Françoise Hardy turned 67 today. Happy birthday!
Françoise Hardy turned 67 today. Happy birthday!
Produced by Marc Collin, it sounds like Serge doing a session with Martin Hannett. Album’s coming next month.
January is not even halfway, but the first fragile highlight of the year is here: debut-record Ou Il Pleuvra by actress/singer Claire Keim. Her single (written by Ours) was a pretty affair, but the short-but-sweet-album is very, very good. If you like Vanessa Paradis-soundalikes who vocally lick your earlobes, that is. As I understand it, most songs were written or co-written by Claire herself, Ours lend a hand and so did the great Francis Cabrel. First he worked with the gorgeous Souad Massi, now he wrote the album’s title track for Keim. Nice going, Francis! Claire’s album is melody-rich, sensual, sunny, playful and 60s influenced. No, Tel que tu es isn’t a Charlotte Gainsbourg-cover, but the use of rhythm guitar, phat piano and Claire singing about being naked, it sure is reminiscent of one legendary smoker. NSFW-movieclips of Claire here. Her husband, a former footballer and now European jui-jitsu champion, is this guy.
Claire Keim – Ou Il Pleuvra
In other news: Revista 69 has the new Yelle single. HERE. (And a whole bunch of other blogs too)
Melissmell, named after her grandmother’s perfumes, just released an album that of course kicks off with her majestic version of the French national anthem. With her hoarse voice, she resembles 80s icon Guesch Patti. I’m not getting all the lyrics on her album Ecoute s’il pleut, but the use of a wind-up toypiano, pizzicato strings, dramatic piano and songs like Le silence de l’agneau (Silence of the lamb), my guess is Melissmell sings about her youth in the Ardeche, her grandma and her dreams as a teen. And of course, listening to the rain. Closing track L’éveil is my favourite.
Melissmell – L’éveil
Sublime eccentricity. Motorcycle romanticism. Nice ways of describing Montreal-based (but born in Toulouse) Olivier Alary, mastermind behind Ensemble. Alary worked with Björk, Lou Barlow and Cat Power. On the upcoming single, Dominique A(né) is guestvocalist. Is it postrock? Is it orchestral chanson? It’s modern, that’s for sure. Excerpts is the 3rd album Alary made under the Ensemble-moniker, but the first featuring French songs. Darcy Conroy (pictured) is providing the female vocals. Alary sings a couple of French songs, Conroy one, the beautiful-sad Les saisons viennent. A song to pamper your winter depression with. On the first single of the album, Darcy sang an odd but good cover of UB40’s Food for Thought. That song (from the days UB40 was actually GOOD) slags off Margaret Thatcher for cutting famine relief-funds for Africa. But in this saxy arrangement, it gets more mythical. Phantasmagorial. Where did I put my magical lantern?
Ensemble – Les saisons viennent
Ensemble – Food for thought (UB40 cover)
Something completely different, yet great music: art-rockband Japan and their bassplayer Mick Karn. The latter passed away on Jan. 4, I compiled a musical tribute featuring my fave Japan-tracks like Ghosts and Visions of China, Mick’s solowork, songs he played on by Kate Bush, Joan Armatrading and Gary Numan and other projects like the short-lived supergroup Nina (with Kate Pierson from B52’s).Karn and Japan are the ones who learned me to listen to other sounds, different spheres. HERE.
La Femme is a Parisian quintet who play lo-fi surfrock with new wave touches – think Liminanas fronted by Lio. Had a hard time to find answers to some questions about this band. Like: what are the names of the bandmembers? Why are there mostly four people in band pictures? Is the hot blonde in these pictures (scroll down) an official bandmember? Why isn’t she in this picture? Are these La Femme-bandmembers having sex on video (VERY nsfw)? Some answers can be found in this interview – it seems the guys use various female singers, and there’s a Marlon and Sam in the band. The mini-album they released sports good songs. Sur la planche is the key track, this is how lo fi surf new wave baby pop should sound. Could be the start of something beautiful. The cover of their album is of course a reference to this painting. Hey, here’s a thought, how ’bout a festival featuring La Femme, Lafille and La Fiancée?
Souvenir, our beloved Spanish duo who changed from sweet sighing French pop to full blown sexy French retro-disco, made a new single. It features three songs, including a cover of Wanda Jackson’s Funnel of Love. Aime-moi is the earcatcher, reminiscent of early Vive La Fête, with a big phat bassline. Patricia still has that voice, the kind that makes your spine tingle from top to bottom and back. It’s for sale in all good digital stores, but also on coloured 7-inch vinyl. Go here to buy. And be sure to check out Souvenir’s labelmate Klaus & Kinski, a Spanish band featuring the superlovely Marina.
Souvenir – Aime-moi

Canadian singer Lily Frost – I’d never heard of her, but this sultry soulful singer released six albums already. And she sings (partly) in French! FS-reader Martin wrote a guestpost:
Lily Frost (Lindsey Davis) is a Toronto-based songwriter and vocalist. With her soulful voice she can whisper seductively, but also keep afloat on top of a booming arrangement. After two albums with ’60s inspired popsongs she started working with José Miguel Contreras (also her husband), releasing four more cds. Contreras has his own band, By Devine Right, best known for ex-bandmember Feist. On Frosts 2008 album “Lily Swings” (where she performed songs from the repertoire of Billie Holiday) she recorded with the late Ray Condo’s band The Swinging Dukes.
In 2009 she received a Gemini nomination for the score, which she co-wrote, for the Canadian hit TV show “Being Erica.” Lily also co-wrote the theme song “All I Ever Wanted to Be.” 2009 also saw Lily expand her fan-base in France, embarking with a four-piece band on two sold-out tours in a year, drawing praise from French critics for her “mastery of ambiance,” her “wide palette of emotion,” and the powerful singing voice and strong personality of a woman who clearly “knows where she’s going.”
For “Veridian Torch”, her sixth solo disc, Lily has tapped into the wilderness of Canada, of ancient trees, terrifying electric storms, irritating insects, and romance with the land, as expressed in French poetry. Lily and her family moved from downtown Toronto last year, to a forest outside the city. But the songs were all written and recorded before that. It was a case of life imitating art: “The songs magically drew us back to nature,” she says. The two French songs “Chalet du Bois” (with some help by Marianne Dissard with the lyrics) and “Verlaine” are deeply felt and very poetic. Anyway – my favourite song is “Thompson Pines” with the most beautiful melody I heared last year.
Lily Frost – Thompson Pines
Lily Frost – Chalet du bois (see the video)
In other news: a new compilation featuring inédits by Serge Gainsbourg will be released next month. A single, Serge singing Comme un Boomerang, is released today. He wrote the song for Dani‘s Eurovision Songcontest appearance in 1975, but it got rejected. She recorded it with Daho in 2001. Read all about it HERE. (Thx Bruno!)
See the tracklisting of the new box here. This is the official release of the Boomerang-demo by Serge. It was available on the interwebs earlier, here.
Serge Gainsbourg – Comme un boomerang
Dani & Daho – Comme un boomerang
Feist, Gonzales, Dani – Comme un boomerang
Etienne Daho – Comme un boomerang (live)