{"id":45585,"date":"2026-05-12T17:15:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T21:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=45585"},"modified":"2026-05-11T20:51:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T00:51:55","slug":"meet-maniac-maison-the-brussels-trio-turning-jazz-brains-into-synth-pop-gold","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=45585","title":{"rendered":"Meet Maniac Maison: The Brussels trio turning jazz brains into synth-pop gold"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Brussels-based three-piece <strong>Maniac Maison<\/strong> are making their grand entrance with <em>New Museum<\/em>, the lead single from their forthcoming self-titled debut album, out <strong>May 22<\/strong> via Belgian DIY label <strong>Humpty Dumpty Records<\/strong>. The track arrives with a music video directed by <strong>Canek Zapata<\/strong> \u2014 and if this is the opening statement, we&#8217;re very much paying attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Watch: Maniac Maison \u2013 <em>New Museum<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-embed-handler wp-block-embed-embed-handler wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FPrMyCC3OvU?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-CA&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ffm.to\/new-museum\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u2192 Stream <em>New Museum<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Synths, Jazz Brains &amp; A Basement Studio in Brussels<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>The Maniac Maison origin story is the kind you&#8217;d pitch as a film treatment. Berklee-trained jazz pianist and film composer <strong>Casimir Liberski<\/strong> had a hard drive full of hairy midi-based sketches and a vision to wrestle them into pop form. He brought in childhood friend and prog-pop auteur <strong>Lucien Fraipont<\/strong> (of <strong>Robbing Millions<\/strong>, <strong>Aksak Maboul<\/strong>, and <strong>Duid<\/strong>) and fellow Berklee alum and Japanese girlfriend <strong>Shoko Igarashi<\/strong>, and something genuinely strange and wonderful clicked into place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The three first bonded properly during a serendipitous trip to Los Angeles in 2017 \u2014 each there for entirely separate reasons \u2014 where they found themselves folded into the Echo Park indie scene, spending time at the homes of <strong>Ariel Pink<\/strong> and <strong>Mac DeMarco<\/strong>, courtesy of Lucien&#8217;s well-connected producer <strong>Shags Chamberlain<\/strong>. The kind of hang you couldn&#8217;t engineer if you tried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With Shoko and Casimir still based in New York and Lucien in Brussels, the planets didn&#8217;t fully align until they were all living in Belgium. In 2020, Casimir built a studio in the basement of an art d\u00e9co house in Brussels&#8217; <strong>Ixelles<\/strong> district \u2014 lockdown rolled in, and hundreds of songs followed. Ten made it to the finish line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Jazz Backgrounds, Zero Jazz Orthodoxy<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Don&#8217;t go in expecting a jazz record. Maniac Maison pull from <strong>Yellow Magic Orchestra<\/strong>, Belgian synth-pop legends <strong>Telex<\/strong>, vintage Japanese video game soundtracks, and Mozart in the same breath \u2014 with apparently zero anxiety about whether any of it is the &#8220;cool&#8221; thing to be doing. The result is a collective effort in the truest sense: each member brings a distinct musical personality, each holds an equal share of songs, and none of them seem particularly bothered about genre guardrails. That&#8217;s the good stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867.jpeg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867-1024x1024.jpeg?resize=1024%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-45589\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867.jpeg?resize=1024%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867.jpeg?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867.jpeg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867.jpeg?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0867.jpeg?w=1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">&#8216;Maniac Maison&#8217; \u2014 Tracklisting<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>Les pantoufles<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Dora neko<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Jojo<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Je travaille sur ma musique<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Death companions<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>New museum<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>The lake<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Winter memories<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Avenues<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><em>Brutalist self portrait<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8216;Maniac Maison&#8217; is out <strong>May 22, 2026<\/strong> via <strong>Humpty Dumpty Records<\/strong>. <a href=\"https:\/\/maniacmaison.bandcamp.com\/album\/maniac-maison\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pre-order on Bandcamp.<\/a> Catch them live at <strong>Les Nuits Botanique<\/strong> in Brussels on <strong>May 30<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>Brussels-based three-piece Maniac Maison are making their grand entrance with New Museum, the lead single from their forthcoming self-titled debut album, out May 22 via <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=45585\" title=\"Meet Maniac Maison: The Brussels trio turning jazz brains into synth-pop gold\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":45586,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[13,23,28,29,30,1907],"tags":[13886,3540,14233,14231,14230,13290,14229,14232,14228,14234,12268],"class_list":["post-45585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-electronic-music","category-indie","category-music","category-music-video","category-new-release","category-news","tag-belgian-music","tag-belgium","tag-brussels","tag-casimir-liberski","tag-humpty-dumpty-records","tag-indie-pop","tag-lucien-fraipont","tag-maniac-maison","tag-new-museum","tag-shoko-igarashi","tag-synth-pop"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IMG_0866.jpeg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2B2TV-bRf","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":28870,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=28870","url_meta":{"origin":45585,"position":0},"title":"Mugwump