Apollinaire’s Pink Hotel

  • Posted on 16/03/2013
  • /Under Musique

midtsomThe folks at legendary East German youth radio station DT64 were the first to air songs by GDR blues rockers Keimzeit in 1980, though their first album – titled Irrenhaus (Loony Bin) was only released ten years later, when the Wall finally had vanished. Their new album Midtsommer under the moniker Keimzeit Akustik Quintett features two French lingo cover versions, Trenet’s La Mer and Pink Martini’s 1997 million seller Sympatique – though on PM’s album the credits go to band members China Forbes and Thomas Lauderdale, the lyrics were drawn from Guillaume Apollinaire’s poem Hôtel, already used by French composer and Groupe des Six member Francis Poulenc for his 1940 piece Banalités, FP 107: ii. Hôtel.

Keimzeit Akustik Quintett – Sympathique

Motorbikin’ with Mademoiselle

  • Posted on 15/03/2013
  • /Under Musique

carolacThe promo sheet tells us that Caroline Lacaze moved to Hamburg last year, and that’s where she also recorded her debut album En Route. It’s an okay one, though she’s apparently still under way; somehow the CD feels like she’s a bit undecided where she’s really heading, riding along the city limits of Chanson Beach, Funk Falls or Soulboro, and stopping a few times on the outskirts of Sixtiesville looking out for April March and Fabienne Delsol – including the instrumental garage beat of Road Stop and a cover version of Brigitte & Serge’s immortal 1967 Harley Davidson that suddenly sounds like that machine was always part of the feelgood soul soundtrack of The Commitments.

Caroline Lacaze – Harley Davidson

Rose

  • Posted on 19/02/2013
  • /Under Musique

imagesThe other big release this week, together with Albin de la Simone’s album, is Keren Rose Melouls third offering. Et Puis Juin is Rose’s follow-up since 2009’s Les souvenirs sous ma frange. It’s exactly what you expect it to be, breezy, soft-sighing, plonky songs sung with an airy voice, just the way you like it. Berry is the best reference. Rose adds a very nice song about Paris to a long list of songs bout the City of Light. It sounds a bit like a track Gainsbourg could’ve written for Isabelle Adjani, with less provocative lyrics. See the video for the title track here.

Rose – Jamais Paris ne me laisse

Albin de la Simone, Emiliana Torrini

  • Posted on 18/02/2013
  • /Under Musique

indexMaybe one of the most underrated new chansonniers from France is Albin de la Simone. He worked with/for Jeanne Cherhal and Vanessa Paradis (they duetted as well) and for the Vie héroique-movie, his fourth album was just released but he’s not quite a household name. Un homme is a very delicate and delicious album. Alain Souchon gets mentioned a lot in reviews as a reference, AdlS writes melancholic songs with big arrangements, sings with an unsteady yet deteremined voice and aims for the heart and soul. On this new album, he duets with the lovely Icelandic singer Emiliana Torrini.

Albin de la Simone & Emiliana Torrini – Moi, moi

Le French Touch

Directed by Simone Rovellini, this smart and whimsical parable shows what life becomes when it’s all chic, charme, champagne, décollete, lingerie, femme fatale and ménage à trois. There you are: Le fabuleux stéréotype d’Amélie in playful five minutes.

Extra: The perfect musical equivalent to Rovellini’s short film is undoubtedly R.S.V.P. by British postmodernists The Monochrome Set, the most nonchalant tongue-in-cheek cliché song ever written.

Monochrome Set – R.S.V.P.

Cowhand from Quebec

  • Posted on 15/02/2013
  • /Under Musique

Bild 2A mixture between Hank Williams’s sobbing and a damp washcloth, the original schmaltz sound of Charley Pride stormed the American charts in August 1969 with All I Have to Offer You (Is Me); probably ten million Texans bought the record before they discovered on the Johnny Cash Show that the godlike country crooner was one of those guys the Klan had used to deal with in Hank’s golden days. However, over there in Quebec also a French version was released on the aptly named Ranch label, performed by a certain Ray Perry, who was every bit as cheesy as the black Nashville giant himself – but for some strange reason, this time nobody jumped at the irresistible offer, not even when it came from the dollar bin.

Ray Perry – Tout ce que je peux t’offrir, c’est moi

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