Menace Progressive is the party launched at the end of 2022 by Franssouax, DJ, and expert on just about every sub-genre of club music on the planet. After setting the best web radio stations on fire (Internet Public Radio, NTS, Rinse France…), then turning the most epic dancefloors upside down (LA CRÉOLE, Parkingstone’s Club Visage…), the DJ has decided to extend his work as a curator by setting up an IRL event where the most promising DJs and producers from the farthest reaches of the internet can hustle and bustle.
At Menace Progressive we play and hybridize micro-scenes from all over the world: Brazilian funk, dancehall, dark reggaeton, and shatta, but with a definite club dimension. So it’s all a gradual process, building up the intensity of the sets as the evening progresses.
In less than a year, and soon half a dozen editions, the evenings can boast a heterogeneous yet highly coherent line-up of artists, from local DJs to those from the other side of the planet, from established names to up-and-coming talents: Marara Kelly, Sucré Saleté, João Lágrima De Ouro, Cherry B Diamond, BJF, Kokoprisci, Ohjeelo, DJ Monique, Hirma, renoiterrible, Margaux 590… and of course Franssouax himself.
On Friday 21 July, Petit Bain will be hosting the sixth edition of the party, with a line-up more menacing than ever: the Prince of UwUaracha aka CRRDR (Colombia), Miss Sheitana (Switzerland), Rebequita and Ohjeelo b2b Franssouax. Don’t forget to pick up your €7 pre-sale ticket! So it was the perfect opportunity to ask a few questions to the man behind these joyous decibel brawls.
CxC | How is Menace Progressive born?
Franssouax | I wanted to offer a party where the temperature would explode from midnight until 6 am, and it was Marara Kelly who found the ‘Progressive’ in the name when I explained my concept to her, what I wanted to build. In ‘Menace’, there’s the fact that we’re not here for fun, we’re here with our boxing gloves on, and we’re surfing a bit on a medieval aesthetic, internet culture, the unstructured.
How do you put together a Menace Progressive event?
As the name suggests, I try to offer line-ups that gradually build up the pressure. It’s really important for me to have an evening with a coherent timetable; the further you get into the evening, the more the bpm increase and the intensity with them, Menace Progressive is a bit of a time bomb.
Of course, I try to bring together artists who make sense, DJs who share the same vision of hybrid DJing; who juggle musical genres from all over the world with a selection that’s cutting edge and made for the club.
I also like to offer b2b’s that you don’t usually see in clubs, like the one I did with Sucré Saleté, or Marara Kelly b2b João Lágrima De Ouro. I concoct these explosive b2b’s to maximise the chances of turning the club upside down. We’ve already scheduled the return season and there are some crazy b2b’s coming up.
I’m thinking of Raesha Lavande’s lip sync to Afida Turner’s Etienne, it was great to offer that kind of happening, I wanted to offer something different, surprise the audience but not just with bangers.
Was launching your own parties an obvious step for you?
The funny thing is that I’d always wanted to organise parties even before I wanted to start DJing, it’s something I’d always had in the back of my mind for a long time. With the connections I’ve made in the DJing world, I felt the time was right and it could finally happen.
The first night was last October, and we’re already on our sixth! I wasn’t expecting such success and, above all, such a great vibe. The rest followed quickly, and it all happened quite naturally. I really see Menace Progressive as a continuation or extension of my work as a DJ.
What’s your best memory so far?
We’ve already had some really great moments and evenings, two of which I can’t forget are Marara Kelly and João Lágrima De Ouro’s b2b at Le Chinois last March, which was an insane mix of tribal house and Brazilian funk. They complement each other perfectly and it was more than just a DJ set, it was a real performance and a burst of energy. There were about ten of us on stage and we were really getting into it. Ohjeelo’s set at l’Œil earlier in the year was a real treat too, with everyone screaming and Ohjee blasting out bangers and bangers and not giving the crowd a moment’s rest. DJ Monique had already got the club really fired up, and things really picked up throughout the evening.
What would be your ultimate goal?
A Menace Progressive festival with artists from all over the world, several stages with different identities, it seems a bit crazy to me as the collective is less than a year old but why not?
On Friday you’re doing the first Menace Progressive at Petit Bain, what can we expect?
I’m really happy to be able to offer this set at Petit Bain, it’s a club I really like and the sound system is really top-notch. In my opinion, the evening’s going to go like lightning, and we’ve got a few surprises planned, particularly in terms of VJing, if all goes well. Everyone seems really motivated.
With the inexhaustible Rebequita on the decks, Miss Sheitana superimposing a huge number of tracks to create blends that’ll knock your socks off, and CRRDR closing the evening with guaracha and hardcore reggaeton at 160 bpm, I think it’s going to be a high energy night. I’m also delighted to be reunited with Ohjeelo for a b2b – the last time we played a club together in Paris was in November 2022, I believe.
Finally, what are your plans for the future?
I’m really keen to collaborate with other collectives to further hybridize the club scene! Mixing different identities/aesthetics, proposing unexpected b2b between artists from each collective. That’s what we’re going to try to do, and obviously, try to get out of Paris and collaborate with collectives in other cities like Rennes and Marseille.
We’re also planning to release a compilation that brings together the Menace Progressive aesthetic, to put a sound to what we’re trying to do. Unsurprisingly, the compilation will be progressive in its orchestration, but that’s all I’m saying.
Menace progressive with CRRDR, Miss Sheitana, Rebequita, and Ohjeelo b2b Franssouax is on Friday 21 July at Petit Bain in Paris. Get your tickets on Shotgun.
Cover photo credit: © clubwild
