Audio: Matthias Tanzmann premieres a batch of fresh studio cuts

Matthias Tanzmann has been one of house and techno’s leading names for some time now. Based in Leipzig since his rise to prominence in the mid-90s, the Moon Harbour founder is still one of the busiest DJs on the circuit, balancing life in the east German city with two Ibiza residencies at Circoloco and ANTS and regular club and festival dates across every continent. But beyond his stacked gig schedule, Tanzmann is equally as busy in the studio, something he’s recently shown via Moon Harbour with the release of his latest full-length, Round and Round. He’s also recently joined forces with Circoloco comrades Davide Squillace and Martin Buttrich for their joint Better Lost Than Stupid LP, an album that saw the trio transcending their tech house roots to cross indie and experimental electronica. This Friday he’s back with his ANTS team for their EC1 takeover, but before joining us, he put together a mix showing where his head’s currently at in the studio. Expect plenty of unreleased tech-leaning house fare from one of the sound’s experts. Download: Matthias Tanzmann Forms x ANTS Promo Mix Tell us a little about where and how you recorded the mix. I recorded the mix at my studio in Leipzig, Germany. I have a lot of new music coming out over the next few weeks. This mix includes some of those tracks that haven’t been played out yet. I think a mix for fabric is the appropriate platform to premiere those tracks. Have you included any other records you’ve been playing over the last few months? Yes it does – most of the tracks are in my current setlists. How do you keep on top of new records throughout the busy summer months? I use the time off I have at hotels and airports to look for new music online. I obviously get a lot of promos, but I also discover music via Spotify and buy it at download shops. Can you tell us a bit about the concept behind Round and Round? The album is called Round and Round and will be released track by track rather than as one whole collection. It contains collaborations with colleagues like Steve Bug, Mathias Kaden, Mihalis Safras, Black Circle and Rebūke, as well as some solo tracks. Style-wise it reflects some sort of a career-long diary – from the early deep house days to tech house and techno. Your Better Lost Than Stupid album was also released over the summer. How was the project received? We’ve been working on this album for many years. It took us a long time, but I am happy with the result. The music is quite different from what Martin, Davide and I usually release as solo artists. It is a crossover of indie and electronic between radio and club. We’ve received good feedback from really unexpected angles. Right now, we are working on remixes for the album. One of them is in this mix. How does it work when you’re behind the decks as Better Lost Than Stupid, do you typically play one record each? It depends if we play the live show or a DJ gig. The live show is a stage show with a lot of gear and live singers. We premiered this show at Heart Ibiza and Steelyard London this year. During the DJ performance, we play like a sound system, where we DJ all together and incorporate some bits of equipment. You've been playing with us for a number of years. Is there anything you remember about your first visit to Farringdon? In my early days of DJing, fabric was one of the clubs in the world that I really wanted to play at some day. That dream came true. Not only that, I got asked to mix fabric 65 a few years later. To me, fabric will always be an electronic music institution. Photo credit: Marie Staggat