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Agoria
BLOSSOM:
1. Feminim noun: The tree flower. Tree in blossom, apple blossom, cherry blossom.
2. Verb: To blossom, metaphorical: she had blossomed into a charming young women.
3. Title: Lyon’s born Agoria’s first album title. To be born, growing, hatching, becoming…
AGORIA:
" (...) I still have four hours before hitting the Promised Land. Trust me, the peregrinations of a DJ aren’t glamorous. Entire days of travelling from one city to another, from a next door neighbour to a friendly continent, hours of boredom, a sore back from lifting the fly case repeatedly. Looking to see if a friendly DJ face is, by chance, in the same boarding lounge. We could have had political discussions; French are famous for it, apparently. But the arena is empty. Are travelling DJs an endangered species? With no colleagues around, I have never read so much as in the past few years. Everything the state education system failed to develop in me was compensated for by easy-jet’s delays, the rail system’s paralysis and the air traffic controller’s strike which have all awoken it.
A young lady shows off her I-Mac that still has the sweet fragrance of polystyrene. Maybe she’s about to download MP3s. What about my royalties? Would she be the kind to buy Final Scratch for her godson? Me, I prefer going through my old fly case. It is more spontaneous, a bit more human. I am not sure if the next generation will have the same sensory desires. As for me, I will wait, unless my back gets the better of my good sense.
The plane descends. I am galvanized by landing in this legendary city, the city of Motown, of the Temptations, of Diana Ross… and also the one of Underground Resistance, Transmat, KMS, Planet E, Metroplex... Meeting all the icons who made me love this music…»
With just a few Eps, Sebastien Devaud aka AGORIA has asserted himself as one of the most promising French producers on the dance scene.
His mother an opera singer and his father a visionary architect, provide him with a rich and cultural background, no doubt playing its part in the development of his artistic talents.
Starting off his career with a hectic DJing schedule [playing at many international clubs alongside renowned artists such as Jeff Mills, DJ Hell, Kevin Saunderson, Carl Cox and Ritchie Hawtin, to name but a few], he quickly became frustrated only playing other people’s tracks and fervently began to produce his own material from 1999.
Influenced by the Detroit sound, AGORIA has a unique groove, melody and a dancefloor approach to his music. Numerous French independent labels like UMF, TEKMICS and ZEBRA 3 or A-Traction were immediately charmed by the French prodigy and released his first productions.
In 2000, he was the first DJ to be taken on by the prestigious FAIR, a French support fund for new acts, signing his first publishing contract with peermusic the same year.
The year 2002 marked a new era for him when he signed to [PIAS] and released the first EP called ‘La 11ème marche’.
In a very short period of time, this techno anthem had been playlisted by the best international DJs [from Laurent Garnier to Hell, including Andrew Weatherall, Alexander Kowalski, Angel Molina and Funk D’Void] and top radio DJs Pete Tong, Seb Fontaine, Fergie and Colin Murrey.
The British press could barely contain their enthusiasm and called it “one of the most emotive tracks of the year” [MIXMAG], while MUZIK described it as: “Paris meets Detroit groove only much much bigger”.
The follow up EP ‘Sky is clear/Kofea’ was released shortly after and was equally welcomed. This second hit consolidated his reputation as one of the hottest new faces outside the limits of French’s frontiers. “Another winner” [MUZIK], “Devaud maakt intrigerende techno met een housey inslag” [GO Magazine], “Coming hot on the heels of the much lauded 'La Onzieme Marche', Agoria's roll shows no sign of stopping. Unmissable” [DOTMUSIC].
Friendships and aspirations in music get more and more diverse, resulting in a new EP ‘Touched By…’ [May 2003] featuring ‘Kofea’ remixed by Eedio ‘The’ French producer, from Clermont-Ferrand [Bpitch Control], to keep an eye on, ‘Sky is Clear’ entirely re-thought by Kompakt label boss Michael Mayer, and the inevitable ‘La Onzieme Marche’ remixed by Alexander Kowalski, the rising star of Kanzkeramt.
Meanwhile, AGORIA works in his den, named the Circle Room, a year of non stop sessions, polishing, construction, doubt, happiness, destruction… all alone, most of the time.
At a Deviant Groove party (Paris), he meets Sylvie Marks [Bpitch Control]. She listens to a demo, goes home to Frankfurt… asks for the parts and puts her voice beside Kofea’s vocals [an imaginary character]. ‘Spinach Girl’ is born.
One evening in Paris, Tricky listens to an instrumental six times in a row. Verdict: “It’s the best hip hop track I have heard for ages!” In the bathroom of his hotel room, Tricky finds the theme and the lyrics. He wants to record straight away. ‘2thousand3’ is done the next day.
A few weeks later, Sebastien finishes his remix of the legendary ‘Big fun’ from INNER CITY. Immediate enthusiasm from Kevin Saunderson, they exchange a few emails and Kevin’s wife – Ann Saunderson [the voice behind Octave One’s ‘Black Water’] – records ‘Worth It’… followed by an invitation to play at MOVEMENT – edition 2003 of the Detroit Electronic Music Festival – sharing the stage with his idols Kevin Saunderson, Juan Akins & Kenny Larkin.
Lyon’s prodigy finishes his debut album on a cloud. Born on the 22 of September…
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