{"id":192,"date":"2020-02-21T13:04:39","date_gmt":"2020-02-21T12:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/astropolis.org\/booking\/?post_type=portfolio&p=192"},"modified":"2026-01-29T15:41:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T14:41:26","slug":"madben","status":"publish","type":"portfolio","link":"https:\/\/astropolis.org\/booking\/?portfolio=madben","title":{"rendered":"MADBEN"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Live – Dj set
Astropolis Records, Ellum<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Facebook<\/a> – Instagram<\/a> – Soundcloud<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

N\u00e9 dans le Nord de la France, Madben a gard\u00e9 de son adolescence le go\u00fbt de la d\u00e9brouille et un pseudo qui sent bon la warehouse. Le Lillois \u00ab vit \u00bb la techno depuis ses d\u00e9buts. D\u00e8s les ann\u00e9es 1990, il suit de pr\u00e8s cette nouvelle sc\u00e8ne via les flyers qu\u2019il trouve chez les disquaires de la ville. Avec ses potes, il passe des nuits en Belgique, au Fuse de Bruxelles, dans les soir\u00e9es Kozzmozz \u00e0 Gand ou dans des usines d\u00e9saffect\u00e9es \u00e0 Courtrai, territoire libre et id\u00e9al pour \u00e9couter le meilleur son de l\u2019\u00e9poque. Tout \u00e7a le pousse \u00e9videmment \u00e0 s\u2019associer avec d\u2019autres passionn\u00e9s pour organiser des soir\u00e9es \u00e0 Lille et ailleurs. Apr\u00e8s avoir vu et entendu des grands noms du genre, que ce soit Dave Clarke et sa dext\u00e9rit\u00e9 issue du hip-hop, la folie des lives de Speedy J ou les mix extra-terrestres de Jeff Mills ou de Green Velvet, Benjamin se lance. Dans sa chambre, il partage ses premi\u00e8res Technics MKII avec d\u2019autres copains, passant des heures \u00e0 essayer de caler des disques comme \u00e0 Detroit. La composition va arriver plus tard, \u00e9tape naturelle apr\u00e8s des ann\u00e9es de DJing et d\u2019\u00e9changes. En 2010, Benjamin met ses \u00e9conomies dans un studio rudimentaire : une paire d\u2019enceintes, un moniteur, un clavier MIDI et un ordinateur \u00e9quip\u00e9 de Reason et Ableton. Passionn\u00e9 par les sonorit\u00e9s des sortes Purpose Maker, de Blueprint ou de Tresor, ou la technique d\u2019autres artisans de la techno comme James Ruskin ou Surgeon, Madben peaufine sa musique et commence \u00e0 la diffuser en temps r\u00e9el sur SoundCloud. Pouss\u00e9 par ses potes, il envoie des d\u00e9mos \u00e0 Laurent Garnier<\/strong>, qui lui r\u00e9pond aussit\u00f4t : \u00ab Mortel. \u00bb Garnier passe un titre dans son \u00e9mission radio sur Le Mouv, It is What It Is<\/em><\/strong>. Les \u00e9coutes de Madben sont multipli\u00e9es par 100 et il s\u2019accoquine avec le festival brestois Astropolis, institution \u00e9lectronique hexagonale, qui va bient\u00f4t lancer son propre label. Top d\u00e9part. Madben s\u2019installe \u00e0 Paris en 2012. Il apprend en m\u00eame temps qu\u2019il s\u2019entoure de machines, composant son studio pi\u00e8ce par pi\u00e8ce, entre vintage et modernit\u00e9 : drum machine Elektron Analog Rytm, synth\u00e9 Kill Patrick Phenol, quelques modules Eurorack ou des bons vieux Moog ou Modor (fabriqu\u00e9s en Belgique !). Techno man total, \u00e0 l\u2019aise sur platines, en studio ou en live, il lui manquait un premier album. C\u2019est chose faite depuis Fr\u00e9quence(s)<\/em><\/strong>, sorti en 2018 sur Astropolis Records<\/strong>. Il y assoit son style de techno clair\/obscur en invitant ses pairs (Laurent<\/strong> Garnier<\/strong> et Manu Le Malin) et l\u2019artiste Rebeka<\/strong> Warrior<\/strong>. Ce disque lui a ouvert la porte des festivals et des clubs europ\u00e9ens et l\u2019a amen\u00e9 \u00e0 rencontrer ses nouveaux alli\u00e9s \u00e0 l\u2019international : Maceo Plex le recrute