Dan Andrei

Dan Andrei is the Arpiar artist most likely to surprise you. A Romanian DJ and producer from Craiova, he joined the Sunrise agency around 2010, released a record on Arpiar in 2011, and became only the second artist to put out a full-length on the label. His music pulls from rock, hip-hop, soul, funk and trip-hop as much as from minimal.

This page is about the Romanian electronic artist, not the unrelated Romanian musician Dan Andrei Aldea or anyone else with a similar name.

Early Life and Path Into Music

XLR8R's 2020 history of Romanian house and techno says Dan Andrei is from Craiova, west of Bucharest, and lists his early influences as rock, hip-hop, soul, funk and trip-hop. No date or place of birth is published in the sources we could open. Discogs describes him as a DJ and producer from Romania, and his earliest listed records appear in 2008 and 2009, including a 12-inch on Kurbits Records in 2009.

XLR8R says he signed to the Sunrise agency around 2010 and became one of its younger artists. For how Sunrise, the label Arpiar and the Black Sea festival Sunwaves fit together, see our history of Romanian minimal techno.

Sound and Style

His sound is looser than the strict minimal reputation of the Romanian scene suggests. XLR8R called Parcul Cosmos an abstract outing, and the same feature describes his track "Monite" as a broken-beat synth cut recorded live in one take in about two hours. He says it "was based solely on intuition" and that no thought process was involved, according to XLR8R.

That improvised, instrument-first approach separates him from his label family. Rhadoo, Raresh and Petre Inspirescu built Arpiar around long, hypnotic club records, and Dan Andrei plays alongside them at Arpiar events, XLR8R reports, while taking the music somewhere stranger.

Labels and Releases

Discogs gives a clear timeline. In 2009 he released on Kurbits Records, and in 2010 he put out Muzici Mai De ... EP on Jesus Loved You, which XLR8R also names alongside Be Chosen among his later labels. His Prima In Cerc Are EP arrived on Arpiar in 2011. Parcul Cosmos, a double 12-inch album on 180 gram vinyl, followed on Arpiar on 18 December 2015, according to Discogs, and XLR8R says it made him only the second artist to release a full-length on the label, after Petre Inspirescu.

After that he moved around. Discogs lists Loose Dots EP on Amphia in 2019, and XLR8R says he self-released his second album, Vreau Sa Ma Simt Bine, in 2020, which his Bandcamp page also lists. He returned to Arpiar in 2023 with the House, Stage, Backstage EP, then released Numan's Touch EP on Rainbow Hill and Clockworks EP on Pressure Traxx in 2024, plus records on Rainbow Hill and Half Baked in 2026, all per Discogs.

His records also move through the same small network as Cezar Lazăr's Understand and Our Own, which XLR8R says Cezar founded with Rhadoo.

Career Highlights

• Signed to Sunrise around 2010, per XLR8R.
• Prima In Cerc Are EP on Arpiar in 2011, per Discogs.
• Parcul Cosmos, only the second full-length on Arpiar, December 2015.
• Vreau Sa Ma Simt Bine, self-released in 2020 as his second album.
• A return to Arpiar in 2023 with the House, Stage, Backstage EP.

FAQ

How old is Dan Andrei?

Dan Andrei has not published his date or year of birth in any source we could open, so we do not give an age. Do not confuse him with the unrelated Romanian musician Dan Andrei Aldea.

Where is Dan Andrei from?

Dan Andrei is Romanian and comes from Craiova, according to XLR8R. His Bandcamp page lists his current location as London, UK.

What genre does Dan Andrei play?

Dan Andrei plays minimal and deep electronic music with broken-beat and live-synth leanings. XLR8R lists rock, hip-hop, soul, funk and trip-hop among his early influences.

What is Dan Andrei's real name?

No distinct real name is public. He records and performs under his own name, Dan Andrei, and Discogs lists the alias Aloe Varu.

What is Parcul Cosmos?

Parcul Cosmos is Dan Andrei's 2015 album on the Romanian label Arpiar. XLR8R says it made him only the second artist to release a full-length on the label, and Discogs dates it to 18 December 2015.

Is Dan Andrei part of Arpiar?

He is a regular at Arpiar events, playing alongside Raresh, Rhadoo and Petre Inspirescu, according to XLR8R, and has released on the label several times. XLR8R does not list him among its three founders.

When did Dan Andrei sign to Sunrise?

XLR8R says he signed to the Sunrise agency around 2010, becoming one of its younger artists.

related on rts.fm

• Rominimal: The History of Romanian Minimal Techno→