Gabriel Ananda

Born Gabriel Ananda Levermann and originating from Cologne, he was interested in music at an early age but didn't get turned onto electronic dance music until 1995 when he experienced a live DJ set by Sven Väth. Within a few years' time, Ananda had made his debut as a techno producer, as half of the duo Da Hairy Belafontes on Hörspielmusik with the three-track EP Daylight Comes And We Don't Want To Go Home in 1998. In 2000 he made his solo debut, releasing 12" EPs on the Hörspielmusik sublabel Utils ("First Comment") and on the newly inaugurated Cologne-based label Karmarouge ("For Love"). Further releases for Utils (Suspect) and Karmarouge (Wild Cherry) followed in 2001, as did a couple releases on Shot Records (Headmusic for Bodymotion, Time to Rise). He then switched to the Traum sublabels Trapez and My Best Friend for Schaukeldrehen (2002), Wegeschwindel (2003), Highway to Heaven (2003), and Oh La La La (2003).