''Adventure'' is the debut studio album by French DJ and record producer
Madeon
Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French musician, DJ, songwriter, singer and music producer from Nantes, based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at age 17 th ...
. It was released on 30 March 2015 through popcultur and
. The album features talent and vocals from Kyan,
Dan Smith from
Bastille
The Bastille (, ) was a fortress in Paris, known as the Bastille Saint-Antoine. It played an important role in the internal conflicts of France and for most of its history was used as a state prison by the kings of France. It was stormed by a ...
,
Passion Pit
Passion Pit is an American indie pop band from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Formed in 2007, frontman and keyboardist Michael Angelakos is the band's primary recording member. As a touring act, the band currently consists of Angelakos (vocals, syn ...
,
Mark Foster from
Foster the People
Foster the People is an American indie pop band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2009. Its members include founder and frontman Mark Foster (musician), Mark Foster and keyboardist Isom Innis.
Foster founded the band in 2009 after spending ...
and
Aquilo and was produced entirely by Madeon himself.
The album was promoted by five singles: "
Imperium
In ancient Rome, ''imperium'' was a form of authority held by a citizen to control a military or governmental entity. It is distinct from '' auctoritas'' and '' potestas'', different and generally inferior types of power in the Roman Republic a ...
", "You're On", "Pay No Mind", "
Home
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
" and "Nonsense", while the deluxe version also includes "
Icarus
In Greek mythology, Icarus (; , ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of King Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, Minos suspected that Icarus and Daedalu ...
", "
Finale", "
The City", "
Cut the Kid", "Technicolor" and a bonus track in collaboration with
Vancouver Sleep Clinic
Vancouver Sleep Clinic (VSC) is an Australian band led by singer, songwriter, and record producer Tim Bettinson.
Career
Tim Bettinson was a finalist in triple j's Unearthed High competition in 2013. Vancouver Sleep Clinic released its debut E ...
. The album received positive reviews from critics.
Background
In May 2013, Leclercq stated in several interviews that he had begun working on his debut album with it being in a very early stage. At this time, the release was still expected to be in early 2014. He revealed his intention to release at least eleven new tracks in 2014, further hinting a possible album release in 2014. In May 2014, he predicted a release date for the second half of 2014.
In early 2014, Leclercq took several months off touring "to focus on writing
isalbum". Leclercq began creating "an Adventure sample pack and a collection of a few signature sounds to use throughout album
..before writing more songs".
In June,
Porter Robinson
Porter Weston Robinson (born July 15, 1992) is an American DJ, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Robinson began producing electronic music during his adolescence. He sign ...
, a good friend of Leclercq, answered a question regarding ''Adventure'' in his
Reddit
Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...
Ask Me Anything as: "". Leclercq later confirmed on Twitter that Robinson was referring to the third single "Pay No Mind".
Later in 2014, Leclercq gave out first details about the album. In July, he answered a question on Tumblr on how to describe his album as "start
ngsomewhere and tak
ngyou somewhere else. It goes from euphoric and pop to emotional and widescreen". In an interview, Leclercq revealed that the album will feature "not just club tracks
utsongs and music that touches
im. Ituses electronic elements, but goes beyond the DJ-role format", also suggesting a new show after the album.
In November, Leclercq promised new music, hinting the release of "You're On", and finished the official artworks for the album a few days later.
Leclercq announced the album's name, ''Adventure'', on 8 December 2014 and premiered of the second single "You're On".
The official album announcement followed on 19 January 2015, which included a release date of 30 March, the official track listing in standard and deluxe edition, both artworks and pre-order links for all editions.
Madeon's press release states:
''With Adventure, I wanted to capture the feeling and sensibility of my teenage years. I wanted the album to start very vibrant and pop and end with a more contemplative tone. In making the record, I both collaborated in the studio with some of my favourite musicians, and wrote and performed vocals on songs myself, two things I hadn’t really done before with my own music.''
