Afterlife / Siamese / Upperground / Simulate / Ellum 
Worldwide booking: citizenkain.booking@gmail.com

French DJ/producer/label boss Citizen Kain is the DJ’s DJ – his powerful tracks at the heart of sets by many a top name (Tale Of Us, Maceo Plex, Artbat, Solomun, Mind Against, Adriatique…). He releases on Afterlife, Ellum, Upperground, Siamese, Atlant, plays at global events such as Fusion Festival (DE), Marvelous Island (FR), Ying Yang Festival (Great Wall of China), Les Plages Electroniques, Sunburn Festival (India), Spilt Milk (South Africa), Les Nuits Sonores, Piknic Électronik… while supporting luminaries such as Artbat, Laurent Garnier, Adriatique, Adam Beyer, Maceo Plex, Solomun, Mind Against… 

 Add to that his impressive following on DSPs and honourable history (including jail!) as part of the French illegal rave scene and it’s high time he was more of a headliner in every sense of the word. So, he’s emerging from his ‘eminence gris’ status into the limelight, in time to make his new label’s name UNSEEN (launched Aug 2022 with ‘Kiss Me Again’) well and truly ironic as well as releasing his own new work, remixes and other artists. 2023 sees his track‘Ghosts & Shadows’ drop on Artbat’s label Upperground, after his ‘Ricochet’ dropped March 2023 on Adriatique's Siamese imprint – more big releases TBC amidst a hectic tour schedule.  

SOUND, STORY & EARLY INFLUENCES: Kain describes his sought-after and very strong individual sound as ‘Melodic Techno, always melodic, but with an edge and very groovy rhythmics. I mix genres of Techno, Hardcore, DnB and House from each period of my music development, defining a very fat, high energy sound.’ Other influences from 80s New Wave (Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk…), Punk, and his earliest youth playing guitar in a Metal band also enrich the mix. 

Kain’s childhood passion for making music began at age 10, an electric guitar from his parents leading to forming Metal bands with friends and gigging from age 15. He got the House/Techno bug soon after, and from 2002, he gave up a car factory job for full-time DJ/producing after a small legacy allowed him 2 years free to learn his craft, the one silver lining to the tragedy of losing his mother at age 20. From then on, he earned his living in music. A period of mainly Techno Hardcore/DnB eventually evolved into his current passion, Melodic Techno. 2006 saw his first vinyl release, and from 2007 he released vinyl on high stature labels and began serious touring. From gigs in local bars and clubs, to organising small illegal rave parties and then much bigger illegal events (which landed him briefly in jail!), he has lived his love of music on stage and never stopped. 

Early influences began with Metal, Hardcore and Punk (Biohazard, Sick Of It All, Madball, Agnostic Front, Fugazi, Discharge) while playing in bands, then when DJing it was Electro/New Wave like Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk, Joy Division, The Cure that got him into Dance Music, seeing him through his Techno epiphany. 

RECENT RELEASES: As well as his 2023 July single ‘Ghosts & Shadows’ from a 4track VA EP on Artbat’s label Upperground, and lots more in the works, there was also ‘Ricochet’ March 2023 on Siamese while 2022 gave us ‘DRAG’, and ‘Pancho Villa’ (both on Tale Of Us' Afterlife), his label launch track ‘Kiss Me Again’ on UNSEEN, plus releases on BOg’s Atlant and a second track on Afterlife’s VA compilation, as well as a track ‘Supercycle’ with David Guetta’s alter ego Jack Back. He made his Ellum debut with ‘Charly Charly’ in 2021. His tracks are eagerly snapped up by DJs such as Tale Of Us, Maceo Plex, Artbat, Solomun, Mind Against, Adriatique, David Guetta, Laurent Garnier, Carl Cox, Dubfire, Richie Hawtin, Joris Voorn, Joseph Capriati…

PERFORMANCES: Citizen Kain has shared a stage with all the major artists since 2000, most recently Artbat, Maceo Plex, Solomun, Mind Against, David Guetta, Adam Beyer, Laurent Garnier, previously Richie Hawtin, Sven Vath, Ricardo Villalobos, Carl Cox, Dubfire, Luciano, and earlier, Underground Resistance artists like Mad Mike, Jeff Mills, James Pennington. He has a packed touring schedule for 2023. 

