Trackback: French Synth-Wave

In the Bastille Mixtape that I posted on Monday, I included tracks from late 70s/early 80s underground French synth-wave acts Ruth and Marie Möör. Following up, I wanted to mention two excellent compilations from that time period, which do a great job of capturing the French electro/no-wave/synth-pop/punk movement and at the same time are easily obtained (unlike some of the artists they contain). As synth-based post punk was on the rise on the other side of the English Channel, with Human League’s single “Don’t You Want Me” beaming over the airwaves, a similar movement of futuristic robot eroticism took hold in France. This movement of synth-based cold-wave acts had prompted punk-musical journalist, Yves Adrien, to write a lengthy essay in 1980 titled, NovöVision, that conjured up a Zamyatin-type of dystopian society focused on drugs, robots, sex, and even robotic sex.

So Young But So Cold: Underground French Music (1977-1983) begins with the steady spacey synth pulses, atmospheric organs, and ethereal French-sung/spoken female vocals of Nini Raviolette’s “Suis-Je Normale.” Forgive me for the comparison, because the movie is fresh in my mind, but the track would have made the perfect accompaniment for a less “Hello Dolly” opening of Wall-E. A lonely robot rolls around a lifeless, abandoned, and eerily unfamiliar Earth set against the stark tone and icy synths of the somber song, while, in almost a robotic tone, female vocals ask “suis-je, suis-je normale? (am I, am I normal?)” The track pretty much sets the cold-wave tone for the rest of the comp which includes the austere robotic grooves of Ruth’s “Polaroid/Roman/Photo,” The Druids rare illustrated concept of “The Force,” and the cyberpunk of Artefact on “Mae.”

[MP3]: Nini Raviolette  ”Suis-Je Normale”
So Cold So Young, Tigersushi; 2004
[MP3]: The Droids  ”The Force (Part 1)”
So Cold So Young, Tigersushi; 2004

If So Young But So Cold was the first-course that aroused your appetite, then BIPPP: French Synth Wave (1979-85) is the gluttonous main course of obscure French synth-wave singles. Initially released by Parisian-imprint Born Bad in 2006, BIPPP was released in the States earlier this year via Everloving Records. Like their European counterparts, The Human League, Depeche Mode, Gary Newman, Soft Cell, and Kraftwerk, the artists compiled on BIPPP share the love of the analog synthesizer. A brief blurb on the album jacket gives an outline of the birth of French synth-wave, which gives credit to the rise of the genre to ex-Stinky Toy member Dennis Quillard (aka Janco) and singer Elli Mederios and their instrumental Kraftwerk-worshipping single “Rectangle.” Like So Young, BIPPP paints an icy-synth laden landscape that covers a six year span. Unlike the perfect pop that some UK artists were churning out, BIPP shows that the synth sounds remained more stripped in France at the time.

[MP3]: A Trois Dans Les WC  ”Contagion”
BIPPP: French Synth-Wave 1979/85, Everloving; 2008
[MP3]: Ruth  ”Polaroïd/Roman/Photo”
BIPPP: French Synth-Wave 1979/85, Everloving; 2008

For much more information on French synth-wave, as well as an extensive list of acts, check out the informative French New Wave site.

Previous “Trackback” Posts

A Bastille Day Mixtape

This mixtape pulls together a collection of some of my favorite French music from the 1960s through today to celebrate Bastille Day. The French national holiday (which was celebrated in Philadelphia over the weekend at Eastern State Penitentary), commemorates the storming of the Bastille, which took place on July 14, 1789, marking the beginning of the French Revolution. The largest celebration of the holiday, which is like July 4th to us Americans, is in, you guessed it, New York City. To celebrate in a low-key style, grab yourself a nice bottle of Beaujolais, along with a Godard or Truffaut flick and download the mix below.

Stream the entire mixtape HERE

[MP3]: Edith Piaf  ”Non Je Ne Regrette Rien”
C’est Pour Ça, Companion; 1960
[MP3]: Françoise Hardy  ”Tous Les Garçons Et Les Filles”
Françoise Hardy, Disques Vogue; 1962
[MP3]: Chantal Goya  ”Tu M’as Trop Menti”
Masculin Féminin Soundtrack, RCA/Victor; 1966
[MP3]: Michel Polnareff  ”Love Me Please Love Me”
Love Me Please Love Me, Disques Vogue; 1966
[MP3]: Jean Jacques Perrey  ”Mary France”
Jean-Jacques Perrey, Vanguard Records; 1968
[MP3]: Jacques Dutronc  ”Le Responsable”
Le Responsable, Disques Vogue; 1969
[MP3]: Stinky Toys  ”Plastic Faces”
Plastic Faces, Polydor; 1977
[MP3]: Ruth  ”Polaroïd/Roman/Photo”
Polaroïd/Roman/Photo, Paris Album; 1985
[MP3]: Marie Möör  ”Pretty Day”
BIPPP: French Synth-Wave 1979/85, Born Bad; 2006
[MP3]: April March  ”Laisse Tomber Les Filles”
Paris in April, Sympathy For The Record Industry; 1996
[MP3]: M83  ”Run Into Flowers”
Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts, Mute; 2004
[MP3]: Joakim  ”I Wish You Were Gone”
Monsters & Silly Songs, !K7; 2007