In February, Leclercq tweeted that he was working on his new live show Adventure Live. The show began on 10 April 2015 in San Francisco, and is a 22-stop tour in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
. The show premiered in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
on 31 March.
On 18 March 2015, the Adventure Machine was launched as a promotional tool. The web app allows anyone to mix selected stems from ''Adventure'' together using their phone, tablet, computer or Novation Launchpad. Madeon posted on Facebook, stating, "You can combine samples from my album and create new mash-ups/mixes." The app was nominated for a
Webby Award
The Webby Awards (colloquially referred to as the Webbys) are awards for excellence on the Internet presented annually by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over three thousand industry experts a ...
.
On 24 March 2015, ''Adventure'' premiered on
Spotify
Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...
and
iTunes
iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...
for streaming. On the same day, Leclercq did a
Reddit
Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...
AMA.
On 29 March 2022, Leclercq formally announced the first pressing of the deluxe version of Adventure releasing the following day. This was the first time this version of the album was pressed onto vinyl. The vinyl included a secret bonus track following the final song of the album Only Way Out called Together, which up until that point had only been played live by Leclercq.
Packaging
Like his previous releases, Leclercq designed all artwork himself, with the depiction of "escaping a city to reach the desert" in each single's artwork.
The album cover consists of a red desert and blue sky. The single artwork includes the artist name
Madeon
Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French musician, DJ, songwriter, singer and music producer from Nantes, based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at age 17 th ...
, and track name written in the 'Madeon alphabet' in the top right corner.
Promotion
Music videos
According to a press release, the premise of the music videos is as states:
''Set in a remote city, in an undefined future, Asteria is restless to see more of the outside world. She finds a friend in Icarus, who shared her desire of leaving.''
"You're On" is the first video in a music video trilogy. The video follows a young woman, Asteria, through a futuristic city. She meets a young man named Icarus and together, they activate an object embedded in a wall. The video ends with a "To Be Continued" message, written in the
Madeon
Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French musician, DJ, songwriter, singer and music producer from Nantes, based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at age 17 th ...
alphabet. Leclercq has a brief cameo performing live with Launchpads. The second music video in the trilogy was released for the third single "Pay No Mind" on 20 February 2015. The video follows Icarus and Asteria as they decode secret messages and find an escape from the futuristic city. They successfully find an exit out of the city, and are last seen outside the walls, heading towards the tower in the distance. The music video for "Pay No Mind" was released on Leclercq's newly created
Vevo
Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...
channel. The finale of the trilogy, set to "Nonsense" follows Icarus and Asteria on a long journey through the desert to a tower reminiscent of that on the album artwork of ''Adventure''. As they open the doors to the tower, the Madeon logo forms.
Similar to preceding music videos, the Adventure trilogy includes many cryptic messages written in the typical
Madeon
Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French musician, DJ, songwriter, singer and music producer from Nantes, based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at age 17 th ...
alphabet
An alphabet is a standard set of letter (alphabet), letters written to represent particular sounds in a spoken language. Specifically, letters largely correspond to phonemes as the smallest sound segments that can distinguish one word from a ...
. This code together with hidden messages in preceding releases has not been publicly decoded yet, though several forums are trying to. The ending of "Technicolor" includes a
morse code
Morse code is a telecommunications method which Character encoding, encodes Written language, text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called ''dots'' and ''dashes'', or ''dits'' and ''dahs''. Morse code i ...
stating "Icarus fell". The website to downloa
Technicolor includes a morse code at the bottom of the page translating to "type it" (originally "- -.-- .--. . .. -"). When directly typing "Icarus fell", the top image of the website will change to "The secret is inside the Pixel Empire". The transition from "Innocence" to "Pixel Empire" shows the ''Adventure'' diamond when seen in a
spectrogram
A spectrogram is a visual representation of the spectrum of frequencies of a signal as it varies with time.
When applied to an audio signal, spectrograms are sometimes called sonographs, voiceprints, or voicegrams. When the data are represen ...
