and having a sexy moment. I'll break to let them breathe, and then bring them a very strong bass drum, really industrial, and mix out of a trancier track. I try to do layers of emotions. I'm not a tunnel DJ—I don't play tunnel techno. If I do that I get depressed. It's very intense. So I try to change the style. Playing music is a diary of my life. I play a lot of edits of my favourite bands. I went to many concerts as a teenager, and I still go all the time now, which makes me feel connected to the old Berlin.

I entertain myself with edits from my favourite coldwave bands—it's just dope to mix with techno tracks. Or by playing a lot of things that aren't out yet. Like right now I'm working on a record with Exos and I'm trying his tracks out and giving him feedback. "I think the bass should be a little louder," or, "the hi-hat is a little too loud." I don't ask him to change it, just give my feedback. Or with my own music, I'll make many different mixes and then I decide which one should be released.

With a DJ set, I try to surprise people. I'll bring a vocal track and then I go to hard techno, then I play minimal or acid, just to make a journey of every single night.

I noticed last night that compared to most techno DJs you play very up and down.

When I do longer sets I try to make waves, so that sometimes people can talk, we smoke together, I give the crowd a joint and I make something with a long break. And everybody does something different in that time. I like to fill the room with different levels of clubbing experience. When I play in a club I walk around first, trying to catch what the DJ before is doing, what the lighting designer is doing, what the sound mixer is doing—it's everything.

That's why I need residencies where we can work on the room to make it better for the people. Make the lighting better, be in the right position in the room. Maybe the room is too crowded. Residencies are also important to learn how the people are running the clubs. I just want to pay my DJs, my team and for everyone to be comfortable. Creating lineups and working with passionate teams is what I'm looking for. We Are Not Alone is a community event for techno lovers, and residencies have given me a better understanding of how clubs work, how promoters work, how to make it fair.

It seems like DJing isn't just about the music for you. You care about the whole sensory experience.

Of course the music comes first, because the music is my emotional touch. I've been super into music since I was a teenager. Not many people play like me. DJing is my addiction, and [hopefully] the addiction of everyone else in the room. Music opens the channel for creativity, for an emotional journey. You can cry, jump, puke. You can scream for happiness and because it's ugly. So many emotions come out. When people dance they think about their lives and something comes out like therapy. You can dance by yourself or with your community. So the music is the most important part of my sets, and understanding the productions, how I can mix tracks together. Technical things, like tones and tuning, and which vocals I can mix together.

The political environment—what's going on in that country—can also change the music and the way people are running events or even making music. Then it's money. How much money you invest, or if you're rich. Or do you have to make music with a very limited setup? Emotions matter also. And then it's the promoter, which depends on the city and what kind of venue. All of this comes together.

I learned how to mix in Ibiza. I would play a very minimal track for three to five minutes, and then a hi-hat comes in, and people are screaming their asses off. Because at that point the hi-hat is kicking your fucking head, your brain, your ears. And then the perfect lights to go with that makes a great moment. And then making music, I think about how it will sound in a room, or where I'm going to play. I was taught how important communication is while playing a residency, because you recognise and learn how to do things in that room, and what that room feels like.

What is the club you feel most inspired by now?

Berghain, I go there to see the crowd. It's my home—I've spent many many hours fucked up there, meeting many people. Also, Nitsa Apollo Club [in Barcelona], where I've been playing since 2001. They brought me very early on over there, when Berlin DJs weren't famous and no one wanted to book us. Back in the day the sound system wasn't so good and they had really bad monitoring. It was hard to play with records. The needles were jumping, I had to bring my own, it wasn't comfortable to play there. So I had to concentrate to mix well. Now it's really good there, but back in the day it felt so trashy. I would play very nicely, but the crowd would push me to play harder. There I learned how to go really far—I love to play hard, I love to play industrial and dark. But sometimes I'm afraid to go too far. They really pushed me there and I realised I could come and play really messy and hardcore. I think people in some clubs or communities need to listen to something radical to forget about their jobs or what's going on in their normal lives. Just switch to another world. For me I switch to another world when I play dark and industrial, and then I play melodic to open the melancholy towards something like hope. For example, I went to Paris and saw the most beautiful painting and I realised that melancholy can open something beautiful.

And now, RSO.BERLIN feels fresh. When I'm in the studio producing music, I think about playing the tunes there or what kind of tracks I'd love to play at We Are Not Alone. The rooms, clubs, events and vibes move me to create my own music journey from the studio into the club.

"The kids play fast because they want that physicality. But also, it's just fun to play fast!"

What happens if you lose the crowd when you're going between stages or genres? If people stop dancing?

