Phonique invited me to play in Berlin about 7 years ago. His "King's Club" residency night in the WMF had a House sound which developed with time, while its roots stayed. I always appreciated the unique groove of his tracks and their particular atmosphere, especially in his first productions on Intim and Poker Flat. The three tracks that he composes for Lucy Lee (with his partner Alex Krüger, aka Dub Taylor) are all very powerful and revisit his sources to reveal a beautiful evolution and contemporary sound. 'The Night' ( A1) is certainly the strongest track, together with 'Deep Tool' ( B2), House fans who now find themselves in minimal should be happy. 'Similarity' (B1) presents another facet of Phonique, it's mood is more Electro-House but always melancholic. In three tracks we find this "particular spirit" which the Berliners like calling "Zeitgeist". An elusive concept that characterizes the German “wistfulness”. (Darko)

Michael Vater, aka Phonique, has been active in Berlin like few others ever since he moved there in the mid 90’s. He has always worked hard to bring new talent to Berlin, presenting many previously lesser known djs and producers including, Glen Gunner (street corner symphony/block 16), lil tony (nu spirit helsinki/guidance), alexkid (f-com/ovum), llorca (f-com/brique rouge), joakim (tigersushi) or ivan smagghe (blackstrobe/volga select). Phonique’s very successful parties and club nights have earned him the deserved reputation as one of Berlin nightlife’s nice guys.

Phonique’s catalogue includes releases on Martin Landsky’s Intim recordings, Komfort Musik (Berlin), Seasons (USA), Brique Rouge (Paris), Crosstown Rebels (London), and notably on Steve Bug’s labels Poker Flat (for his more minimal productions) and Dessous (for his deeper side). Since his first remix for Doctorolive on the French label Bazoline, Phonique has been approached by numerous artists including Frankman (draft/fm), Soulcamp (Soulcamp), Le Tone (Naive), Funky Transport (Brique Rouge), Tonic Agents (Highgrade), Detroit Grand Pubahs (Poker Flat) and Erlend Oye (!k7).