Biography
Berlin-based producer Objekt crafts electronic music defined by relentless technological experimentation, yet always calibrated to deliver the visceral energy that moves crowds on the floor. His earliest self-released 12"s from 2011 placed him within the post-dubstep bass continuum, after which the material steadily accelerated into denser, more intricate electro and IDM territory. The 2014 debut album Flatland and a split single with Dopplereffekt both earned widespread praise. In 2017 the track “Theme from Q” became an omnipresent club staple, while the follow-up full-length Cocoon Crush, issued the next year, showcased his most intricate and abstract production techniques. The dancehall-tinged Objekt #5 surfaced in 2022, and the intricate “Chicken Garaage” arrived on his own Kapsela imprint in 2024.
Born in Tokyo as TJ Hertz, he spent his formative years between Belgium and the U.K. An early interest in music blossomed while he was growing up in Oxford, where time spent in bands eventually gave way to a passion for ’90s IDM that steered him toward electronics. After studying electronic and information engineering at Oxford University, he relocated to Berlin; a software-development role at Native Instruments further shaped his approach to sound. Surrounded by British dubstep and the hypnotic, looping techno that dominated local clubs, he attempted to replicate those sounds before choosing instead to forge his own path.
The debut 12" Objekt #1 landed in 2011 and rapidly generated attention. Months later the second white-label release Objekt #2 continued to straddle techno and dubstep, drawing notice from Hessle Audio. The sole 2012 outing, Cactus/Porcupine, received positive notices even as Hertz later described it as an exercise in replicating the dominant dubstep aesthetic. Following a period of focused writing, he returned in 2013 with the white label Objekt #3; its centerpiece “Agnes Demise” offered a fresh evolution, threading Aphex Twin and Autechre influences through moody techno. The resulting glitchy, fractured style pointed toward new territory, leading to subsequent releases on Power Vacuum and Bleep.
In 2014 Hertz placed his first album on Bill Kouligas’ Pan label, an ideal home for his expanding sonic range, and Flatland drew acclaim for its genuinely progressive take on techno. Two years later the inventive mix CD Kern, Vol. 3 appeared on the storied German imprint Tresor. The 2017 single Objekt #4 introduced elements of rave nostalgia, yet the 2018 album Cocoon Crush shifted emphasis away from immediate dancefloor utility. After “Theme from Q” from Objekt #4 achieved major club success, Hertz issued a pair of breakbeat-hardcore remixes titled “Love Inna Basement” under the alias DJ Bogdan in 2019, presenting them as remastered material from a 1992 DAT. His first Essential Mix aired on BBC Radio 1 in 2020, and after a four-year gap the release Objekt #5 emerged in 2022. That same year he inaugurated the Kapsela label, whose inaugural offering Ganzfeld revisited his classic track from the 2014 Dopplereffekt split alongside remixes by DjRUM, Piezo, and Ulla, before the single “Chicken Garaage” followed.
Born in Tokyo as TJ Hertz, he spent his formative years between Belgium and the U.K. An early interest in music blossomed while he was growing up in Oxford, where time spent in bands eventually gave way to a passion for ’90s IDM that steered him toward electronics. After studying electronic and information engineering at Oxford University, he relocated to Berlin; a software-development role at Native Instruments further shaped his approach to sound. Surrounded by British dubstep and the hypnotic, looping techno that dominated local clubs, he attempted to replicate those sounds before choosing instead to forge his own path.
The debut 12" Objekt #1 landed in 2011 and rapidly generated attention. Months later the second white-label release Objekt #2 continued to straddle techno and dubstep, drawing notice from Hessle Audio. The sole 2012 outing, Cactus/Porcupine, received positive notices even as Hertz later described it as an exercise in replicating the dominant dubstep aesthetic. Following a period of focused writing, he returned in 2013 with the white label Objekt #3; its centerpiece “Agnes Demise” offered a fresh evolution, threading Aphex Twin and Autechre influences through moody techno. The resulting glitchy, fractured style pointed toward new territory, leading to subsequent releases on Power Vacuum and Bleep.
In 2014 Hertz placed his first album on Bill Kouligas’ Pan label, an ideal home for his expanding sonic range, and Flatland drew acclaim for its genuinely progressive take on techno. Two years later the inventive mix CD Kern, Vol. 3 appeared on the storied German imprint Tresor. The 2017 single Objekt #4 introduced elements of rave nostalgia, yet the 2018 album Cocoon Crush shifted emphasis away from immediate dancefloor utility. After “Theme from Q” from Objekt #4 achieved major club success, Hertz issued a pair of breakbeat-hardcore remixes titled “Love Inna Basement” under the alias DJ Bogdan in 2019, presenting them as remastered material from a 1992 DAT. His first Essential Mix aired on BBC Radio 1 in 2020, and after a four-year gap the release Objekt #5 emerged in 2022. That same year he inaugurated the Kapsela label, whose inaugural offering Ganzfeld revisited his classic track from the 2014 Dopplereffekt split alongside remixes by DjRUM, Piezo, and Ulla, before the single “Chicken Garaage” followed.
Albums
Singles
