# Zip (musician)
Zip is the performing name of Thomas Franzmann, a German DJ and record selector based in Germany who co-founded the minimal house label Perlon in 1997 and has been active in electronic music since 1986.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) Before he became a club DJ he sang in synth pop and EBM bands, and since the late 1990s his career has centered on running Perlon's day-to-day operations and holding long residencies at Berlin's Panorama Bar and Offenbach's Robert Johnson.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) • [2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/) *Not to be confused with the ZIP file format or with Zip Co, the Australian fintech company.*
| Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Real name | Thomas Franzmann[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip) |
| Aliases | Dimbiman, Zip Campisi (RA); also Pantytec, Narcotic Syntax, PAL SL[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip) • [1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) |
| Born | 1970, Oberhausen, Germany[4](https://laut.de/Zip) |
| Label | Perlon, co-founded 1997 in Frankfurt, now Berlin-based, run with Markus Nikolai and Chris Rehberger[5](https://ra.co/labels/750) |
| Residencies | Panorama Bar (Berlin), Robert Johnson (Offenbach)[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) |
| Label night | Get Perlonized with Sammy Dee, running since 2000 or 2001[6](https://klubkultur.wordpress.com/2011/03/31/zip-interview/) • [7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) |
| Mix CD | fabric 67 (fabric Records, 3 December 2012)[7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) |
## Origins: Second Voice, Bigod 20 and the road to Frankfurt
Franzmann was born in 1970 in [Oberhausen](https://www.edgepedia.org/oberhausen).[4](https://laut.de/Zip) His musical history began in 1986 as the singer in the synth pop band Second Voice, with whom he released numerous EPs and two albums on Hyperium Records, a label run by the producer and former Yello member Carlos Perón.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) • [7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) He moved to [Frankfurt](https://www.edgepedia.org/frankfurt) and joined the EBM band Bigod 20, again as a singer; the CTM Festival archive and fabric London place the move and joining in 1992, while laut.de dates his joining to 1991.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) • [7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) • [4](https://laut.de/Zip)
Bigod 20 did not last. An encounter with a promo copy of Baby Ford's BFORD 9, as Franzmann told Pitchfork, broke up the band and pushed him and bandmate Markus Nikolai toward electronic dance music.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/) After Bigod 20 the two ran a club project called Loraine Comfort, and in 1996 Franzmann formed the audio-visual project Pile with Nikolai and Chris Rehberger.[7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) • [1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/)
## Perlon: founding and the minimal house sound
In 1997 Franzmann and Nikolai founded Perlon in Frankfurt; the label is now based in Berlin and is run by Zip, Nikolai, and Chris Rehberger.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) • [5](https://ra.co/labels/750) The founders released the first records themselves, Franzmann under the pseudonym Dimbiman.[4](https://laut.de/Zip) Perlon holds no exclusive artist deals, and Zip handles the label's day-to-day operations.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/)
Pitchfork credits Perlon, more than any other label, with the shape of minimal house and techno, pointing to Pantytec's truncated bump 'n' chug, Ricardo Villalobos' psychedelia, and Akufen's skipping microhouse.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/) The label grew deliberately: by 2006 it had released 56 records in nine years, spaced six to eight weeks apart, and Zip said a given single sold at least 2,000 copies.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/) Nikolai's 'Bushes', Perlon's biggest crossover hit, appeared on the 1999 SuPERLONgevity compilation and drew chart-topping remixes from Derrick Carter and [Fatboy Slim](https://www.edgepedia.org/fatboy-slim).[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/) • [1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) Zip has recounted that Villalobos' 'Frank Muller Melodrama' (PERL08) came out shortly after Villalobos first played Zip his demo material at home.[6](https://klubkultur.wordpress.com/2011/03/31/zip-interview/)
After the turn of the millennium, as Villalobos' releases on the label rose alongside his ascent to techno stardom, Perlon became a pioneer of minimal, and Zip progressively withdrew from production to concentrate on DJing and label management.[4](https://laut.de/Zip) The catalog since spans Baby Ford, San Proper, STL, Shackleton, Sammy Dee, Margaret Dygas, and Villalobos.[7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) Perlon's Frankfurt sibling label Playhouse, run by Heiko Schäfer and Ata from 1993 to 2012, developed the same minimal aesthetic through 12-inches by Villalobos, Isolée, Losoul, and Roman Flügel.[8](https://www.theshfl.com/collection/Playhouse)
