Hit Me, Baby, One More Time With That House Music

Patrick Bodmer and Philipp Jung, originally from West Germany, now global citizens, come together like pretzels and beer when they perform as M.A.N.D.Y. Longtime friends, both worked in the music business. They produce and mix, “house music, we guess,” Jung says. He recently spoke with New Times about their native Germany, Britney Spears, and M.A.N.D.Y.'s June 2 show at Trade.

There's a Patrick Bodmer on Twitter who hails from Maryland and describes himself as a “young inspiring grain farmer." He has one follower and one tweet from earlier this year: “Never give up on your goals.”

“Yes, this might be the Patrick I know," Jung says. "Maybe it’s his secret account and he changed the profile photo. It could be him. He’s become more spiritual lately. It sounds like something he might say. And that quote about never giving up, that one always works.”

Jung laughs at the thought of a Maryland grain farmer with the same name as the other half of M.A.N.D.Y. He laughs again when remembering that their legendary 2006 track, "Body Language," was sampled by Jax Jones to the tune of 200 million Spotify plays.

“All the big hits are stripped down and simple," he says. "‘Body Language’ is no different; it’s one of the most famous bass lines in dance music. And then the band from the U.K. used it. It was good money, but it’s not something I’m proud of. Yeah, we are prostitutes.”

Jung’s timeline from childhood to M.A.N.D.Y. is dance-music folklore. As a kid, he remembers going into communist East Germany in early 1989 before the Berlin Wall came down. “We exchanged our currency for the eastern mark. I exchanged 25 deutsche marks, and it was amazing because I could not spend all the money because there was nothing to buy. There was nothing in the stores, nothing anywhere.”

“Rhythm Is a Dancer” and “The Power” helped launch his music career. He was an assistant for the German electro group Snap! Friday nights were spent at Omen, a legendary nightclub in Frankfurt owned by Sven Vath. From the pages of techno scripture, he has fond memories of marathon sets by Laurent Garnier and Carl Cox.

Around the turn of the millennium, M.A.N.D.Y. was created and the story began. Their early release “Put Put Put” must have sounded so proper at German nightclubs in 2001. It’s the ideal track for dancing with stiff posture while dressed in black. “Body Language” was named “Ibiza Track of the Season” in 2005, which is like an Olympic gold medal for house-music producers. Double Fantasy, their 2016 album, would sound nice poolside in Ibiza with chilled hierbas or sangria perhaps. The club mixes are coming soon and are certain to get play at Trade.

“I worked with Britney Spears and saw how she worked. I respect her — she worked hard. If you’re in it to get paid, then at least be honest about it. Me, personally, I’d rather play for 200 people in a real club than play for 10,000 who don’t truly understand the culture.”

M.A.N.D.Y. (Philipp Jung)
Friday, June 2, at Trade, 1439 Washington Ave., Miami Beach; 305-531-6666; trademia.com. Tickets cost $10 via residentadvisor.net.