I just let them go. It's not a problem if they're getting tired, or maybe they're on ketamine, maybe I played some tones that made them sensitive or tired or bored. Maybe they're just more relaxed. I don't think it's bad. It's not a mistake in a DJ set. If I play that way maybe I'm tired too, and then I see them, and I think, "OK, let's wake up!" And I'll play a wake-up tune and change the vibe. Sometimes the sound system isn't good for a certain track and it'll make people feel bad, so I'll look for a track that will make the sound system sound beautiful again.

Sometimes tracks are too bassy or have too strong elements. Luckily with an Allen & Heath mixer I can cut the bass, sometimes if there's too much bass I can't mix, or if there's too high frequencies. I kind of cut everything. Last night I cut the bass completely. And I cut all the highs off the monitoring.

So how do you organise your USB stick?

I keep folders for every date I've played—city, club, etc. I organise it like that. I don't make folders of music styles, or make an order for tracks. It'd be easy to plan a perfect DJ set, but I don't want that. If I'm searching for a track I'll remember what I'm looking for, and I'll think about a certain night that I played that track. Sometimes if I have a very short set or a festival set, I'll think more carefully about what I want to do, if I want to do something specific or send a message. Then I'll make a folder with only the tracks I want to play for that set.

You try to limit yourself, but you really just want to move around?

Sometimes when I'm tired I make a folder ahead of time. I'm usually tired because I didn't sleep or meditate before my gig. I found a very good way to do meditation—I don't watch TV, no information comes into my brain. I turn all the lights off and then I just lie down. I don't like to go for dinner, I don't like to watch movies. Sometimes I hate the dinners. If it's a nice group I'll go for dinner but I try to leave early and go back to my hotel, brush my teeth. I can't go play a gig with food in my teeth! It's horrible. Or if I have fat under my nails or if I stink. I can't mix food and playing. It's impossible.

After all these years do you still like the experience of being in a club?

I love being with the community. My flatmate and I DJ at home all the time, with friends around. DJing for me isn't about making money only, it's a hobby, if nobody booked me I would DJ anyway! Sometimes I'll hang out with my flatmate and we'll do a little fashion show and we'll drink a lot of things, maybe smoke joints, put on outfits and make-up and chat with each other—just having fun. It's a whole celebration about going out and looking good.

But yes, I love to go out if my ears allow it. I fly a lot, I play a lot and my ears are very tired. I'm in the studio a lot. My ears need to rest. I have no hearing problems, nothing hurts, I'm very lucky. I like to go out to listen to other DJs and talk to other people. See how people dance together, how they get sexy. Sometimes I like to go onto the balcony and just look down and watch people. I've been doing that since the '90s. I love watching bodies get sweaty and move.

30 years later, why is DJing still so important to you?

Why? Well, I just want to play my favourite tunes and chat with people. Whether that's streaming, or making my own music, or DJing. I want to share music with people and celebrate creators. Thank you to all the producers all around the world making music to entertain me.

So you never get bored of DJing?

No! [laughs] And I'm too busy. It's a challenge to find the best music. Then making and playing my favourite edits. I celebrate it all so much. I will DJ at home, at a club, anywhere.

"When I was a child I played the organ at home. Singing my childhood songs and trying to find notes. Music was based on my voice."

Do you feel like you're still learning stuff, or evolving your style?

I'm always learning, especially because the hardware and software changes a lot. I've been looping a lot lately, which is sort of new to me. Also playing with the Allen & Heath! Sometimes I'll play with three or four decks and try different mixing styles. I also recently played back-to-back with Freddy K which is something I don't usually do, that was new for me. We started getting so crazy together, laughing so much, each track we played was so much fun. It was very creative and uplifting. I don't want to do too many back-to-backs because it can be not good, but it can create something totally new if you have a good partner. Sometimes if I have an emotional problem, I play really shit. Like if something happened back home, or with my boyfriend, friends or people I'm working with. I'm very sensitive. Or if I'm too excited, I smoke a joint and then I come down and play really trippy. No alcohol. No heavy food. And meditation before.

So you don't usually drink on nights you play?

Not anymore. I drank a lot back in the day and played really crazy sets. When I drank more, my booker said that he would come to the booth and dance behind me to make sure he could take care of me. When I was getting too high or drunk, he would say "Ellen! Techno!" then grab me a coffee or grab a record, and it would bring me back. When the DJ is getting too drunk, you lose the timing—it can be good for a moment but it's generally going downhill. Your brain isn't awake anymore. That's why I stopped drinking. It's not fair to the crowd. They can get drunk, but I have a responsibility to make them happy. They pay me, I travel from far away. It's my responsibility.

Aside from meditation, do you have any pre-gig rituals or anything else you do to keep yourself from going too hard? How do you stay healthy while travelling?