.
Singles
In September 2014, a new song by Leclercq called "
Imperium
In ancient Rome, ''imperium'' was a form of authority held by a citizen to control a military or governmental entity. It is distinct from '' auctoritas'' and '' potestas'', different and generally inferior types of power in the Roman Republic a ...
" was released unofficially as the part of the soundtrack of the video game ''
FIFA 15
''FIFA 15'' is a football simulation video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports label. It was released on 23 September 2014 in North America, 25 September in Europe and Australia and 26 September in the ...
''. On 18 October 2014, the lead single was officially released as a free download through an interactive puzzle on his website, similar to the release of "Cut the Kid."
On 8 December 2014, Leclercq released the second single titled "You're On" featuring singer Kyan. Leclercq claimed "You're On" was "inspired by my love of pop music, cool chords and chopped up diva vocals." An official music video was released on 15 December 2014, as the first of a music video trilogy. The song was featured in
Konami
, commonly known as Konami, , is a Japanese multinational entertainment company and video game developer and video game publisher, publisher headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo. The company also produces and distributes trading card ...
game, ''
Pro Evolution Soccer 2016''.
On 18 January 2015, Leclercq announced the third single as "Pay No Mind", featuring
Passion Pit
Passion Pit is an American indie pop band from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Formed in 2007, frontman and keyboardist Michael Angelakos is the band's primary recording member. As a touring act, the band currently consists of Angelakos (vocals, syn ...
, in a
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
interview by
Alice Levine
Alice Levine (born 8 July 1986) is an English radio and television presenter, writer, narrator and comedian.
Early life and education
Levine was born in Beeston, Nottinghamshire.
Levine studied English at the University of Leeds, where she me ...
. On 3 February 2015, Leclercq tweeted the single artwork and the release date. Like with previous single "You're On", Leclercq posted a low quality preview of "Pay No Mind" on his
Instagram
Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...
. The single was premiered by
Zane Lowe
Alexander Zane Reed Lowe (born 1973) is a New Zealand radio DJ, live DJ, record producer, and television presenter. After an early career in music creation, production and DJing, he moved to the UK in 1997. He came to prominence through pr ...
on
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
as the Hottest Record on 9 February 2015. The official music video was released on 20 February 2015 as the second part of the music video trilogy.
On 9 March 2015, the fourth single "
Home
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
" was premiered by
Annie Mac
Annie Macmanus (born 18 July 1978), known professionally as Annie Mac, is an Irish DJ, broadcaster and writer. She hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1, including BBC Switch and ''Future Sounds''. She also DJed in various locations, includ ...
's new
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
show. It is the final track from the standard edition and the first track released in which Leclercq wrote and performed vocals himself.
The Fader
''The Fader'' is a magazine established in 1999 as an outlet for Cornerstone Agency, a marketing and public relations firm established by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture.
History and work
It is owned by T ...
described "Home" as "a pulsing surge of anthemic electro-pop". Leclercq described the process behind the track:
On 24 March 2015, a day after ''Adventure'' premiered on
Spotify
Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...
for streaming, "Nonsense", featuring
Mark Foster from
Foster the People
Foster the People is an American indie pop band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2009. Its members include founder and frontman Mark Foster (musician), Mark Foster and keyboardist Isom Innis.
Foster founded the band in 2009 after spending ...
, was released as the fifth single.
Critical reception
''Adventure'' received positive reviews. Sputnikmusic stated that while many debut albums by other dance music artists received poor recognition, Madeon has made a solid effort. While criticizing a little on the lyrics, Sputnikmusic said that "All of these songs
n the album
N, or n, is the fourteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages, and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''.
History
...
have the potential of breaking into the EDM stratosphere and becoming a hit... This is certainly an album that needs to be in your upcoming summer playlist."
Digital Spy
Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...
declared that Madeon managed to put his own style of music into the album. Digital Spy further stated that "...it's his steely determination to not compromise his art that will serve him best in the long run – and it's that boldness that makes his debut album the strongest of starts to his Adventure."