GIGS INCLUDE: Fusion Festival (Germany), Piknic Électronik Montreal, Ying Yang Festival (Great Wall of China), Les Plages Electroniques, Sunburn Festival (India), Spilt Milk (South Africa), Dream Festival (Mexico), I Love Techno (Europe), Sea You Festival (Germany), Marvelous Festival (France), Family Piknik Festival (France), Klubbers Day Festival (Spain), Big Bang Festival (France), Les Déferlantes Festival (France), Burning Beach Festival (Germany), Icarus Festival (Germany), Panoramas Festival (France), Eclipse Festival (Canada), Les Nuits Sonores (France).

Now Citizen Kain has stepped fully out of the shadows, with such a list of achievements and accolades, the sky’s the limit.

Marco Bailey is somewhat considered an icon when it comes to techno and the dance music industry as a whole. It starts with a beat, and for Marco that as in the late 80’s. In 2014 he celebrated 25 years of Marco Bailey, a true achievement for someone who is an ambassador for the scene as well as an amazing DJ and producer. 

He grew up in Belgium, and it all started out when he went to a small local club in his nearby city. At this point, he knew little and didn't have any musical heroes, but soon released that he would rather be behind the decks than on the dance floor. 

His break came in 2000 with his first EP on Carl Cox’s Intec imprint with “Play It Back”. Over the next couple of years he worked on his own imprint, launching MB Elektronics, with the first release in 2002 with “Caprioska”. The releases came flowing over the next few years, which saw the release of his critically acclaimed “Rube Boy” album back in 2004, soon followed by “Dragon Man” LP on John Digweed’s Bedrock in 2011.

His most recent album was with 12 track “High Volume” released back in 2013 on MB Elektronics, dubbed by some techno aficionados as a masterpiece. It was at this time, he also released an up close and personal documentary “Marco Bailey”.

His Electronic Force radio show has been a huge success from the get-go, with almost 300 episodes to date, he has had every artist on board from Carl Cox, Alan Fitzpatrick, Umek, Joseph Capriati, Sam Paganini and Carlo Lio. It’s heard by millions of listeners in more than 50 countries.

Marco has been touring relentlessly throughout his career, he’s an artist who can say he has probably played at almost every club in the world, and been listed at the top of major festivals. He hasn't stopped, and this summer was no exception his MATERIA brand taking a new home at Vista Club, Ibiza. Every Sunday, he offered artists including Sam Paganini, Carlo Lio, Julian Jewell, and Paul Ritch for the closing on the 28th August all came out to party with Marco and the crowd.

You can expect to see the MATERIA brand reach far and wide this year, with parties in London, Vienna, Amsterdam and Tokyo planned this winter. Mid October will see the release of the MATERIA compilation mix, a collection of tracks selected personally by Marco, of both his own releases and all the artists which played at MATERIA in Ibiza this summer. 

2017 continues to be another landmark year for Marco, with his first MATERIA residency considered a huge success, the brand looks to move worldwide, becoming a high-profile label and radio show as well and continuing to grow. He is a true pioneer of Techno, and has no plans to put on the brakes anytime soon.

What is MATERIA? 

A party where the want, need & desire to feel the love and vibrations on the dance floor is understood. Where music lovers can digest the passion in the percussion, the energy of the crowd coming together, experience the sensation of letting go - elements that constitute the foundation for what some may never get to fully experience... a pure musical journey. Embark on a global movement, as Belgium's Marco Bailey sets the mood for one unforgettable evening. Welcome MATERIA - where techno is valued as a religion, the dance floor has no limits, the crowd is united and melted together by sound - where the rules require two things: listen and live.

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