I do sports, cycling and I dance hard. I had an accident one year ago at The Third Room [in Essen]. I had to take care of my knee. I go to a gym to exercise or do exercises in the hotel room. I stretch to wake up my muscles. Sometimes my back hurts from travelling or bad beds, and it's hard to play. So I found some exercises. I have to do a lot of body work now. And only eat good food. And air is very important. When I arrive in a city, I go for a walk, breathing the air or sitting outside, just trying to get air. There are lots of other things, but these are the most important. Otherwise I couldn't do the show.

Last night you were using four CDJs. Is that normal for you?

Usually I use two, but four are very important for longer sets.

So you have four tracks playing at once sometimes?

Yes. Or three, and then one CDJ for vocals or a loop or a hi-hat or some other beats. I need time for my brain to get used to it. Last night I was a bit nervous because it wasn't a long set.

How long is a long set for you?

Six hours. Eight is too long for my ears. You have to be careful.

So do you have vocal a capellas on one CDJ?

I don't have those because they often don't exist. But I'll play an edit, and maybe the breakdown part that only has vocals. Extract the vocals and match it with another track. Sometimes I bring the same record back three times, to make a journey. I love that. I'll bring it in short. If I'm very into my set and sure of the sound system and everything is going well and feels like floating, I love to bring five or six tracks back into the set. It's like a flashback.

For a techno DJ, you play a lot of tracks with vocals and melodies. Why are these elements so important to you?

I think it's the way I grew up. When I was a child I played the organ at home. Singing my childhood songs and trying to find notes. Music was based on my voice. My first record came out in 1994 and there are vocals on that. The vocals are used as a patch or an element. The way I wrote music was through singing. As a child I was always playing records, putting on clothes, singing into the mirror. I would put the speakers on the window and play my music out into the courtyard.

"DJing for me isn't about making money, it's a hobby, if nobody booked me I would DJ anyway."

So you were already DJing as a child.

I was already DJing! Sharing my favourite music. Music was very important to me. Especially pop music. I loved Nina Hagen even though I couldn't understand what she was singing. Later I could understand but I realised that I put this music in my child brain in a very different way. And I loved it so much because all music, all art, you translate into the world you're living in, based on what you've learned, what age you are. That's so beautiful. So that's why I put lyrics and vocals into my music. But I want people to be able to put it in their own words or ideas. So I take one sentence or one word and repeat it. In almost every track I make there's a little vocal inside. Or I'll add a wordless vocal element to feel more connected to the synthesiser or the drum machine—to feel more attached to it. I want to let people dream, or give them a message, let them figure it out.

It's about connection. It's so important for more people to connect with nature, with Mother Earth. I've often been unconnected, and then I put these words in my tracks, because I know lots of other people are feeling the same. Everybody's searching for a connection with natural things. And for time to explore your own intelligence and your own soul. This is very sad that people don't have time to do that because they work too much to make enough money to make your fucking rent, or doing capitalistic things, shopping, or consuming bullshit. I think the most intelligent mind is when you can filter the information you bring in. So that's why I put words, vocals into my music. How can I say it—I don't want to be lost in bullshit and shit people. That's all.

A lot of popular techno, especially among younger people, is very fast and hard. How do you feel about this as someone who's been playing techno for 30 years?

It's not only kids playing it. People play at 152 BPM at Berghain. Marcel Dettmann will pitch records up. When Freddy K played after me in Toronto, he was at 152. Playing hard is my favourite. I could play up to 170. Maybe I should do that! But I don't want to stress people out. I think techno is so fast now because many people are feeling very physical from certain drugs, like GHB—they feel very extreme, and they consume everything fast.

And on the other hand, many people are sporty and healthy. All my friends are doing sports! So that's why it's fast. To jump, to sweat. Of course there are many speedy drugs—mephedrone, speed, many chemical things. The kids play fast because they want that physicality. But also, it's just fun to play fast! I love the energy. I love to jump when I play. But I like to go down again also. Maybe some people don't know how to go down after playing fast.

Do you think techno is healthy and a good place?

Well, I hate when they play Britney Spears. Sorry, I don't play any Madonna! I don't wanna play anything I hear on the radio. No way. That's not clubbing. If you're DJing, bring something that isn't in the mainstream.

Do you think you'll ever stop DJing professionally?

I guess I could stop. Then I would do something else like painting, painting aliens. I think I've always been DJing all my life, for friends, for family, for myself. Let's see how long I can do that, physically, and let's also see how the music changes. Let's see how long I'm on earth. Maybe I'll die tomorrow.

Hopefully not.

You don't know! But I don't know about the future.

The answer is probably not. I think you'll be DJing forever.

I think I could. But I'm also really interested in painting. It's a question of where I want to live, and how I live. Things change really fast. When the Berlin wall came down, I learned very quickly, things can change suddenly. I can't control that. The government controls things. You have to go with the flow and adapt to survive. Future plans are useless. There are no future plans.