Erika Spring

  • Posted on 11/07/2011
  • /Under Musique

Erika Spring (Erika Forster-Spring, apparently) is one-third of Au Revoir Simone. For Jacno Future, a tribute to the late and great Jacno, she and Devonte Hynes (Lightspeed Champion) recorded a version of the Elli & Jacno song Les nuits de la pleine lune from 1984. Together with a remixed version of Etienne Daho’s Amoureux Solitaire-cover and Arthur H & Neïmo’s Libellule dans un rectangle, Erika’s version is one of the extra tracks on a special edition of Jacno Future. Gawd, how I hate those extra-tracks-editions, especially when they’re released a few weeks after the non-bonus edition. Vintage old major record company thinking. Anyhoo, on the web, everything is to be found. As far as I know, this is the first time Erika sang in French. Not really sure, but I think I’ve read somewhere that she was born in Zürich. Figures.
Oh, and the original song is of course from the Eric Rohmer film of the same name.

Erika Spring & Devonte Hynes – Les nuits de la pleine lune
Elli & Jacno – Les nuits de la pleine lune

Requiem on a balafon

  • Posted on 09/07/2011
  • /Under Musique

A German vibraphone-player and a Malinese balafon-player doing a cover of Gainsbourg’s Requiem pour un con. Found it on Blundetto’s blog, loved it instantly. It’s all in that indestructable beat, the remarkable sound of the vibes and the balafon (the instruments are related, see Kouyaté and Neerman play live here). The reprise is on K&N’s upcoming new album. You do know Serge’s original, don’t you?

Kouyate & Neerman – Requiem pour un con

Stéphanie Crayencour & Mélanie Pain

  • Posted on 30/06/2011
  • /Under Musique

Belgian beauty Stéphanie Crayencour, who acted in an Eric Rohmer film, sang on a single with folksters Suarez, and soon after released her solosingle. Another song ended up on this compilation as well. Finally her album dropped, an upbeat affair with playful, sweet songs on which she gets help from Saule and Sacha Toorop. One of the highlights is a duet with Mélanie Pain, a song (as I understand it) that answers the age-old question ‘what are girls talking about when they’re amongst each other?’ See a clip of Saule and Steph together here.

Stephanie Crayencour & Melanie Pain – Duo de filles

Luce

  • Posted on 28/06/2011
  • /Under Musique

A 21-year old voluptuous redhead pretending to be a dominatrix – ooh la la. Luce Brunet won tv-talenthunt Nouvelle Star last year, and none other then (Philippe Katerine) and Mathieu Boogaerts contributed songs for her debut album, Premiere Phalange (free translation: ‘dipping one toe in the water’). On which she tries on various characters – the dominatrix in La Fessée, the niece (a touching ode to her grandmother in La symphonie d’Alzheimer), the illegitimate daughter of Catherine Ringer (in Western Spaghetti),  seductress (in Je m’fume) and queen of the mussels (La reine des moules). Her voice is good, versatile and she likes to goof around. The album has a few weak songs, but Luce is definitely one to watch.

Luce – La fessée

Zaza Fournier

  • Posted on 23/06/2011
  • /Under Musique

Zaza Fournier loves Roy Orbison and Elvis, plays the accordeon and makes doowop-infused retro-pop. And dresses the part – think John Waters’ Cry-Baby movie. Her real first name is Camille, she hails from Paris, she’s 26 years old and her voice is husky and pouty. Her second album just dropped, with a less accordeon, more organs and heartfelt ballads like Les Mariés, the dramatic Maman and the excellent single Vodka Fraise (clip). Johnny Chéri is an exciting pairing of twang, doowop and lust.

Zaza Fournier – Johnny Chéri

Transvision Vamp

  • Posted on 23/06/2011
  • /Under Musique

Using Serge & Jane’s Je t’aime… moi non plus as a backdrop for your own song – Scottish rockers Texas did it (for Guitar song, see here) but until last week I wasn’t aware Transvision Vamp did it too, and ten years earlier. Who or what a ‘twangy wigout’  exactly is, I dont know. I guess that’s not the point of the song, that focusses on singer Wendy James adding as much air to her breathy vocals as possible. Which is nice. The song is on the third and last TV-album ‘Little Magnets versus The Bubble of Babble’ (1991), not a huge success (euphemism alert). They broke up almost right after the release. I saw Wendy and the band live once, a hard rocking show with James as the very blonde eyecatcher. Who sang really well, as I remember. She’s still active as a singer, as this MySpace shows. And still making that glammed up poprock, very able to sex up things with her lolita-voice. But I don’t hear songs as catchy as this one. Or this one.

Transvision Vamp – Twangy Wigout

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