M83 Unleashes 21st Century Shoegaze with “Graveyard Girl”

Anthony Gonzales shows even more song structure and pop influences with his new single, “Graveyard Girl,” the second song to be released from his new Saturday’s = Youth album.

The single comes off like Power, Corruption, and Lies-era New Order doped up on hazy shoegaze atmospherics and textures, while uttered female vocals speak of a young girl roaming and aching to be a part of a cemetary. The least cynical of us will struggle from rolling our eyes when hearing the cheesy lines like “And I’ll read poetry to the stones / Maybe one day I can be one of them…I’m 15 years old and I feel it’s already too late to love / Don’t you?” Kitschy lyrics aside, the song is retains its catchy beauty with shimmering synths and addictive melodies, marking one of the most accessible and coherent tracks put out under Gonzales’ M83 moniker.

Pre-order Saturday’s = Youth which is out April 15th on Mute and check out the new single below. Tickets still on sale for live dates.

[MP3]: M83  ”Graveyard Girl”
Saturday’s = Youth, Mute; 2008

TONIGHT! FRICTION @ Mercury Lounge w/ Crystal Castles

GET HYPE! Crystal Castles, HEALTH, Team Robespierre, and Apache Beat are primed to mess with your ears tonight at the Mercury Lounge for our SOLD OUT installment of FRICTION. Crystal Castles bring their distorted electro all the way from Toronto, while HEALTH’s blasts of noise mess with your head, this of course, after locals Team Robespierre and Apache Beat freak you out with their spazzed-out pop-screamo and tropical psychedelia. Dayton Ohio’s, Ruckus Roboticus will be spinning his own tracks between sets. Afterparty to follow at The Annex.

Doors open @ 7:30PM. MP3′s, full details, and more. Here

Crystal Castles cover photo © Ren Rox 2007
Crystal Castles (above) © Patrick Parault 2007

Shoegaze in 2008 | Five Acts not to be Missed

Shoegaze will always remain one of my favorite genres of music, even if I get away from it from time to time, it’s something that I always come back to. Granted, shoegaze and dreampop saw their heyday in the early nineties, but today many acts continue to reinvent and push the envelope with the genre. I was reading an interview with Soundpool (one of the bands featured in this post) about the relation among shoegaze, electronica, and indie-pop becoming more familiar in Japan. One of the group’s members stated that there has been “a significant change in the global shoegaze scene with bands from many different cultures and backgrounds are collaborating and inspiring each other and exploring the possibilities of this creative genre which has brought so many different types of musicians together.”

This post aims to focus on some of my favorite new shoegaze acts that define the previous statement and for the most part features bands putting out material in 2008.

RESPLANDOR
Pleamar, AE; 2008
[MP3]: “Downfall”
Members of Mahogany initially tipped me off to the Peruvian trio, Resplandor, and since I’ve been a big fan of the group’s output. Their early recordings initially reminded me of Raphael Toral, but tracks from their forthcoming full-length Pleamar sound more akin to Just for a Day era Slowdive. Two words: sonic morphine.

AUBURN LULL
Begin Civil Twilight, Darla; 2008
[MP3]: “Coasts”
Michigan/Pennsylvania five-piece Auburn Lull craft dreamy, haunting, and ethereal dream pop. “Imagine The Moody Blues produced by Eno, if Slowdive originally wrote and recorded Surrealistic Pillow, or perhaps Seefeel on a good sedative/hypnotic [Darla].” Ulrich Schnauss mixed a track on added some treatment to two others. Begin Civil Twilight hits the street on April 8th.

FLEETING JOYS
Secret Garden Vol.1, Invada; 2008
[MP3]: “Good Kind Of Tomorrow”
Sacramento’s Fleeting Joys craft shoegaze in the vein of Loveless-era My Bloody Valentine with an aural assault of shivering dissonant guitars, low-end baselines, atmospheric keyboards, layers of squalls, heavy drums, and buried androdynous vocals. Lush melancholia for the shoegazer soul.

