Citizen Kain drops high energy, melodic "Stories" EP on his UNSEEN imprint + Exclusive Interview

Get it HERE / Stream it HERE

Previous Support from: Artbat, Maceo Plex, Solomun, Mind Against, David Guetta, Adam Beyer, Laurent Garnier, Adriatique…

One of techno’s hottest names Citizen Kain celebrates a year of his UNSEEN Records label with cracking two-tracker Stories, out August 30th showcasing his explosive genre-bending talents.

UNSEEN is part of the producer’s new high-vis policy after years as the DJ’s DJ, his “very fat, high energy” tracks snapped up for sets by Tale of Us, Maceo Plex, Solomun et al, released by labels like Afterlife, Ellum, ATLANT… And DSP hits, e.g. 80k p.m on Spotify… Stories follows previous UNSEEN releases, including his label’s debut, “Kiss Me Again” championed by Tale of Us, Mind Against, Adriatique, and more.

“Stories:” A full-on, superspeed, power surge of percussion of disorientating variety at the hardcore end of Kain’s sound spectrum, destined to be the frantic heart of many a DJ’s set, leaving clubbers blissfully exhausted – the only respite being the heartfelt vocal and soft woodwind of the breakdown.

“Lunar:” Back to the darkly melodic side as portentous drumbeats punctuate those slow, soul-stirring synth chords joined by rippling arps between swoony, moony breakdowns as spacey SFX evoke sci-fi scenes. There’s an 80’s New Wave footprint on “Lunar” too.

UNSEEN is already a platform for the likes of Rinzen, Heik, and DJ AroZe, and also forms an ironically named banner for Kain’s output which is as far reaching and varied as his global gig roster.

Stories is out now on UNSEEN. Get it HERE.

Globally renowned French DJ/producer/UNSEEN label boss, Citizen Kain has been touring the world since 2008. He has released some bangers over the years (including “Body Bombshell,” “Kiss Me & Kill Me”, and “Criminal” featuring Jaumëtic) and continues to hone his sound release Stories fresh off the heels of Siamese Anthology V (Part 2/4). Have you listened to “Lunar” yet?! It is SO good.

When Stories dropped, I reached out for an interview. It was a long shot, but I crossed my fingers hoping to dive down a rabbit hole on him, A few days later we were rapping about his new EP, his record label, his work with Deborah De Luca, and all the tattoos he’s wearing. This was an unforgettable conversation, and one I am eager to share with you. This dude is a downright legend… It is my pleasure to introduce you to Citizen Kain.

Your new single “Stories” is out now on UNSEEN Records. Tell me more about that release.
This release is special for me because it embodies all the stories during the whole summer which inspired me to produce this track.

You also dropped “Lunar” at the same time. That song is a bit darker… More melodic. Tell me about that single and why you decided to release them together.
“Lunar” is more of a passion project that has a lot of ups and downs with a melancholic dark feel as you have noticed.

Together they represent truly the sound of the label and spectrum of sound we want to have in the market.

What inspired the artwork and who designed that for you?
Artwork was designed by a Lebanese artist called Karl Sfeir who has been part of the team since day one.

Each artwork is customized based on the artist’s inspiration and this one was mainly inspired by all 2023 summer stories.

You own UNSEEN Records. Why did you decide to start a label, and who are some other artists you’re working with and releasing music for?
Well, I created UNSEEN because I wanted to be free to release a track, I think strong even if the big labels don’t want to release it. Sometimes you make tracks that you love but it doesn’t fit to the trend of the labels you love, and you want to release on. So now I feel freer to do what I want. We also release the music of some friends whose tracks we like.

You have played shows all over the world. Some big festivals, too. Do you get nervous on stage? Or do you pull energy from the crowds?
I’m often a bit nervous before the show, I like to be in my own “little world” before I start so I stay alone in my corner and I don’t like to speak too much, then I enter on stage, still a bit stressed then after 5 or 10 minutes, all this stress disappears and I become totally connected to the crowd and bring them into my world.

You have tattoos on both arms. How many tattoos do you have and any of them have a special meaning to you?
It’s a bit hard to give you the exact numbers of tattoos I have on my body because most of them are big pieces, but I should have something like 10. They have all a special meaning for me. For example, my left arm is mainly focused on my strong relation with the sea, I heard people who lost their parents very young are attracted to the sea and it’s true that I spent most of my life beside the sea and feel the need to always live close to the water. My right arm is mainly tattooed by biomechanics pieces explaining the strong relationship I have with machines, and I also have on this arm a swallow that expresses my love for trips. I have more on my chest and back but cannot explain all.

It’s not spelled the same, but have you seen the movie Citizen Kane?
Yes sure, I loved the life of Rosebud and I’ve been inspired by his name.

You are based in France. What city? Paris is my favorite city in the world!
Yes, I’m based in France but not in Paris, I live in Montpellier in the south of France, along the coast. Come here, I’m sure you will love the life in Montpellier as much as in Paris!

I was just in Ibiza a few weeks ago. Sorry I missed you. How did it go?
It was awesome, as expected the crowd was absolutely energetic and very receptive to the music. I really loved it !

Your remix of “Megre” has surpassed 1 million Spotify streams. What was it like working with Deborah on that and how will you celebrate when you reach that milestone?
I never met Deborah De Luca, she had this release on a French label, and they asked me to do a remix. The track was very inspiring for me and naturally accepted … I was happy to contribute to this project. To be honest I didn’t notice that the track approached a million of Spotify streams, you’ve told me now and I’m very happy for this. I love this remix and I still often play it in my set.

This has nothing to do with music… What’s your dog’s name? SUPER cute!
I have 2 dogs, one is a Coton de Tulear named Sisko (the little white) and the second is a Tibetan Terrier name of Ollie (the black and white), indeed they are so lovely.

Any plans for a tour this fall/winter? And when can we expect your next release? We are hungry for more!
Yes, a lot in the works around the world, Cyprus, India, South America, and Europe are being locked in right now.

Where is the best place to learn more about you and listen to your music?
All platforms are up to date with my music, SoundCloud, and Spotify are the main ones where you can directly find the latest updates.

It seems like every DJ has a podcast. Have you thought about producing your own show? I’d subscribe!
Yes sure, I recently started a podcast series, it’s not directly under my name but linked with the label. You can find the first podcasts on the UNSEEN Records SoundCloud.

You’ve released a lot of music over the years. How has your sound changed and where do you see it going forward?
My sound has evolved with the trends over the years, it’s now more melodic than the techno I did 10 years ago but it’s always part of my identity.

We’ve talked about a lot of stuff today. What else can you tell me about Citizen Kain?
Well, that Citizen Kain is really on fire these days and to expect a lot of new music and collaborations very soon!

Thanks for doing this, man. That was fun! In all of the interviews I do I always give the artist the last word. Go.
Thank you for taking the time to write these questions. I’ve not been into interviews a lot but nowadays I’m starting to take some time to answer them.

Hope we come cross each other somewhere in the world soon!