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Gerd Janson is one of the most highly respected DJs in the world of house and techno. Quite often, "highly respected" goes hand-in-hand with "underrated" but over the past few years, audiences around the world have also found out what insider types already knew: Janson is a DJ that reconfigures the classics you already knew in an unexpected way and introduce you to new classics, a few months (or years) before you’ll hear them played everywhere else.
Raised just outside of Frankfurt, Janson came to dance music at a young age. He found himself traveling around the country to see heroes both local and international Masters at Work. Moodymann. Robert Hood. Techno. House. The style didn’t matter. He was hooked. This genre-free philosophy been a theme throughout Janson’s career. House and techno have been an underlying theme, but listening to his DJ sets, you’ll often hear different types of things filtering through: UK funky, synth pop, industrial.
Janson is one of the most modest DJs you’ll find, and in spite of that he has held down a residency at Frankfurt’s Robert-Johnson club since 2000. Together with his partner in crime, Thomas Hammann, he has brought artists like Theo Parrish, Kenny Dixon Jr. and Maurice Fulton to the club. In 2010 Janson & Hammann compiled a Robert Johnson CD which made it to Resident Advisor's list of Best Compilations of 2010.
In 2013 alone, Janson played gigs in Australia, Brazil, Israel, Japan, Singapore and all over Europe and he also became a resident at Berlin’s Panorama Bar and Trouw in Amsterdam, as well as still holding the fort at Robert Johnson. In 2013, he was named de:bug’s #2 DJ of the year, #8 in Groove Magazine and he was also in the Top 50 on Resident Advisor Top 100 DJ List. Besides dj'ing, Janson is also the brain behind the Running Back label. He has released a number of highly acclaimed artists such as Tensnake, Todd Terje, Maurice Fulton, Theo Parrish, Suzanne Kraft, Redshape and many others. Speaking of being eclectic.
In addition to his work with Running Back, Janson has also teamed up with Philip Lauer under the Tuff City Kids alias. Originally taken on as a remix project, the partnership has quickly evolved to include original productions for labels like Unterton and Delsin. It is similar in many ways to Janson’s work as both a DJ and a label boss it’s the type of stuff that sneaks up on you. Quality, without being flashy. Wonderful, without announcing itself as such. In short, Gerd Janson is one of the increasingly worst kept secrets in the world of dance music. A DJ versatile enough to rock just about any dance floor. A DJ who cares about the profession of DJ. A DJ worth hearing. |
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