SOUNDPOOL
Dichotomies & Dreamland, Aloft; 2008
[MP3]: “The Divides of March”
I’ve had New York’s Soundpool (pictured) on my radar for some time now and was stoked about the release of their second record, Dichotomies & Dreamland earlier this month – an album I’ve been playing pretty heavily recently. Danceable Joy Division/New Order-inspired basslines and guitars lie beneath saturated swaths noise and synth arrangements that are fronted with sugary female vocals. Soundpool plays Pianos in New York on March 22nd and a day later in Philadelphia at The Khyber. Dichotomies & Dreamland is out now on Aloft.

PORTS OF CALL
Like Thieves…, Self-Released; 2008
[MP3]: “Washout”
I couldn’t write this post without giving Philadelphia some love, so enter Ports of Call as another shoegaze act that you should get familiar with this year. The Philly quintet blends psychedelic with atmospheric in the most beautiful of ways, painting haunting soundscapes which are highlighted by the interplay of innocent boy/girl vocals that are almost drowned out by the noise. Ports of Call play Club Midway in New York on April 23rd and Johnny Brenda’s in Philly on April 30th. Like Thieves is out now and can be ordered from the band.

Trackback | Section 25 (First Ever Compilation)

LTM has announced the release of the first ever “Best Of” compilation from Section 25. The comp is titled Dirty Disco (1978-2008) and set to be released on March 31st. The cult group that was initially mentored by Joy Division went on to release four albums on the Factory Records imprint between 1980 and 1986. The albums received production from Factory alums like Martin Hannett and Bernard Sumner, along with Ian Curtis/Rob Gretton produced singles.

Much like labelmates the Durutti Column, A Certain Ratio, and New Order, Section 25 started as a post-punk group in the late 70s but by the mid 80s the group’s sound had become primarily electronic-based new wave, primed for the dance club explosion in the late 80s.

Taking their name from a provision of the Mental Health Act, Section 25 was formed by brothers Larry and Vincent Cassidy in Blackpool, Lancashire in 1978 and by the time they made their live debut they had added guitarist Paul Wiggin. The Ian Curtis and Rob Gretton produced debut single “Girls Don’t Count” was released via Factory in July 1980. The single also included the Curtins/Gretton produced songs “Knew Noise” and “Up to You.” The Martin Hannett produced debut full-length, Always Now, followed in 1981, much known for its packaging as its music. The LP was beautifully housed in a bright yellow heavy cover with stylish black type unfettered by punctuation and word spacing. Lifting the flap from the tabbed slot yielded swirling colorful marbled paper with printed with yellow boxes containing the band’s name and tracklisting.

After a few line-up changes in 1984, the group’s sound moved in a more electronic-dance direction as heard on the single “Looking From A Hilltop” that featured new additions Angela Flowers and Jenny Ross on vocals and keyboards. The single broke as a hit in the U.S. club scene along with reworked versions “Restructure” and “Megamix,” later appearing on the group’s third LP, From The Hip. The Bernard Sumner produced From The Hip was also the band’s first album that received an American release via Factory U.S. in 1984. After a North American tour in 1985, the band split in 1986, leaving then husband and wife Larry Cassidy and Jenny Ross to finish the fourth album, Love and Hate, which was eventually released in 1988.

The band saw their entire catalog re-released by LTM in the 90s and like a lot of other post-punk acts, the band reunited in 2001 and began work on new material. Although it’s not the original line-up, they put out a record titled Post-Primitiv last year, but I haven’t heard it yet. The comp, Dirty Disco celebrates 30 years of Section 25, featuring eight of the band’s album tracks and the singles “Knew Noise,” “Dirty Disco,” “Haunted,” “Beating Heart,” “Looking From A Hilltop,” “Crazy Wistdom,” and “Bad News Week.” Keep an eye out for it in March.

The band has an extensive bio as does LTM along with their entire back catalog.

[MP3]: Section 25  ”Looking From A Hilltop”
From The Hip, Factory Records; 1984

video of the week — battant “jump up”

I was instantly into the sound of London-based electro outfit, Battant, after hearing their single “Kevin (1989).” The convulsive punky/new wave-inspired track was written by lead-singer Chloé based on the diary entries of a dude named Kevin. Not exactly sure what she found in the diary, but to come up with killer lines such as “he fucked the eggs out of her, that stupid cock-tease whore,” it had to be pretty juicy. The Undertones, well, undertones, a jagged Joy Division “Transmission” influenced guitar line toward the end of the song, and catchy vocals have peaked my interest in this quartet.

Further digging led me to the video of the single “Jump Up” and an Andrew Weatherall remixed b-side to “Kevin (1989).” Check it.

[MP3]: Battant  ”Kevin (1989)”
Single, Kill The DJ; 2007