Collective spotlight: SPLOT
In this series, we spotlight up-and-coming collectives who are paving their own way while driving underground culture forward.
The city of Wroclaw is not pronounced how you think. ‘VROTS-wahf’ is the third largest city in Poland, and well known for its vibrant Market Square, gnome statues hidden throughout the city and the beautiful bridges and islands that give it the nickname "Venice of Poland”.
But an underground scene is bubbling beneath this pretty surface, and it’s spear-headed by a group of three friends collectively known as SPLOT.
Who is SPLOT?
SPLOT is Szymon Baczyński (AKA Glassz), Kamil Winiarz (AKA Guiltee) and Paweł Szeląg (AKA dadan karambolo) - three good friends with a shared passion for the left-field sounds of bass, techno, breaks, half-time and D&B.
They met at Akademickie Radio LUZ, run by the Wrocław University of Science and Technology, a station they all joined at the same time. “It was a very nice community driven radio station with a lot of very interesting music programs by people involved in the local underground scenes, from punk rock, to house, techno, bass and all things in between,” says Szymon.
The three friends connected over their shared love of left-field music, and began attending festivals and parties together. “We went to Dimensions in Croatia in 2019, and we had an amazing time there, and we all were so exhausted from dancing that we sat down and decided this is the kind of sound that we would like to push in Wroclaw,” Szymon says.
They felt there was space in the scene and the time was right. They’d been DJing for several years, Pawel was breaking into international territory with his productions, and Kamil already had experience organizing underground forest raves. But just as they were about to throw their debut party, the pandemic hit, so their first club night was significantly delayed.
The Label and Event Series
Before SPLOT, the scene was dominated by straightforward, ticket-selling techno, while more experimental or bass-driven music struggled to find space, especially after the pandemic led to venue closures.
"So I think this is one of the main ideas,” Pawel says. “Our sound is more futuristic and retro - a philosophy of taking care to show people the roots of the culture and where it all started, and at the same time pushing the boundaries of the current sound in the scene.”
That’s why they make sure to showcase Polish producers, as well as international talent. “We love the idea of, you know, bringing our favourite artists from all over Europe or all over the world to show to our friends, but also it's important to us to present the local talents. That's why we also started the label three years ago.”
Their label helps balance the challenges of throwing events, which can be frustrating. “I'm always optimistic, but it's so difficult to break even with a more experimental approach to sound and to music,” Pawel says. “Especially with a small audience for bass music in Poland in general.”
The label launched in June 2022 with Deers by Bess, a 5-track EP from dadan karambolo. Since then, they’ve released some of the hottest talent in Poland and beyond, including 2Shy, Yes Stanley, IWANN, and most recently Archypness.
"He's a producer based in Warsaw,” Pawel explains. “There are a lot of people into this music who are producing without sending demos anywhere. It always catches me off guard when I talk to someone and they say they produce. I wish they weren’t so shy about it.”
This year, they’ll collaborate with LAS Festival for the second year in a row, where they’ll be curating bass music at the Substance stage. In 2021, SPLOT hosted a stage at MASSIF Festival in Kłodzko Valley, where they invited Awkwardly Social, Low End Activist and Appleblim which was the start of many fruitful partnerships.
Plans for the Future
On 13th December 2025 SPLOT is throwing their most ambitious party yet. Jungle legend Sully and Blackeye MC will be tearing up Wroclaw’s Cialo with a stacked line-up on support, including all three members of SPLOT, siberialist, Meke and mgkl.
“For me, the label is what I cherish the most at this time,” Pawal says. “I hope to develop it to the point where we can maybe release physical formats as well. I think that’s a big goal for all of us. And in terms of parties, I hope we can just continue and grow in that regard too.”
“We are also thinking about releasing a remix compilation,” Szymon continues. "So Polish producers who have already been released could be remixed by some international guests as well, to build those connections outside of Poland. We want people abroad to know about us. Because I personally feel quite often that we’re overlooked. Like, in Western media always Unsound and not much else. But there is so much going on, and I think our scene is incredible. There are producers and DJs and collectives and clubs and festivals that we wish to also be part of this bigger picture.”
For all their latest news and events, follow SPLOT on Instagram.
