Heiko Laux, the German producer and DJ behind Kanzerlamt label is coming back to one of his favorite places to play, NYC! With a string of solo and collab productions and more to come from his label, Laux is keeping the pressure on with his driving, edgy techno!!
CGNY: Hi Heiko! We’re looking forward to your gig with Thema Nights on June 1. When was the last time you played NYC?
HL: Oh, that was last years early February at a BLK Market party and it was very icy cold.
CGNY: U.S artists I think yearn to play European gigs and vice versa. What is about the vibe here in NYC that makes it interesting to play here?
HL: Yeah, you're right. When peeps ask me where I go next NYC is always the first thing I say, if it is in my agenda. Every time I come to the States I had at least a small gig in NYC, even in the roughest of times for techno over there. peeps are bringing such energy and appreciation to the show that I felt very much at home.
CGNY: What kind of music did you grow up listening to and who or what were your influences?
HL: I pretty much think that all the music that made it to my ears was influencing my path. If I was going "yeah, I wanna do that" or "hell no" have equally impacted me.
When i was playing LEGOs, I listened to a lot to early Mike Oldfield, later I was really thankful for the invention of CDs, 'cos I played all my Art Of Noise vinyls to death to name some of my phases. I had to make the best of whatever hit the local record store in the Frankfurt hinterland. The final push I got from Farley Jackmaster Funk & Jessie Sounders "Love Can't Turn Around". After this I urgently wanted such a drum-machine and so on..
CGNY: Apart from your gig at NU, you’re also closing out the final party at Kontrol in San Francisco. I‘ve heard great things about this club.
HL: I was really californicated last time. The guys in San Francisco took a vote about who to bring back for the closing party and they've picked me;) what a great honor!
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CGNY: You’re the man behind Kanzleramt. What’s going on with the label in terms of new productions?
HL: the wave of releases that I literary uzi'd out last year triggered a lot of other collaborations, remixes and gigs that I still didn't find the time to prepare the next wave. I'm sitting on a lot of sketches and tracks to finish, but other than me it will be Ray Kajioka, Diego Hostettler and some more surprises later in 2012.
CGNY: You’ve collaborated a fair bit with another friend of ours at CGNY, Steve Rachmad as well as Joel Mull and Teo Schulte among others.Is it harder to work solo or on a collab?
HL: I really enjoy collabs a lot. Everybody brings his own way of doing things in the studio and a unique attitude. I seem to have a skill to adapt to these situations and I'm learning a lot too.
CGNY: What’s your favorite track right now from another artist (if it’s possible to single out only one?)
HL: LaChriz: EMB on Ilian Tape. at least that was the No 1 in my last resident Advisor charts and I'm still playing it. I love these very simple dubby textures with a lot of bass.
CGNY: What do you think of the whole ‘celebrity as DJ” phenomenon!! For example Paris Hilton playing house music! It seems that dj’s have become the new actor/models!!
HL: Each to his own. (if Funk D'Void wouldn't have posted this ironically on Facebook, i wouldn't even know about this)
CGNY: What are your interests or passions outside of music?
HL: Food (cooking and being cooked for) & football (the one where you actually play the ball with your foot and not with your hands)
CGNY: Haha! What is the best and worst part of the DJ/producer lifestyle and what field might you have gone into if you hadn’t done music?
HL: Oh it's living the dream alright. the traveling, the people I meet, it's all priceless. Any other choice of profession would have a bigger downside. me happy;)
Heiko plays Thema Nights at National Underground on June 1st. Check out the info here.
Kanzleramt Music:
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