Evolving from their beginnings as an electro-rock duo, Sébastien Chenut and Maud Geffray developed Scratch Massive into a project centered on atmospheric synth pop and cinematic scores. Their initial recordings, such as the 2003 debut album Enemy & Lovers, touched on electroclash currents, yet the moodier, immersive textures of 2011’s Nuit de Rêve hinted at the path the pair would follow throughout the ensuing decade. With the arrival of 2018’s Garden of Love, Chenut and Geffray had fused four decades of electronic traditions into a sound that felt entirely personal.
Producer and DJ Sébastien Chenut first joined forces with producer, DJ, and vocalist Maud Geffray under the Scratch Massive name in 1999, embedding themselves in a Parisian club environment alongside peers including Arnaud Rebotini, Ivan Smagghe, and Chloé. Their first EP, KABA Freestyle, appeared that same year, followed by further singles on the Chateaurouge imprint that merged house, electro, and rock elements—among them 2001’s “Ice Breaker” and 2002’s “Keep on Working.” The latter track found a place on the wide-ranging debut full-length Enemy & Lovers, mixed by Super_Collider’s Cristian Vogel. Additional singles emerged, notably the forceful 2005 cut “Girls on Top,” while the duo also compiled the mix album Naked that year. In 2007 they returned with Time, a collection steeped in shadowy electro that featured a reinterpretation of the Cure’s “Three Imaginary Boys” and was mastered by Moritz von Oswald. That year also marked the start of an ongoing partnership with director, screenwriter, and actor Zoe Cassavetes, for whom they scored the film Broken English.
After delivering the 2009 mix album Joy, Chenut and Geffray unveiled their third studio effort, Nuit de Rêve, shaped by new-wave sensibilities. The record included guest appearances by Chloé, GusGus’ Daniel Agust, and former Bronski Beat frontman Jimmy Somerville, and reached listeners in 2011. Two years later, the live album Communion recast Nuit de Rêve material with heightened club energy. In 2015 Geffray issued her first solo project, composing the soundtrack for the rave-themed film 1994. Scratch Massive rejoined Cassavetes to score the 2016 feature Day Out of Days and the 2017 digital shorts series Junior, both highlighting their filmic synth-pop approach. The members subsequently pursued individual endeavors: Chenut released the mini-album Motor of Love on their Bordel label in 2017, while Geffray completed Polaar during a residency in Finland. The duo resurfaced in 2018 with Garden of Love, an album drawing from minimal wave to trap.
