Few producers in the European electronic music landscape have navigated their career with as much quiet consistency as Lauer. Born out of Frankfurt’s fertile club culture, shaped more by the freewheeling spirit of Robert Johnson and the Wild Pitch nights than the city’s better-known techno institutions, he has spent over two decades refining a sound that resists easy categorisation. Releases on Permanent Vacation, Running Back and Robert Johnson sit comfortably alongside collaborative projects like Tuff City Kids, Black Spuma and TNP, painting a portrait of an artist driven less by career strategy than by genuine creative curiosity.
His latest EP, The K1m Fantasy, released on Melodize, takes its name from the Kawai K1m synthesizer he recently pulled back from the shelf. For Lauer, inspiration tends to begin with an object, a room, and the happy accident of seeing where things lead. We caught up with him to discuss the new release, the creative partnerships that define his working life, the tension between touring and studio time, and what it means to grow up alongside your own studio.
Your new EP “The K1m Fantasy” is out on Melodize and it’s described as “Melodize and Lauer shape the world of a fantasy dance floor where everything is Possible”. What was the inspiration behind the EP and do you primarily think about the dancefloor when you produce your tracks?
Well Ehsan (Melodize) asked me for an EP and I just had pulled out my Kawai K1m Synth from the shelves and I started to work on tracks. I wasn’t really thinking about clubs more about what could fit the label.
Working with Melodize and Beartrax on this release, how did that collaboration come about, and how did the label’s vision shape or influence the final product?
I had done some remixes for the label before – so this was just a natural progression and I tried to deliver my version of the label’s sound.
Over two decades you’ve released on a wide range of labels – Permanent Vacation, Running Back, Robert Johnson, each with its own identity and community. What do you look for in a label relationship today versus what mattered to you earlier in your career?
I guess mostly it’s about the people who run the labels and that hasn’t changed much.
Your debut 12″ came out back in 2000, what was the moment you knew this was the path you were going to commit to, and what did that early period teach you that still sticks with you?
It was something I loved doing, I’m obsessed with music and I liked meeting people all over the world with the same interests. I never had the plan to make it my job or something.. I kinda ended up with it.
Frankfurt has its own distinct place in electronic music history. How much did growing up and working in that city shape the artist you became?
I guess the Robert Johnson Club and the Wild Pitch Clubnight before played a huge role. Other than that I was never into Techno, never went to Omen or Dorian Gray.. those flokati and buffalo wearing freaks were suspect to me 😉
You’ve built several long-running collaborative projects — Tuff City Kids, Black Spuma, TNP among them. What does a great creative partnership give you that solo work simply can’t?
It is mostly about hanging with friends in the studio, very simple. I’m alone in there a bunch too.
You run your own studio, which puts you in a pretty unique position of control over your sound. How has having that space shaped the way you approach production, and what does your process actually look like when you’re starting something from scratch?
It’s definitely a big part of my sound and I would say my studio is the instrument I play best.. somehow.. since I’m not a virtuoso on any other instrument. Me and my studio grew up together.
I’ll usually go to the studio with an idea in mind and start to make it work – usually I would end up somewhere completely different.
Your tour schedule and your output in the studio are both relentless. How do you manage the tension between those two modes? Does time on the road feed the studio work, or does it compete with it?
Over the years I found out that I do need to be well rested before being useful in the studio. Travelling and sleep deprivation from playing in the middle of the night don’t help. There is a DJ mode and a studio mode.
AI is reshaping a lot of creative industries, and electronic music is no exception. Where do you stand on it, is it a tool, a threat, or something more complicated than either of those?
I had high hopes that I could finally be a singer with the help of AI.. using some special Plugins that could turn your crappy vocals into Whitney Houston.. but the results were not at all ok.. so I guess AI is getting closer to the real deal but it will never reach perfection.. On a different level I love it, AI is reading all the manuals of my synths and I can do stuff I never could do before..
Without giving too much away, what can we expect from Lauer in 2026? Any releases, collaborations, or directions you’re excited to explore in the months ahead?
There are more EPs coming on Altered Circuits and XXX and I’m working on a new album.. Let’s see ! Thanks.