Heiko Laux

German techno producer Heiko Laux earned recognition through both his own productions and his role as founder of Kanzleramt, the respected minimal techno imprint whose catalog includes work by fellow German artists Johannes Heil and Christian Morgenstern. He established the label in 1994 while still living in his hometown of Bad Nauheim, before moving operations to Berlin. During its debut year Kanzleramt issued 12"s from Patrick Lindsey, Ben Jamin, Notsignal, and Laux himself. Subsequent seasons brought further names to the roster, among them Heil, Morgenstern, Voodooamt, DJ Slip, and additional contributors. Laux maintained his own output on the label while also issuing material as Item One, his project with Heil, and as Sodiac, his collaboration with Anthony Rother.

His recorded work grew steadily more abundant. Beyond Kanzleramt he placed tracks on Richard Bartz’s Kurbel with the Souldancer EP, on i220 with the No Gain No Pain EP, on Tresor through various compilation tracks and remixes, and on Deep Dish’s Yoshitoshi with the Dedicated to All Believers EP. He broadened the operation by launching the sub-labels U Turn and K20, and he issued occasional limited EPs under the Apathism alias. By the late ’90s he had begun issuing full-length projects that surveyed multiple strains of techno, including the untitled double-12" collection There Is No End on U Turn 8, the album Old School Street on i220, the Apathism compilation on U Turn 10, and the Kanzleramt albums Liquidism (1998), Sense Fiction (2000), and Ornaments (2002).