Ackermann is a Stuttgart based producer, label owner and mostly, former DJ. We’ve been a huge fan of his work at SEVEN since forever and we were super excited when he agreed to join our first Various Artists compilation. A prolific producer he is already a veteran on the underground scene.
He’s the perfect artist for a label to work with – impeccable production, delivers on time, full of thoughtful opinion and expertise built from well over a decade working in music. SEVEN’s Glenn Elliott sat down with Ackermann over Google Docs and Zoom to find out more about him, his music and his production workflow.
Ackermann: In the Studio and Beyond
Andres, better known as Ackermann, is a man of many identities. With six secret aliases, a deep love for music production, and a career spanning decades, he’s crafted a sound that is raw, emotional, and always evolving.
While Ackermann might not be his biggest alias, it’s the one he’s most active with these last few years—and, as he puts it, his “favourite”.
Since stepping away from DJ gigs due to long COVID, Andres has focused on his work as a mastering engineer and producer, a shift that, in retrospect, happened at the right time.
“I spend most of my time in my studio, which is basically a bunker,” he laughs.
He told us how much he missed the DJ life and loved playing shows to a live crowd but the decision was necessary so he could manage his family life, his health and be a good father to his two children. Having DJ’d for 20 years, internationally for eight he has plenty of experience and memories to draw on.
“No one likes the traveling, but the rest is great. You get to know new people, discover new cities, play in new clubs, play your favorite music on hopefully good PAs and loud sound. Playing live is the best so yes I absolutely do miss it”
He doesn’t rule out a return to DJ’ing maybe in the future But the decision to stop playing live did have a positive impact on his studio output.
“Without DJ’ing I just have more working days in the week. I used to DJ twice every weekend so Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and mostly Monday was gone. And afterwards, when I stopped my output blew up, I had so much more energy and time”.
The pressures on a busy producer can mount up. Ackermann told us about the pressure of remix deadlines, EP deadlines and Album deadlines. Managing all of this with a successful career as a touring DJ and all of the travel, missed sleeps and jet lag that that brings is tough.
“I think also the work gets better, not only less pressure, but also the quality gets better because you don’t have to worry about all these things anymore.”
Ackermann is a Musician’s musician.
Interviewing Ackermann you really get the feeling that you are talking to someone who was born to be in music, it’s just something he loves. His knowledge of genres and producers borders on encyclopedic and his enthusiasm for listening to, talking about and sharing music is infections.
When I asked him for a favourite producer, he gives me eight, when I ask him for his favourite Mr G track he gives me 4. When I asked him to curate a Spotify playlist for SEVEN he had 50 tracks on it within 3 hours.
He told us what an important role it plays in his life. “I’m just a huge music fan and I always have been. I always bought a lot of records and love DJ’ing. Sometimes people asked me why I don’t play more of my own productions in my sets but I just love listening to other music too and really want to share it.”
“When I don’t make music, I get in a bad mood. I can’t go on holiday for too long or without my MacBook.
When I’m not making music I turn into an asshole. To be a stable and centered and to function in this society. I need this outlet and if I wouldn’t have it, I don’t know what I would do.”
But being so deeply connected to music and sound has the occasional small downside which he shared:
“Something only my girlfriend knows—until now—is that I can’t really watch horror movies that have really great sound design. The less visual they are, the worse it gets for me. I once watched The Babadook on a Flixbus to a gig, and when I arrived, the promoter asked if I was okay because I looked completely disoriented. ”
From Hardcore to House
Ackermann’s journey into electronic music didn’t start with dance music at all. As a kid, he was drawn to rock—first to Roxette, then to New York Hardcore acts like Sick of It All. “I went to loads of shows underage, played in bands, and picked up the guitar.”
The turning point came when he discovered The Prodigy, a group that bridged the energy of punk and electronic music. From there, it was a deep dive into jungle, DJ Shadow, and the Mo’ Wax era, which led him to getting an Akai Remix 16 MPC and producing solo.
“Back then, everything I liked in electronic music had a breakbeat. I didn’t get 4/4 kicks at all—until I ended up at Gus Gus’ Attention album release party in Reykjavik. They destroyed the place just by playing their own record, stagediving to it. That’s when I realised 4/4 can rock too.”
Labels, Trust, and Safe Spaces
Having released on many labels, Andres knows what matters in an artist-label relationship: transparency.
“Replying to emails and sending royalty reports—sounds basic, right? But so many big labels don’t even do that.”
Disillusioned, he focused on his own label, Safe Space, for a few years. But thanks to experiences with labels like Marco Faraone’s Uncage, his trust was restored.
“Marco supported me a lot when I toughened up the Ackermann sound. That gave me the confidence to work with other labels again. Still, I do most things on Safe Space—on my own conditions and timelines.”
The Art of Letting go, finishing music and shipping it.
If there’s one secret to Ackermann’s prolific output, it’s finishing everything.
“No matter how painful it gets, I finish 99% of my drafts. There’s a point where you have to stop polishing and overthinking. The unpolished versions often have the most emotion.”
