Alan Braxe

Alan Braxe started playing the clarinet and cello at an early age. In the late 1980s, he became a DJ in Paris. He started producing his own dance music using only a mixer, a compressor, and an Emu SP1200.

Within a year, Braxe's early demos attracted the attention of Thomas Bangalter, and Braxe's debut single, "Vertigo", was released in 1997 via Bangalter's Roulé label. In 1998, Braxe, Bangalter, and Benjamin Diamond decided to form collaborative project called Stardust, and their single "Music Sounds Better With You", which was released in the same year, was a hit, selling over 3 million copies.[1][2]

Following this success, Braxe in 1999 inaugurated his own record label, Vulture, releasing collaborations with the DJ and producer Fred Falke. He also remixed for a crew of artists both popular and underground – a list that features Beyoncé, Test Icicles, and Ford and Lopatin. Over the next two decades, Braxe's production credits and own releases swelled to nearly 100 titles.

While approaching the 20th anniversary of Stardust's smash success and the Vulture's launch, Braxe stripped his studio of all things digital, and starts to experiment with a Buchla modular synthesizer, echoing his first setup's minimalism, resulting in a more stripped back, simple and sparse analogue electronic sound. This resulted in The Ascent EP, that was released in 2019, with four tracks.[3]

In summer 2021, Alan Braxe, along with Henrik Olsen, released Another Life, under the alias Saudade, on Ministry of Sound Records. The track is produced by Hal Ritson (The Young Punx). The track is a throwback to the French House sounds of the late 90s.

In 2022, DJ Falcon and Alan Braxe debuted new music on a new record label Smugglers Way, an imprint of Domino, that intends to release new and old French house music from the duo and from other artists.[4] In addition to this, the pair announced the two had begun making music as a duo named Braxe + Falcon - with their first single in March, their first EP in August, and a debut solo album intended for release in early 2023. Their debut single features vocals from Panda Bear. A rerelease of Braxe's compilation album The Upper Cuts will release from Smugglers Way in November.[5]

1. Bein, Kat (28 June 2019). "Stardust On The Gay Bars, Firings & Failures That Led To 'Music Sounds Better With You'". Billboard.
2. Rogersonpublished, Ben (28 June 2019). "How Stardust made Music Sounds Better With You… and why it was their only release". MusicRadar. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
3. Middleton, Ryan (18 November 2019). "French Touch Pioneer Alan Braxe Relaunches Label With New EP 'The Ascent'". Magnetic Magazine. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
4. "Legendary Producers Alan Braxe & DJ Falcon Join For First Collaborative Release As Braxe + Falcon | News | Domino". Domino Recording Company. 29 March 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
5. "The Return of French House Pioneers Alan Braxe and DJ Falcon". Pitchfork. 29 March 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
6. "Braxe + Falcon announce 'Step By Step Remixes' EP | News | Domino". Domino Recording Company. Retrieved 20 June 2023.

• Alan Braxe discography at MusicBrainz
• Alan Braxe discography at Discogs