Since their first big break in 2012 the Adana Twins have established a sterling reputation, refining their sound constantly, pushing the boundaries of their musical ambition and evolving organically with the passage of time. Driven by a deep-seated desire to transmit emotion through electronic music while expanding their creative horizons, the German duo have been working together since 2006, merging Benjamin’s love of hip-hop and Friso’s passion for club music to produce a series of highly-regarded releases that form the foundation of their global success. Their early triumphs led to bookings all over the world, delivering their unique musical vision to dance floors on every continent, with support from a wide range of dance music luminaries including Radio 1 legend Pete Tong, Solomun, Tale Of Us and many more. Now firmly established within the global electronic music community and one of the most popular Indie Dance acts, the Adana Twins are universally respected as label owners, A&Rs, producers, and inspiring DJs who love to play long marathon-sets…
The Adana Twins have a penchant for deep, dark, emotionally-charged music, which has fueled the evolution of their sound, from the house-inspired productions that thrust them into the limelight, into a more nuanced, diverse sound rooted in retrofuturism. Both men grew up surrounded by electronic music in their hometown Hamburg, where the sound was so prevalent, it is part of their musical DNA and, as they have matured as artists, so too has their sound. Their appearance with French broadcasters Cercle clocked over a million views and saw the duo perform at stunning historic site Palais Longchamp in Marseille. They are one of the illustrious group of artists being given the opportunity to create a BBC1 Essential Mix.
As they’ve grown in stature and influence the Adana Twins have channelled their love for electronic music into their own platform, TAU. The label was launched in 2018 with the aim of giving them the creative space to develop their sound while also discovering and nurturing new artists. Across the first few releases the duo have signed and released music from a variety of lesser-known talents, establishing a strong identity from the very beginning. Artists like Innellea, Echonomist, Human Machine, Mathias Schober, BOg, Santiago Garcia, Daniel Bortz, DC Salas, Isolée, Amberoom, and Ede have appeared on the label, provoking a phenomenal response from fans and DJs alike.
It’s a project that has filled both men with inspiration and a renewed hunger for music in all its aspects; digging, discovering, producing and playing. Alongside the music, both men have injected their background in advertising and design to produce an array of creative projects connected to TAU; they include a mini magazine in 2021, a special box of Palo Santo to accompany an ambient compilation in 2020 and stunning artwork. They refer to the platform as Planet TAU, a place where they can create freely, flexing their ingenuity and deep love for visual communication, creative projects and, of course, music.
TAU has since been home to several key releases from Adana Twins including, most recently, the Subway Yard EP with Echonomist and their edit of Time Modem’s track from the 90s ‘Werkzeuge Eines Fernen Willens’ on the Spektrum 3 compilation. Each release demonstrating their dexterity and ability to traverse different styles while holding true to their core sound.
In recent years the guys have formed a bond with Berlin’s iconic Watergate stable, joining the family in 2017 and producing several releases for the label. In late 2018 the duo were invited to host an instalment of the brand’s highly-respected mix series. They also produced a monster remix of Patrice Bäumel’s 10-year-old track ‘Roar’ especially for the Watergate mix. The deadly rework shot to No.1 in the Beatport charts and has remained in the chart for almost 2 years. No surprise as it was roadtested by Tale Of Us and Sven Väth all over the world with an amazing reaction everywhere it was played.
Outside of their own label TAU, they have also released with Solomun’s Diynamic label. In 2019 Benjamin and Friso were invited to contribute to Diynamic’s infamous ‘Picture’ series. Somewhere between an EP and an album, the ‘Picture’ release has allowed the Adana Twins to really stretch out and demonstrate their production prowess with the lead track ‘My Computer’ a huge hit on the dance floor… So much so that some DJs have even ripped the tune from a YouTube video so they could play it! Most recently, in 2021, the boys dropped their 1983 EP with the label, cementing the relationship and demonstrating, yet again, their production process.
The recent years also saw Adana Twins releasing on other infamous labels, such as Tale Of Us’ Afterlife imprint or Sven Väth’s Cocoon Recordings. The three songs ‘Immersion’, ‘The Aftermath’, and ‘Shadow Of Doubt’ were released together with WhoMadeWho on Cologne’s notorious Kompakt label.
The duo’s most recent remix work includes reworks for RÜFÜS DU SOL’s single ‘Next To Me’, as well as two Adana Twins remixes of Josh Wink’s classic ‘Higher State Of Consciousness’. Initially released as a limited vinyl-only release on Watergate Records, Strictly Rhythm liked the remixes so much that they released them digitally afterwards themselves.
Parallel to their production and label curation endeavours, the boys have continued to traverse the globe, turning in performances on the big stage at festivals such as Fusion and Melt! in their native Germany to Loveland in Amsterdam, Beyond The Valley and Pitch Festival in Australia, together with an exhaustive list of the world’s greatest clubs including DC-10 (Ibiza), fabric (London), Robert Johnson (Frankfurt), Badaboum (Paris), Vision (Tokyo), Revolver (Melbourne), Module (Istanbul), The Block (Tel Aviv), Warung Club (Brazil), Stereo Bar (Montreal), Corsica Studios (London), Halcyon (San Francisco), Output (New York), PAL and Golden Pudel (Hamburg) and, of course, the family home Watergate in Berlin, plus many many more. They are regulars in Ibiza throughout the summer season, with gigs at Solomun’s seminal +1 party, Heart, and other clubs.
The Adana Twins continue to flourish, staying inspired and maintaining a high level of quality across their music, label and performances. They send dance floors into uproar wherever they go, transmitting pure emotion while nurturing new talent and courting the attention of the scene’s biggest DJs, clubs and festivals. At their essence is a forward-thinking sound that merges the past and the future exquisitely. It’s a dream come true for the Hamburg duo as they continue to push themselves, and their scene, forward every step of the way…