Despite this commitment to completion, his relationship with his own music is complicated.
“I almost always dislike my tracks after finishing them. But I’ve learned that the opinion that counts is the one I had when I made it.”
Creativity comes in waves.
“I have months where I can’t finish anything, but then I’ll get a period where I bang out five or six tracks a week. I ride that wave hard—16-hour studio days—until I burn out. Then I switch to collecting samples and making presets, stocking up for the next wave.”
The Sound of Life
Ask people for their favourite Ackermann track, and everyone gives a different answer. He gets it—his own favourites change daily.
“Most of the tracks I still like were made quickly, before I could overthink them.”
Right now, his favourites are from his upcoming album The Feeling That Brought Me Here. “These tracks survived the test of time for me. But from my past releases, Sounds of Life still gives me goosebumps. That chord and the Lee Perry speech just hit.”
Some tracks hold a deeper, personal meaning.
“The whole Kintsugi EP was made in emergency situations. My daughter had pneumonia, then I had pneumonia. That record didn’t sell tons, but it’s the one I’m most proud of because it helped me get through.”
No Room for the Fake
When asked what he’d change about the industry, Andres doesn’t hesitate.
“I wish we could reset or ban social media. There are so many great producers and DJs out there whose spotlight is stolen by people gaming the system—buying numbers, following formulas, but offering nothing creatively.”
He’s frustrated by how this culture influences newcomers. “It makes them think they have to water down their music, dumb down their social media game to survive. It should be about creativity, emotion, and skill—not numbers, formulas, and appearance.”
The Making of Make You Wanna Do Right
Ackermann’s track for SEVEN’s first VA is “Make You Wanna Do Right”. It’s a fast-paced production sitting right in the sweet spot between house and techno that we love at SEVEN.
Straightforward drums meet syncopated elements, creating a compelling rhythm. The musical arrangement adds playful interactions between piano, vocals, and synth sounds, crafting an overall funky atmosphere.
I wanted to know how the track came about and how it was produced.
The track came together in an unusual setting: poolside in Spain with headphones and his MacBook. “I started it on holiday with my family, watching my daughters swim, feeling great, and I wanted to capture that.”. He had heard a Bossa nova guitar and that inspired him.
Ackermann started with a fast-paced beat, then found a bossa nova guitar sample that fit perfectly. “I chopped it up using Recycle, played it on the keyboard, and added piano and bass. The vocal sample was already in my head—I knew exactly where it was in my library.”
“I still really like the track, which is unusual. Sometimes by the time a track is released I’ve heard it so many times I’m bored with it.”. Maybe this is partly because hearing it reminds him of that happy family holiday: “It brings back Summer for me every time I hear it”
“I chop everything old-school in Recycle, map the chops to my MIDI keyboard, and play them like an instrument. I leave things unquantized a lot to keep them groovy. It’s a habit from my MPC days.”
What’s Next?
Can fans expect more in this genre moving forward? Maybe. Maybe not. “I never know what I’m going to make next. I just start and see where the vibe takes me. But my next album will surprise people—it surprised me.”
His first album was an experiment—piecing together ideas like his 14-year-old self would have done with today’s technical skills. “This time, I saved every track where I thought, ‘That’s a hit!’ for years. Every tune could be a single.”
It’s been a long road, but he’s finally ready. “I had label offers but decided to release it myself. It just felt right. I mean, it’s called The Feeling That Brought Me Here, so it NEEDS to be on Safe Space.”
Ackermann recommends…
Favourite producers? “Mr. G is the GOAT. Altinbas, Overmono, Zake Drone, Wun Two—I could go on forever. My record collection is becoming a serious problem.”
Dream remixer? “Mr. G, no question.”
Favourite tracks on SEVENVA01? “I like all of them, but right now, Retromigration and Sol Ortega’s tracks stand out. Ask me tomorrow, and I might say something else.”
With a relentless drive to create and an unapologetic approach to artistry, Ackermann is an artist who lets the music do the talking. And if the waves of inspiration keep coming, we’re in for a lot more to talk about.
Ackermann on SEVEN
Achermann’s track record”Make You Wanna Do Right” is out now on Digital Download and 2×12″ Vinyl. You can find it on SEVEN’s Bandcamp, at the best record stores or stream it on Spotify and all major streaming platforms.
You can also find an exclusive Ackermann curated House mix for SEVEN on Spotify. 49 tracks and over 4 hours of perfectly selected House music, it’s a real treat and an office favourite for us at SEVEN.
More Ackermann
Ackermann’s label Safe Space lives here on Bandcamp
You can follow Ackermann here on Spotify
And he is here on Instagram and here on SoundCloud
You can buy SEVEN’s VA01 Various Artist album on digital and Vinyl at specialist record stores and on our Bandcamp.
PS….
For the curious, the track that connected SEVEN to Ackermann originally was this one: Left the Club Tipsy from his Sounds of Life EP. CRYME had it as a regular in his 2022 club sets and Glenn loved it and that’s how the connection to Ackermann was born.
Interview by Glenn Elliott