NTO (musician)

Last updated
NTO
Born
Anthony Favier

1985 (age 3940)
Marseille, France
Occupations
  • DJ
  • record producer
  • musician
Labels

Anthony Favier (born 1985), known by his stage name NTO, is a French electronic music producer and composer known for his work in melodic and minimal techno. He first became active in the 2000s and has released music both as a solo artist and as a member of the collective Hungry Music with Worakls and Joachim Pastor.

Contents

Early life

Anthony Favier was born in 1985 in Marseille, France. [1] He grew up listening to a range of musical influences, including video-game soundtracks and rock music. [2] As a teenager he began playing guitar, and around the age of 16–17 discovered computer-assisted music production, realising he could create music without a professional studio. He later pursued studies in graphic design. [3]

Career

Early career and Hungry Music

Favier, then performing as N'to, released his first EP Turn You On in 2009, followed by Trauma in 2010. The name "N'to" derives from the southern-accented pronunciation of his nickname "Antho" used by his friends. [3]

In 2013, he co-founded the label and artist collective Hungry Music with Worakls and Joachim Pastor. [4] [5] They released melodic electronic music across genres such as electronica, downtempo, deep house, and tech house. [5]

In 2020, Favier left Hungry Music on good terms to join Believe Music and prepare his first studio album, [6] focusing on a solo trajectory under the name "NTO". He performs exclusively his own compositions in concert, describing himself primarily as a composer rather than a DJ. [2]

Apnea (2021)

NTO released his debut album Apnea in 2021 on AllPoints, a label of Believe. [2] The album blends minimal techno with guitar elements, keyboards, and vocal collaborations, including tracks with Monolink, Tricky, Louise, and French 79. [7] [8]

The single "Invisible" was accompanied by a music video and later remixed by Paul Kalkbrenner. [4] [7] According to Favier, the album was influenced in part by freediving, introduced to him by world champion Arthur Guérin. [7]

Forever Friends (2024)

Favier reunited with AllPoints for Forever Friends, a collaborative album with French pianist Sofiane Pamart. The project combines melodic techno with classical piano. [9]

Musical style

NTO's work is associated with melodic techno or minimal techno-house. His compositions are characterised by repetitive structures, bass-driven rhythms, and evolving melodic motifs. [2] [4] He cites Mediterranean landscapes, particularly Marseille and Corsica, as significant sources of inspiration in his creative process. [4] [7]

His artistic influences include Django Reinhardt, Georges Brassens, Pink Floyd, Underworld, Stephan Bodzin, James Holden, and Paul Kalkbrenner. [4] [9] [3] His interest in electronic music intensified after hearing Underworld's live album Everything Everything (2000) and attending the Sziget Festival, experiences he describes as pivotal in shaping his musical direction. [4]

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

  • Turn you On (2009)
  • Trauma (2010)
  • Jane (2011)
  • Cats and Dogs (2011)
  • Stupid EP (2011)
  • Every Wall is a Door / The Gloomies (2012)
  • Noune Remixes (2012)
  • The Bosnian EP (2014)
  • Purple EP (2015)
  • Starlings (2016)
  • [ ] (2025)

Selected singles

  • "1825" (2014)
  • "Petite" (2014)
  • "Ayahuasca" (2014)
  • "Time" (2015)
  • "Chez Nous" (2015)
  • "La clé des champs" (2016)
  • "Note blanche" (2016)
  • "Meanwhile in Rio" (2016)
  • "Carrousel" (2017)
  • "Alter Ego" (2018)
  • "The Morning After" (2019)
  • "Invisible" (2021) – also remixed by Paul Kalkbrenner
  • "Beyond Control" (2021) (with Monolink)

References

  1. "NTO talks to us about past, present and future". 1051 Magazine. 2021-04-27.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Perron, Erwan; Richard, François-Xavier (2021-10-18). "NTO, compositeur expert en techno mélodique et planante". Télérama .
  3. 1 2 3 Marlier, Fanny (2015-12-21). "Qui est-tu... N'to". Clique.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "NTO & Paul Kalkbrenner – Wahr gewordene Träume". Faze Magazin . 2021-05-07.
  5. 1 2 Beschoner, Franz (2018-12-17). "Hungry Music: Fünf Jahre französische Beats". DJ Mag .
  6. Mbaye, Nour (2020-06-26). "N'to et Joachim Pastor quittent leur mythique label Hungry Music". Electro News: Média électro numéro 1 en France (in French). Retrieved 2025-12-05.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "NTO: Debütalbum „Apnea" verschmilzt Melancholie und Groove". DJ Mag . 2021-10-08.
  8. Perron, Erwan (2021-10-06). "Apnea NTO". Télérama .
  9. 1 2 Redaktion (2024-07-09). "NTO & Sofiane Pamart - das Elixier des Lebens". Faze Magazin.