dans son \u00e9curie (Ellum Audio<\/strong>). Avec sa premi\u00e8re date au Berghain r\u00e9ussie en 2019, un tout nouvel horizon s\u2019ouvre \u00e0 lui. Plus r\u00e9cemment, il se fait remarquer lors de ses prestations au Printworks<\/strong> \u00e0 Londres, lors d\u2019Awakenings <\/strong>\u00e0 Amsterdam, au Berns<\/strong> \u00e0 Stockholm ou encore au De<\/strong> Marktkantine<\/strong> \u00e0 Amsterdam pour la fermeture du club culte en mai 2022. Un mois plus tard, Madben sort un premier album avec Trunkline<\/strong>, adaptation studio des impressionnants et dans-ta-face lives full machines, sans aucun ordinateur sur sc\u00e8ne, de son duo avec Yann Lean<\/strong>. Quant \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e9tape suivante, elle \u00e9tait \u00e9vidente : le spontan\u00e9 Fr\u00e9quence(s) <\/em><\/strong>r\u00e9clamait un petit fr\u00e8re. Une suite dans laquelle le sound-design et les arrangements des morceaux apparaissent encore davantage travaill\u00e9s, forts des nouvelles machines qui peuplent son studio, aujourd\u2019hui install\u00e9 \u00e0 quelques encablures de Nantes. Un pas de plus vers la puret\u00e9 technique, mais toujours la m\u00eame envie : s\u2019\u00e9mouvoir, s\u2019\u00e9vader, avec les pieds continuant de taper en rythme. Que l\u2019on parle d\u2019albums ou de DJ-sets, c\u2019est la m\u00eame \u00e9cole, celle d\u2019une techno qui a toujours \u00e0 c\u0153ur de raconter une histoire tout en faisant danser les clubs. Le r\u00e9sultat s\u2019appelle 3\u00e8me sens<\/em><\/strong>, comme une troisi\u00e8me voie loin des choix binaires, \u00e0 l\u2019image de cette musique qui ne sacrifie pas son sens du storytelling sur l\u2019autel de l\u2019efficacit\u00e9 dancefloor. Il y a des surprises dans les arrangements, des petits cadeaux qui se d\u00e9couvrent au fil des \u00e9coutes, mais quand c\u2019est la premi\u00e8re, la claque est \u00e9vidente, primale. C\u2019est \u00e7a la techno de Madben : reprendre les codes pour les emmener ailleurs, d\u00e9clarer son amour pour le clubbing sans tomber dans ses clich\u00e9s, calquer une sacr\u00e9e intelligence de production sur l\u2019imm\u00e9diatet\u00e9 de cette f\u00eate le portant depuis l\u2019adolescence. Un peu de Mad, beaucoup de Ben. Plus r\u00e9cemment, Madben a sorti un EP sur le label de l\u2019artiste italien Fedele, Obscura<\/strong>, dont le titre The Return of the Hoover<\/em><\/strong> reste la vente num\u00e9ro un du label depuis fin 2024. Il a \u00e9galement sign\u00e9 un EP sur le label hollandais EPM<\/strong>, un autre sur le label espagnol DSK Records<\/strong>, et il a collabor\u00e9 avec Belaria sur un titre \u00e9lectro, Into the Void<\/em><\/strong>, sorti d\u00e9but \u00e9t\u00e9 2025 sur le label Astropolis Records<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

EN<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Born in the North of France, Madben has retained a taste for DIY culture and a nickname that comes direct from the warehouse. The Lille resident has been \u201cliving\u201d techno since his emergence in the scene. From the 1990s, he followed this new scene closely via the fyers he found at local record stores. With his friends, he spent nights in Belgium; Fuse in Brussels, Kozzmozz partes in Ghent or in disused factories in Kortrijk – free and perfect territory to listen to the best sounds of the tme. Following on he pushed to join forces with other enthusiasts to organize events in Lille and elsewhere. Afer seeing and hearing big names in the genre, whether Dave Clarke and his dexterity from hip-hop, the madness of the live sets of Speedy J or the extraterrestrial mixes of Jef Mills and Green Velvet, Benjamin launches his DJ career. In his room, he shares his frst Technics MKIIs with other