shares \u2018No Trepidation\u2019 video","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"April 16, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Belgian producer & DJ,\u00a0Mugwump\u00a0performs an about-face with a new sound and live show with his band and unveils the first track lifted from his second album 'Drape', due for imminent release. Mugwump\u00a0returns with a new blend of contemporary dance and post-punk\u00a0for the\u00a0single\u00a0No Trepidation,\u00a0which is lifted\u00a0from the imminent\u00a0'Drape'\u00a0album - out April\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"Mugwump","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/mugwump.png?fit=620%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/mugwump.png?fit=620%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/mugwump.png?fit=620%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":34139,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=34139","url_meta":{"origin":45585,"position":1},"title":"Anoraak shares sexy French house track &#8216;Gang&#8217; featuring Sarah Maison","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"April 27, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Acclaimed French\u00a0multi instrumentalist, singer, producer and\u00a0DJ, former drummer of Pony Pony Run Run, Anoraak (aka Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Rivi\u00e8re) has announced a brand new release (the first in over two years) with the arrival of his new EP 'Gang' via Yuksek's Partyfine label. Listen to the title track via YouTube below. https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dFe06DMYb3Y\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;electronic music&quot;","block_context":{"text":"electronic music","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"Anoraak press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/F68FC5FF-621F-46A0-B807-6A1C6BA184F7.jpeg?fit=640%2C603&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/F68FC5FF-621F-46A0-B807-6A1C6BA184F7.jpeg?fit=640%2C603&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/F68FC5FF-621F-46A0-B807-6A1C6BA184F7.jpeg?fit=640%2C603&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":29988,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=29988","url_meta":{"origin":45585,"position":2},"title":"Whispering Sons release debut album &#8216;Image&#8217;","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"October 21, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Belgian post-punk band\u00a0Whispering Sons have released their debut album 'Image'. The LP is comprised of ten tracks, and will be released via Cleopatra Records in North America and Smile Records in Europe. Take a listen to their track Stalemate,\u00a0which\u00a0is lifted from the LP via\u00a0Soundcloud below. This is the first major\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;guitar rock&quot;","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"Whispering Sons","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/680351.jpg?fit=800%2C535&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/680351.jpg?fit=800%2C535&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/680351.jpg?fit=800%2C535&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/680351.jpg?fit=800%2C535&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":38774,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=38774","url_meta":{"origin":45585,"position":3},"title":"Weird Numbers release self-titled debut album","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"March 23, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Weird Numbers is a rad band that carries the banner of early 00's Pacific NorthWest retro-punk pop into a post-punk sound. 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For a sneak peek, check out the clip for Don't Mind Me via YouTube below. https:\/\/youtu.be\/-54es5-ldpM?si=-WHnBq9ZOYFM2lfM Discover more on Instagram and Facebook. Embracing the raw energy of garage rock, TV\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;guitar rock&quot;","block_context":{"text":"guitar rock","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=22"},"img":{"alt_text":"TV Sundaze Press photo","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_4248.jpeg?fit=1072%2C711&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_4248.jpeg?fit=1072%2C711&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_4248.jpeg?fit=1072%2C711&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_4248.jpeg?fit=1072%2C711&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/IMG_4248.jpeg?fit=1072%2C711&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12365,"url":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?p=12365","url_meta":{"origin":45585,"position":5},"title":"Victoria+Jean unveil new video for &#8216;Firecracker&#8217;","author":"cultureaddicts","date":"February 7, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Swedish-Belgian avant-pop duo\u00a0Victoria+Jean\u00a0have released their newest music video for their track,\u00a0Firecracker. Watch the cool stop-motion video starring some marbles below via YouTube, which was directed by Christopher Thockler. [youtube_sc url=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=s-CjHch7qJk#t=135\" theme=\"light\"] Victoria+Jean's\u00a0Firecracker\u00a0video moves at the pace of an electric rollin' stone, or in this case, the stones are 550 marbles\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;indie&quot;","block_context":{"text":"indie","link":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/?cat=23"},"img":{"alt_text":"victoria+jean","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/jean-e1423153203823-805x450.png?fit=805%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/jean-e1423153203823-805x450.png?fit=805%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/jean-e1423153203823-805x450.png?fit=805%2C450&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cultureaddicts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/jean-e1423153203823-805x450.png?fit=805%2C450&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=45585"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45590,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45585\/revisions\/45590"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/45586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=45585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=45585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cultureaddicts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=45585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}