Woody

Woody is the performing name of German DJ and producer Naufel Ksaier. He is based in Germany and releases music on Fumakilla. His work sits in electronic music, with references to drum and bass, liquid funk, minimal, and pluggnb among the tags associated with him.

Background and DJ work

He starts out in Munich’s graffiti and breakdance scene in the mid-1980s, where he is already a skilled breakdancer before becoming a DJ. He plays his first gigs at Munich’s Babalu Club and helps launch the city’s techno scene through an after-hours series that is later banned by the Bavarian authorities. His reputation grows quickly enough for bookings in Berlin, Cologne, and Frankfurt, and he moves to Berlin in 1992.

In Berlin, he becomes resident DJ at the club concept Planet, which later becomes the E-Werk. His sets combine techno, house, electrofunk, and older dance tracks, and he becomes associated with the development of Berlin’s nightlife sound. He also performs at the Love Parade finale on an annual basis.

Production and label work

Woody launches Fumakilla in 2000 after finishing his first productions. The label is intended as a home for emerging producers and for a modern club-funk sound. His first remix, Woody vs. Kissogramm on “If I Had Known This Before”, enters the German charts directly. In 2002 he remixes Felix da Housecat and 2-Raumwohnung.

His productions draw on Chicago jack-house, Detroit techno, and electro influences, with an emphasis on small melodic changes and a style he presents as funk-driven club music. He is also described as a sought-after remixer in Germany.

Style and reputation

Woody is known for a freestyle approach that moves across techno and house, shaped by funk and electro roots. He travels widely across continental Europe, Scandinavia, the United States, and Japan for club appearances. At home, he runs his own club nights, choosing the guest line-up himself and overseeing visual presentation as part of the event.

Other details

His first album is titled Woody, and it is named after him. He is also the second person in his family to be called Woody, after a late uncle who used the same name.

One version of his biography also describes him as a drum and bass and electronic artist from Nottingham, but the main published details place him as a German DJ and producer.