buddies, spending hours trying to mix records with Detroit fair. Producton came later, a natural step afer years of DJing and a multtude of club exchanges. In 2010, Benjamin put his savings into a rudimentary studio, a pair of speakers, a monitor, a MIDI keyboard and a computer equipped with Reason and Ableton. Passionate about the sounds of Purpose Maker releases, Blueprint and Tresor and the technique of other techno artsans like James Ruskin or Surgeon, Madben polishes his music and starts broadcastng it in real tme on Soundcloud. Pushed by his friends, he sends demos to Laurent Garnier who immediately responds: Garnier plays a track on his radio show, \u201cIt is What It Is\u201d, on Le Mouv. Madben\u2019s name begins to grow and he teams up with Brest festval \u2018Astropolis\u2019, a French electronic insttuton, before launching his own label. Moving to Paris in 2012 he surrounds himself with machines, composing his studio piece by piece, between vintage and modernity: an Elektron Analog RYTM Drum machine, Kilpatrick Phenol synth, some Eurorack modules and good old Moog or Modor (made in Belgium) synths. Now totally immersed in techno, at ease on turntables, in the studio or live, he begins working on his debut album. Frequence(s), (2018) releases on Astropolis Records and he establishes his light\/dark techno style by invitng his \u2018fathers\u2019 (Laurent Garnier and Manu Le Malin) and artst Rebeka Warrior to collaborate. The record opens the door to European festvals and clubs and leads him to meet his new allies on the internatonal scene as Maceo Plex recruits him into his Ellum Audio family as Ben plays across Europe, including Berghain (Berlin), Printworks (London) Awakenings and De Marktkantne (Amsterdam) and Input (Barcelona). At the end of 2024, Madben releases a debut album with his Trunkline’ side project on Skryptom Records. This record sounds like a studio adaptaton of their pure techno live act, played with machines only, no computer on stage. It’s all about synths and drum machines jams played by four hands with his friend Yann Lean. As for the next step, the spontaneous debut Frequence(s) needed a litle brother. Focussing on sound design and arrangements, new machines began to populate his studio, now located not far from Nantes. Another step towards technical purity, but always the same desire: to be moved, to escape, with his feet contnuing to tap the rhythm. Whether we’re talking about albums or DJ-sets, it’s the same school of thought: techno that always has, at its heart, a story to tell while making clubs dance. The result was \u201cTroisi\u00e8me Sens\u201d, a journey of listening discovery that doesn\u2019t lose itself on the altar of dancefoor efciency. Naturally, afer several EPs, \u201cTroisi\u00e8me Sens\u201d found a home on Maceo Plex’s Ellum label. There are surprises in the arrangements, litle gifs that can be discovered over the plays, but foremost, the punch is obvious, primal even. This is Madben’s techno; borrowing codes to take them elsewhere, declaring your love for clubbing without falling into its clich\u00e9s and tracing a sacred producton intelligence that has carried him since adolescence. A litle Mad, a lot of Ben. Lately just afer \u201cTroisi\u00e8me Sens\u201d, Madben has quickly delivered few other EPs & remixes on Fedele’s Obscura label, on the Berlin based labels Mobilee & Mizi Muzik, on the UK\/Dutch label EPM Music, on the Belgian Tomorrowland’s x Core label. Madben also joined forces with French artst Belaria for an electro track on Astropolis records, and fnally, to close the 2025 year he just released \u201cDark shaman\u201d EP on the Barcelona based label DSK records.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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