## Get Perlonized and residencies
Get Perlonized is the Perlon label night, hosted by Zip and Sammy Dee. Zip dates the parties to 2000, calling the night their base party; fabric London dates the showcases to 2001.[6](https://klubkultur.wordpress.com/2011/03/31/zip-interview/) • [7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) Either way the night has run at [Panorama Bar](https://www.edgepedia.org/panorama-bar) in Berlin for roughly a quarter century, built on longer sets and a deliberately less structured concept that draws on the individuality of the label roster.[7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) Franzmann also holds residencies at [Robert Johnson](https://www.edgepedia.org/robert-johnson) in Offenbach and Panorama Bar.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) Pitchfork connects the party to Berghain's owners through their old space, Ostgut.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/)
## DJ style and reputation as a selector
Zip's sets are known for what [Resident Advisor](https://www.edgepedia.org/resident-advisor) calls tremendous minimal shifts within the 4/4 scheme.[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip) Fabric London describes a typical set as a discerning mix of heady 90s house woven with trippy minimal, and places Zip among electronic music's deepest selectors, in a lineage with diggers like Binh and Nicolas Lutz.[9](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/dancefloor-ids-ten-unforgettable-gems-played-by-zip) This reputation rests on selection rather than output: after 2000 he largely stepped back from producing, so his standing comes from what he plays and from running Perlon, not from a stream of his own releases.[4](https://laut.de/Zip) • [2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/)
## Aliases and collaborations
On Perlon Franzmann has released under several names: Dimbiman as a solo pseudonym, Pantytec with Sammy Dee, and Narcotic Syntax with James Dean Brown.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) Resident Advisor also lists Zip Campisi among his aliases.[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip) He has recorded with Peter 'Baby' Ford as PAL SL.[1](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/) His sole widely documented mix CD is fabric 67, released on 3 December 2012 with a launch in fabric's Room One alongside Craig Richards, Baby Ford, and Horror Inc., mixed on two turntables and two CD players.[7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67)
## Recent developments
Zip's performance schedule continues at festival and club level. He played Dekmantel Festival 2025 at the Amsterdamse Bos and Dimensions Festival 2025 at The Garden Tisno in Croatia.[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip) On 28 December 2024 a Watergate farewell party in Berlin billed Ricardo Villalobos, Magda, Roman Flügel, Ata, and Sammy Dee alongside Zip as long-standing Perlon affiliates.[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip) Get Perlonized continues beyond Panorama Bar: an edition at ZENNER in Berlin on 3 April 2026 featured [Sonja Moonear](https://www.edgepedia.org/sonja-moonear), Fumiya Tanaka, Sammy Dee, and Zip.[10](https://edmdancedirectory.com/events/get-perlonized-berlin-2026-04-03) The Perlon & Friends series also remains active, with an event at Tokonoma Club in Frankfurt on 27 June 2026 and the next show advertised for 29 August 2026 at Südpol in Hamburg.[11](https://evental.eu/germany/en/event/82890/)
## By the numbers
- **56 records** in Perlon's first nine years, spaced six to eight weeks apart.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/)
- **At least 2,000 copies** sold per single, according to Zip.[2](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/)
- **Roughly 25 years** of Get Perlonized, running from 2000 (per Zip) or 2001 (per fabric London) to the present.[6](https://klubkultur.wordpress.com/2011/03/31/zip-interview/) • [7](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67) • [10](https://edmdancedirectory.com/events/get-perlonized-berlin-2026-04-03)
- **2002**, the year of Zip's first event listed on Resident Advisor; his most-played clubs on the platform are Berghain | Panorama Bar, Robert Johnson, Hoppetosse, Watergate, and fabric.[3](https://ra.co/dj/zip)
## References
1. [Zip, CTM Berlin, Festival for Adventurous Music and Art](https://archive2013-2020.ctm-festival.de/archive/all-artists/u-z/zip/)
2. [Techno (Perlon feature), Pitchfork](https://pitchfork.com/features/techno/6389-techno/)
3. [Zip · Artist Profile, Resident Advisor](https://ra.co/dj/zip)
4. [Zip – laut.de – Band](https://laut.de/Zip)
5. [Perlon · Record Label, Resident Advisor](https://ra.co/labels/750)
6. [Zip interview, klubkultur, 2011](https://klubkultur.wordpress.com/2011/03/31/zip-interview/)
7. [NEWSFLASH: Zip to mix fabric 67, fabric London](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/newsflash-zip-fabric-67)
8. [Playhouse, The Shfl](https://www.theshfl.com/collection/Playhouse)
9. [Dancefloor IDs: Ten unforgettable gems played by Zip, fabric London](https://www.fabriclondon.com/posts/dancefloor-ids-ten-unforgettable-gems-played-by-zip)
10. [GET PERLONIZED at ZENNER, Berlin – Apr 3, 2026, EDM Dance Directory](https://edmdancedirectory.com/events/get-perlonized-berlin-2026-04-03)
11. [Perlon & Friends, Evental](https://evental.eu/germany/en/event/82890/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Music scenes › Transnational genre scenes › Electronic dance music (EDM) and rave culture › Artists, groups, and people: Electronic dance music (EDM) and rave culture › Techno and hard dance artists › Minimal, melodic, and club techno artists*
*Initially written Sep 19, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license