Louis Aubry - collaborator
Mathieu Rousseau - Agent
Agence Area Booking - Booking
Alexis Dubor - VFX artist
Hugo Trouvin - Graphic designer / motion design
From 2021 to 2026, I had the opportunity to work on a series of collaborative projects with techno artist Abr. Released under the name "Abr. x Sandrøse", these projects made their mark on the electronic scene with their originality and blend of styles, offering an approach that stood out from the standards of the time—both in terms of sound, visuals, and live performance.
Responsibilities
Art Director
Composer / Singer
Graphic Designer / Video Director
Rethinking a different techno music
In 2021, Abr. was a SoundCloud artist who was gradually beginning to find his audience, while I was releasing my first songs, without much expectation. Naturally, we started collaborating and putting out singles that blended our two worlds: intense techno and a more sensitive lo-fi pop. The project was a sudden success, giving me my first immersion into a more professional musical setting, while allowing me to apply my design skills to it.
A succession of hit singles
Our first composition, « The End is Never the End », marked a real beginning: more than 5 million combined streams, and high expectations surrounding this burgeoning collaboration. We then released several singles over the months, including « Hell’s River », which met with even greater success.
Our working method was as follows: the composition and instrumental were built 50/50. Abr. brought his rhythmic expertise and powerful grooves, while I developed a softer, more airy melodic space with retro accents. I then added pop vocals with very little processing: no pitch correction, in order to preserve the authenticity and fragility of the vocals. This deliberate choice created a strong contrast with a highly structured instrumental.
Human-machine art direction
The idea was to embody the contrast at the heart of this collaboration: between the synthetic and the sensitive. In 2021, the electronic scene was heavily showcasing 3D animations. We therefore developed polished visuals around human figures in mutation, sometimes in degradation. The alteration of these bodies aimed to offer a more organic vision of electronic music.
The music video for the single “Codification” illustrates this intention: the bodies progressively transform into machines, reflecting the hybrid identity driven by the collaboration.
Techno synthwave EP project
In 2023, a five-track EP was released to anchor the collaboration in a tangible project. I evolved the art direction with a clear approach: emphasizing the retro-synthwave dimension of the music, while preserving the identity of Abr. x Sandrøse. Visually, I designed a cleaner cover and animations, highlighting the 80s atmosphere as well as the artists' figures.
The beginnings of live techno with a vocalist
To connect with the audience, about ten live dates took place in France (Paris, Lille, Toulouse, Grenoble…). At that time, the French techno scene was still unaccustomed to performances featuring a vocalist. With this music primarily perceived as an outlet, we had to pave a new way, as much in the arrangements as in the performance and technical execution. We designed these live shows as a continuation of the studio recordings: raw vocals with transparent processing that let the multitrack stems breathe, creating a stark contrast with the even more intense energy of the live versions.
A long-lasting collaboration
Subsequently, numerous projects have extended this collaboration through my involvement in creating visuals, videos, and, of course, music. This continuity allowed me to integrate my new expertise into the very DNA of Abr. x Sandrøse.
In 2026, an EP will be released to celebrate the 5th anniversary of « The End is Never the End » : a project bringing together several artists from the scene, as well as an original composition written and composed 100% by myself. A way to close an ambitious cycle that will have left a lasting mark on this scene.
sandrosecontact@gmail.com +33 6 37 05 68 39