Monthly Archives: October 2010

Melody Gardot

  • Posted on 12/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

I’m not exactly an admirer of those after-hours sound smoothies that are sold as ‚vocal jazz’ nowadays. Super-successful Melody Gardot, certainly not French, but a native of the Garden State New Jersey, doubtlessly belongs to that fraction as well, doing more smug’n’snug cuddle harmonies for them latte macchiato sippers who also can’t get enough of that dinner muzak zombification a.k.a. Till Brönner. But revisiting Gardot’s 2009 album My One and Only Thrill – now out as a new edition with bonus remixes –, I must admit that Melody’s self-written Les Etoiles has class, groove, and tendresse, and feels a bit like a missing link between Peggy Lee, Bud Shank’s cool jazz meets easy listening sauce and the nocturne bossa swing of Coralie Cléments Salle des pas perdus. Plus a charming vibraphone, too.

Melody Gardot – Les etoiles

Lisa Hannigan covering Air

  • Posted on 12/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

Playground Love, the theme-song from The Virgin Suicides, is covered by the beautiful and fragile Lisa Hannigan. You know, the girl who sang Nine Crimes with Damien Rice, one of those songs I turn off when it comes on the car stereo because I can’t drive all misty-eyed. She recorded Playground Love, written by Air and sang by the guy from Phoenix, for Saturday Sessions, a BBC radio-show hosted by Dermot O’Leary. The second compilation with sessions (various covers, stripped versions) is out now. Yes, this is not a French song, but an Air-cover, from a great movie by a great director, there is always room for that on this blog.

Lisa Hannigan – Playground Love

Marchet & Birkin

  • Posted on 12/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

Jane Birkin (pictured) and Florent Marchet playing distant lovers in a song from the new (third) Florent Marchet, named after the airport Roissy. Or the chateau from Histoire d’O – my guess is that Florent’s playing with both meanings. Could be me, though. Florent first blipped on my radar thanks of Tous Pareil (see video  here, without the female voice alas) from his debut. He writes strong, atmospheric rocksongs, on the new album he adds some electronics that make him sound a little like New Order. There’s even an instrumental track on Courchevel. His voice is in the same hoarse category as Cali (and Ridan, and Tetard, and Patxi, you know the type). Makes you wonder if the French only like one type of male, and one type of female voice. But that’s probably a cliché.

Florent Marchet & Jane Birkin – Roissy

In Bed with Gaelle

  • Posted on 11/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

On Yann Tiersen’s brand-new sixth studio album, you will find very few traces of the film composer who decorated Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain with sweet Gallic piano melancholia in 2001. Dust Lane, recorded on the small island of Quessant near the coast of Britanny – also home of the Quessant or Breton Dwarf, one of the smallest breeds of sheep in the world – with the assistance of Gravenhurst drummer Dave Collingwood and Jonathan Morali of Syd Matters, might be Tiersen’s most mature album to date, oscillating between morphing synthesizer soundscapes, spiritual chaos, and multi-layered contemplation. Gorgeous climax of the forever changing moods of Dust Lane is Fuck Me, a duet with Breton singer Gaelle Kerrien, evolving from a solemn folk tune into a somewhat Bowie-esque, guitar-driven hymn of sex and cinemascope innocence: We need to live it. Fuck me, fuck me, fuck me, and make me come again.

Yann Tiersen w/ Gaelle Kerrien – Fuck Me

Coralie Clément

This Friday just got a shot in the arm, FS-friends. Feast your ears on this, a duet between songwriting genius Jacques Duvall and the guardian angel of this blog, Coralie Clément. Listen (and/or download) HERE.

Carly Sings (Elli & Jacno)

  • Posted on 07/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

Everytime I see pictures of Carly Blackman (aka Carly Sings), I think: girl, interrupted. She’s gorgeous, but in a fatalistic way. She exploits this quality in her slightly disturbing songs. That breathy voice, described before as a cross between El Perro del Mar and Inara George, makes the picture perfect, but with sharp edges. Carly was born in Ireland, went to school in Lyon and works from Paris, she writes songs in English and French. And sings the latter with a sensual, Blossom Dearie-like accent. She discovered the work of Elli & Jacno last november, she told me in an email, and decided to record the happy/sad Je t’aime tant  (see video here). A new album is coming up, and should include songs arranged by J-C Vannier. A new song is out now, see the very beautiful video here. There will be French songs on that new album as well.

Carly Sings – Je t’aime tant
Elli & Jacno – Je t’aime tant

Walter Sobcek

  • Posted on 06/10/2010
  • /Under Video

My current obsession is Walter Sobcek, not the guy from The Big Lebowksi (that’s Walter Sobchak), but the Parisian producer. Who claims he’s a German-Franco-duo, too. Anyway, his eighties-influenced, tad kitschy dancemusic is very charming. His videos are an essential part of that charm. See his YT-channel here. I absolutely adore his use of the movie Career Opportunities (with the supersexy Jennifer Connelly, oh, the scene on the playhorse…) for the She’s Gone cover. But the video (and the girls in it) linked above is just as great. And anybody using an Amber Lynn-movie is a friend in my book.

Bruni vs Bowie

  • Posted on 06/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

“It has to go down as one of the worst covers in the history of rock, although there are certainly a few by Tom Jones I would rank lower.” “Absolute Rubbish.” “What did David do to deserve this?” Random comments from French magazines and websites (see here for more) on Carla Sarkozy-Bruni’s take on David Bowie’s Absolute Beginners. She recorded it for the (DB-management approved) tribute album We Were So Turned On, a double-album with covers from Duran Duran, A Place to Bury Strangers, Warpaint and John Frusciante.  (See also here) Some are good, most are so-so. The odd thing for a charity album is the limited availability – you can only buy it in the UK iTunes store (and listen to it on Spotify, worldwide), but webshops outside of the UK don’t sell it. Yet. Now, is that version by Bruni really as bad as the French would like you to think? Have a listen yourself. And be sure to check Keren Ann’s contribution, a wonderful fragile version of Life on Mars?

Carla Bruni – Absolute Beginners
Keren Ann – Life on Mars?

Poney Express

  • Posted on 05/10/2010
  • /Under Musique

Always wondered how Joy Division would sound if they were fronted by a fragile French fille? Here’s your chance. Brest, from the new Poney Express album, sounds like they ripped the rhythmtrack from JD’s Atmosphere and then added PE-singer Ana’s vocals (well, sighs) over it. It’s like heavy petting against the Berlin Wall. Like watching Brix Smith put on black stockings and clipping them to her garter belt. Like Susan and Joanne from Human League having a… let’s not carried away here. If you liked the countryfied nouvelle chansons of Poney Express, like this great single, there is a danger of being disappointed by their new take. Martin Rushent produced the album, and you can certainly hear his mark. I’m all for it.

Poney Express – Brest

← Newer Posts
Older Posts →