Niklas Wandt

Niklas Wandt is a percussionist, producer, DJ, and radio host. He lives in Berlin, where his eclectic approach is heard most regularly in basement club Sameheads - a lush sonic palette with a hypnotic, heavily percussive drive, from tripped-out downtempo and afrofunky cosmic sounds (think Rimini 1995) to driving progressive and tribal house, trance, warped techno and warming tech house – high energy in smooth, long blends. The impeccable rhythmic feel is a reflection of Niklas’ musical roots in the world of drums - he has cut his teeth playing in hip-hop, psychedelic roc,k and free jazz projects and has been part of a number of projects centered around Salon des Amateurs in Düsseldorf. A wide, open-minded range of practices that still feed into his music today - at Salon he forged his musical bond with producer Jan Schulte aka Wolf Müller aka Bufiman. The pair released the acclaimed double LP "Instrumentalmusik von der Mitte der World" in 2018 via Growing Bin Records, whose blissful neo-Balearic sound still makes an impact today. Niklas can also be heard as part of the band Neuzeitliche Bodenbeläge (with records on the labels Themes for Great Cities, Bureau B and Lustpoderosa that became underground favorites) and in a duo with veteran producer Sascha Funke (two discs on Multi Culti, a third one on R.A.N.D. Muzik), plus on a string of releases for imprints such as Bureau B, Permanent Vacation, Animals Dancing, Neubau, Warning and Edizioni Mondo/Running Back. His various projects have taken him all across Europe (appearing at festivals like Nuits Sonores, Fusion, Garbicz, Unsound, Dancity), to China, Israel & Palestine, the US, Chile, Peru and Mexico. February 2025 will see the release of “Mineral House Vol. 1”, Niklas’ first collaborative EP with Amsterdam-based producer Retromigration, via the revered Berlin imprint Love on the Rocks. A music journalist, critic, and presenter by day, his features, portraits, and reviews mostly on jazz and its many branches can be heard regularly on German public radio stations WDR 3, Deutschlandfunk, and SWR Kultur.