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The first lockdown due to COVID-19 measures in early 2020 may not have been the initial 
reason for Michael – or Mike Z, as he likes to call himself under his DJ moniker – to retreat 
back to his basement and make music, but it certainly helped a lot to focus. For several years 
he‘d been making electronic music, but a professional career as head of the multimedia 
division of an important German retailer kind of stopped him cold. He’d do some DJ-ing once 
in a while, making himself a name as „connaisseur“ of French House, Electronic Dance 
Music, Soul, Jazz and Krautrock - but in terms of producing music himself, his synthesizers 
mostly were stowed away in the basement of his provincial home near the Bavarian Alps.
That is, up until he „finally found the device that enabled me to both arrange my music and 
perform it live“: The „Deluge“ groovebox by Synthstrom. After 15 years of mainly observing 
what was happening in terms of electronic music around the world, he got back to his initial 
passion for making music, teaming up with some friends to found MidiConfusion: Three 
people, their synthesizers and sequencers and a singer. 
With tracks like „Keine Ahnung“ and „The Economy of Religion“ they managed to translate 
German Angst, early German New Wave and a certain Punk vibe into contemporary 
dancemusic, hitting the viral Zeitgeist on its head: „Du hast ja keine Ahnung, dass die Welt 
untergeht“ (You don’t have a clue about the world coming to its end“). Rarely has 
dancemusic been more prophetic than this.
So, with the world ending or at least forcing its population into their basements as the 
second and third waves hit: What does one do to keep his sanity? In case of Mike Z, it’s 
pursuing a lifelong dream. After having performed with MidiConfusion first live and then 
through several live stream events during the lockdown phase, he started to give his own 
passion a go: With one of his first solo outings fittingly being called „Lockdown (The Virus)“ 
and with more rhythmic ideas to fill the dancefloors of our minds.
„Because that’s the beauty not only about „Deluge“, but about dancing in general: I am able 
to produce in my basement as well as in the car, in my garden or at the beach. Anywhere, 
really. And the same goes for dancing. With all the clubs and venues being closed at the 
moment, no one is stopping you to take your dancing to your garden, the street or the 
basement.“ 
Says Mike Z who’s now releasing „Tears“ as his next single. Calling it a tune that’s “travelling 
along the lines of hope and hopelessness”, his melancholic “Tears” seem to be a perfect fit 
for times like these: “With the world shutting down once again and people being forced to 
get along by themselves, I wanted to put out a statement.” A signal of hope not only for the 
world, but for the worldwide Electronic Music community as well. “Life will eventually go 
back to normal. And when it does, I will be one of the first to follow my tears with frenetic 
dancing.”
“Tears” by Mike Z will be released on November 27th.