Pitchfork
A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials.
The term is also applie ...
meanwhile said that Adventure is "a strikingly versatile collection." and further stated that "Adventure" provides Madeon with many different ways for him to choose from for his future music. EDM Chicago meanwhile remarked that "Adventure is proven to be a catalyst for both pop and dance fans alike... it serves an emotional and meaningful purpose that hands-down has propelled it into being definitively one of the best produced records this year." In a five-star review, We Got This Covered said that the album is "...One which is filled with good vibes, catchy pop sounds, and a lasting state of euphoria."
The Fader
''The Fader'' is a magazine established in 1999 as an outlet for Cornerstone Agency, a marketing and public relations firm established by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture.
History and work
It is owned by T ...
's author Larry Fitzmaurice commented that the album is an "...expansive, impossibly beautiful landscape that evokes sounds from electronic music's past and present...all coalescing into one of the most radiant pop albums in recent memory."
Track listing
;Notes
* All songs produced, arranged, mixed and mastered by
Hugo Leclercq.
* "You're On" features additional vocals from
Yolanda Quartey
Yolanda Claire Quartey (born 31 July 1983), known professionally as Yola or Yola Carter, is an English singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. Her debut studio album '' Walk Through Fire'' (2019) received critical acclaim and earned her four G ...
, backing vocals from
Jimmy Napes
James Napier (born 18 September 1984), known professionally as Jimmy Napes, is an English songwriter and record producer. He has won a number of awards including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, 3 Grammy Awards, and 2 Ivor Novello Awards ...
and additional programming and vocal production by
Hal Ritson
HAL may refer to:
Aviation
* Halali Airport (IATA airport code: HAL) Halali, Oshikoto, Namibia
* Hawaiian Airlines (ICAO airline code: HAL)
* HAL Airport, Bengaluru, India
* Hindustan Aeronautics Limited an Indian aerospace manufacturer of fi ...
and Richard Adlam.
* "OK" features additional vocals from
Charli XCX
Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is a British singer and songwriter. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Re ...
and
Ed Drewett
Edward James Drewett (born 1 April 1988) is a British singer and songwriter who is best known for his contributions and collaborations with acts such as One Direction, Little Mix, Jonas Blue, The Wanted, Olly Murs, and SG Lewis.
Early life
D ...
.
* "Pay No Mind" features guitars from
Sam Halliday.
* "Beings", "Zephyr" and "
Home
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
" feature vocals from
Madeon
Hugo Pierre Leclercq (; born 30 May 1994), better known by his stage name Madeon (), is a French musician, DJ, songwriter, singer and music producer from Nantes, based in Los Angeles. He initially came to widespread public attention at age 17 th ...
himself.
* "Imperium" contains a interpolation of "
Battle Without Honor or Humanity" by
Tomoyasu Hotei
, also known simply as Hotei ( ), is a Japanese musician, singer-songwriter, composer, record producer and actor. With a career spanning more than 40 years, Hotei claims record sales of over 40 million copies and has collaborated with artists fr ...
.
* "Pixel Empire" contains a sample from "Sync" from the album ''
FEZ OST'' by
Disasterpeace
Richard Vreeland (born June 29, 1986), better known by his stage name Disasterpeace, is an American composer and musician. He first got started in music after learning the guitar in high school and started writing music around the age of 17. Kno ...
and features guitars from Paul Pinto.
* "The City" features vocals from
Zak Waters
Zak Waters (born January 22) is an American musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, he is also prominently known by the stage name Pretty Sister. Waters began his music career forming the band Blueskyreal ...
and Cass Lowe.
* "Technicolor" features guitars from Phil Schwan.
Charts
Release history
External links
Adventure Machine
References
{{Authority control
2015 debut albums
Madeon albums
Albums produced by Madeon
Columbia Records albums