DJ Zorneus

DJ Zorneus is the stage name of Christophe Schaendel, also active under the aliases DJ Kryst-Off, Kenobi, and under his real name Christophe Schaendel. He is also known by the variants DJ Zornéus, Zorneus, Zorneus DJ, and Zornéus.

He began his career at the age of 13 under the name DJ Christophe. After several years of mixing, he co-founded the mobile disco “Project Control” with his friend Stéphane; it became very successful in Alsace, and by age 14 he was DJing for 1,600 people in Seebach.

In 1995, he started working as a host on the local radio station Mélodie FM, presenting the show “Mélodie Techno Dance,” then “New Mix” after the station was acquired by the NRJ group. In 1996, he took his first steps in nightclubs at “Le Métro,” one of Alsace’s most famous venues: DJ on Thursday and Sunday afternoons, then weekend light-jockey, before securing the Friday-night residency.

In 1998, management entrusted him with a new club, “Le Subway.” He then dropped the stage name “DJ Christophe” and became DJ Kryst-Off, and he also opened a DJ school in Alsace. To give the venue a new dimension, he produced the single “Welcome To The Subway,” becoming the first resident DJ in Bas-Rhin to release a single for a nightclub. The track sold 1,000 copies in eight weeks, reached No. 1 on Top Music radio’s “Tous En Boite” chart, and was later included on the compilation album “French DJs” in 2000.

In 1999, he performed in Saint-Omer at an event organized by NRJ and MCM, alongside artists such as Air-V (from Manau), Mr Joy, and Sous Le Manteau, in front of more than 5,000 people. For Le Subway, he produced a second single, “What is a DJ ?”. In July 2000, he left Le Subway to join the creation of a nightclub in Germany, “Le Joker,” before moving on to other projects.

He then signed to the label Airplay Universal and released his first nationwide track, “Zorn: Stigmata,” which was featured on “Techno.com 6,” “Techno.com 2001,” and in 2002 on “Mallorca Dance Hits,” alongside artists such as Floorfilla and Rank 1. In 2001, he produced “Seaquest” with DJ L-K for the label Scorpio Music (Sony); it appeared on the compilations “Virus Techno 6,” “Mega Dj 3,” and in Belgium on News.

In September 2001, he created the nightclub “Le Zorn” in Laning (Moselle), potentially becoming the youngest nightclub manager in France. For his 25th birthday, on April 18, 2002, he released “Kontrol,” delivering a first hit for the venue. In 2003, he produced the hard-tech track “Testing” for DJ XDS from the agency Atomic’x, on the label V-Limited.

In October 2004, he opened a second nightclub, “La Crypte,” in Avricourt (Moselle). The following month, he launched the DJ Zorneus project with “The Crypt,” signed to Hypetraxx Records. The track became a success in several countries and was included on many compilations, including Viva Club Rotation vol. 28, Top Of Trance, Hardstyle Nation vol. 2, Mega Tuning vol. 8, Club Attack 2005, Hardstyle Session, and Hardstyle Mission. In March 2005, “The Crypt” appeared on more than 17 compilations and reached No. 4 on the Swiss club chart.

In June 2005, two new projects were launched: “Zorneus” with “Stigmata” (released as a picture disc), and Kenobi with “Underground,” both on Hypetraxx Records. In September, he officially launched his own label, Lochness Records, and moved into new premises equipped with a recording studio.

In December 2005, “Stigmata” reached No. 4 on the Swiss club chart. A new project, “Zorneus DJ Team,” was released with the track “Don’t Leave Me,” including a remix by Brooklyn Bounce. The Lochness Records website was also launched.

In April 2006, a new DJ Kryst-Off project appeared: “Kryst-Off vs Zorneus DJ” with the track “The Recall.” In January 2007, the project “Dr Zorn” – Ep1 ranked No. 2 on the charts in Austria. In May 2007, he opened a third nightclub, “Le Nexus,” in Surbourg (Alsace).