French producer, performer, and multi-instrumentalist Petit Biscuit – aka Mehdi Benjelloun – returns to Australia this month.
Performing in Brisbane, Byron Bay, Melbourne, the Gold Coast, the Hunter Valley, Sydney, Wollongong, and Perth, Petit Biscuit isn’t only bringing his unique brand of electronic music to Australia, but he’s also inviting homegrown DJs to be a part of the tour.
Last month, the dance music pioneer launched a competition to find support acts in multiple cities: the shows at Byron Bay’s Arts Factory, Melbourne’s Prince Bandroom, the Gold Coast’s Elsewhere, Sydney’s Manning Bar, Wollongong’s Frisky Flamingos, and Perth’s The Court.
Entries are now open and close on Friday, 11 September, at 11:59 pm. Winners will be contacted after submissions close. You can enter the competition here.
After he wraps his Australian tour, Petit Biscuit will showcase the next chapter of his prolific career with his new album, Insomnia, scheduled for release on Wednesday, 21 October, through his own label, Écurie.
To celebrate the tour, The Music caught up with Petit Biscuit to discuss his impending return to Australia and giving back to emerging electronic artists. Check out the interview below.
The Music: You’re returning to Australia for the first time in seven years next month. What are you most excited about regarding your return?
Petit Biscuit: I'm trying to piece back together memories from my last Australian tour, which was in 2018, and I remember a very warm crowd, an energy quite different from what I've experienced elsewhere. That said, I don't really have memories of the landscapes, and I'm looking forward to building new ones.
The tour was extremely packed back then, and it still is this year. I'm coming back as a DJ, and I can't wait to play not only my own stuff but also the music that's inspiring me and making me dance right now. I want to really enjoy the shows, soak up the scenery, maybe even get inspired to write new music from it.
TM: Launching a competition to have Australian DJs join you on this tour is a genius idea. Is this something you’ve done in other countries?
PB: This is the very first time I’m doing this kind of contest. I was lucky to get discovered very early with my music, but I know that's rare, so I'm always thinking about ways to give strength to emerging artists, whether through collabs or opening slots.
I'd love to push that even further: build real bridges between talented people and an audience. I've been putting music out independently for a long time through my label, Écurie. Today, releases on Écurie are exclusively mine, but I've had this idea for years to open it up to other kinds of releases: singles, EPs. I'm currently figuring out the best setup to offer artists.
TM: What inspires you to give back to emerging electronic music communities?
PB: Emerging artists have a different way of approaching music. Business matters way less to them; they focus almost entirely on their artistic vision. I listen to a lot of music from up-and-coming artists because it's fresh, innovative, sincere.
I connect with it more artistically, and it keeps my curiosity alive. I don't buy it when people say we've done everything already, that there's nothing left to invent musically. I think the future of music creation rests on emerging artists, even without them realising it.
TM: Who are some up-and-coming DJs and producers you think your fans need to listen to?
PB: Here's a few of my recent discoveries. Not just DJs but producers and composers from all kinds of backgrounds:
glittr
pandi
NASAYA
Post Meridiem
Dorian Concept
AMNES
Suray Sertin
Pocket
Cult Member
Yaego
TM: Your new album, ‘Insomnia,’ is out in October. Whether or not fans have been following your recent music, what can they expect going into this new release?
PB: This new release, Insomnia, is something very different that I haven't explored before. I've been fascinated by movie soundtracks and ambient music, listening to these genres for hours because it felt like going back to the basics of music: melodies, silence, spatialization and tempos.
It was obvious that I was starting to make this kind of stuff, and it also has a little reminder of my old work, which was more instrumental. I want people to listen to the album with their eyes closed, focused not only on the music but on what the music makes them see.
TM: With ‘Sunset Lover’ approaching a billion streams, did you imagine this song would have such an impact on your career?
PB: I never imagined Sunset Lover could have this kind of impact on my career. At the time, I didn't even imagine having any kind of career in music. I've always been driven by passion and instinct, and that's what I'll hold onto until the end.
I don't want to end up like all those projects that disappointed me, ones that felt more like industry than music. I want to keep my project alive without compromise. It's always an absolute joy to play Sunset Lover live and to see people's faces, to hear how the song affected them personally.
TM: You founded the record label Écurie to release your music independently. What kind of challenges and successes have you experienced by pursuing an independent path?
PB: I talked about this earlier, but when I was going around to different labels about a potential signing, my lawyer explained that I could do things differently, that I was capable of defending my own music and that I could choose independence instead. So I listened to him, and I'm thrilled about it today.
It gives me so much artistic freedom that a lot of labels would never have allowed. I stay in control of my creations, my investments, and I can test out different release setups. I was able to take a break when I really needed one. Insomnia is coming out soon, and it's a project that would have been hard to pitch to labels, so I'm glad I made this choice.
Tickets to Petit Biscuit’s upcoming tour are now available.
