Monday, June 25, 2007  3:10 pm 

The Old New Old New New French Sound

Whenever someone approaches us talking about the wonders of the ‘New French Sound’ which is currently taking the dance tents of all summer festivals by storm (not that anyone does since they know our opinion about it) we wacky time-challenged fools smile with affability and think of minimalistic soundscapes criss crossed by slim young ones dressed in black clothes rocking the situation like this was an Antonioni flick, quinquessential galoises dangling from dark lips smudged on pale faces and post-pre-revolutionary krautrock terrorist berets fashionably tipped to the side because the cliche is too good to be ignored.

It’s not that the lovely French people haven’t given us a handful of fantastic music movements since the early 80s, or that the Revolution wasn’t branded and televised even though it never fucking happened, hey we see all, still the existentialist attitude of the post punk new wave synth massive fits our stereotyped/idealistic perspective of the French as sexy people who read poetry and don’t take shit from the government, at least tonight, so ask us about the new french sound and we’ll think of those weird kids trying to demolish concrete walls with shards of angularity, pretentious manifestos and some righteous sensual pouting/hardcore scowling, or that legendary dance scene in Bande a part with additional moshpit edge, there there, our mythlogical thirst is quenched, and the sounds are fucking awesome too, merci!

Now aren’t Charles de Goal just awesome? We first heard about them from our main man Corey Dumais, who extolled their virtues over a Guiness/ white wine combo now that’s the wicked style he rocked while in Brighton, the likes of him we haven’t seen since the early 00s.

Charles de Goal- Exposition

In the opening of their magnificent Algorythmes, Charles de Goal manage to shake the foundations of zombie city with their stop and start skeletal post-punk rock, delivered with the same sort of feverish, incensed, trampling, almost falling never quite falling intensity of darewesay Joy Division, a kernel of irreductible power shining strong in the muddled ball of noise, force in their weakness like the bullied nerd zapping jock agressors into ashes with bone-melting rays of gamma power, zap zap zap.

At the opposite extreme of the emotional spectrum walks Ruth, neither shy nor confident, simply unaware of the attention she garners strutting down the club with this oh so young yet so cold perfect gem of iridiscent electropop, eyes blink like camera objectives taking blurry photographs just managing to capture a shadow or a silouhette, and open intense eyes which don’t pay attention but capture it like black holes, funny that even though the vibe here is one of languid potential most surely non-happening romantic engagement, the risk of bone melting rays of gamma power zapping you into ashes should still not be neglected, intensity cuts both ways and it’s usually the accidental tourist whose blood ends spilt over the dancefloor.

As Mr. Burns/Burndemort once said, she’s got more witchery tricks than Stevie Nicks…

Ruth- Polaroid Roman Photo

And let us be geographically challenged too, and finish with a Canadian band whose delicately epic electropop fits perfectly with the continental vibe of spiritual ennui oh so exquisitely dodged through skilful tinkering with analogic technology we have been reminiscing on throughout this post, in Sweet Delight Iko pull no melodic punches and very much destroy the new romantic mannequin dancefloor with their stark beats and Kraftwerk’s icily pervy offspring antics, we dance mesmerised while a voice in the back of our heads mutters, ‘Demon Seed Demon Seed Demon Seed’, being chased by the washing machine beats hovering the floor anyday mon ami.

Iko- Sweet Delight

Some stuffs going on before we go…

BRIGHTON TONIGHT

Extreme Animals will be playing live in Brighton TONIGHT - members of the Paper rad collective bring that Legobolt vs pump the Gremlin Dance Ghetto Funk thing to the Greenhouse Effect, Church Road Hove, from 8 O’Clock, 4 quid.

They be doing some live video shizz too, felt tip Wu Gambinos & extrasensorial overdose.

Unbeatable support from the mightiest cardboard super-dudes Phill Collins 3 and improv magic commandoes Medicine and Duty doing an exclusive dance set.

The trolls shall roll, Chuck Norris get off our face.

20JFg will be also playing some music at their gig in London on the 27th, MacBeth, as part of the Delete Yrself nigth, COME AND SAY HI FIVE NOT HYPE

And of course Mika Miko & No Age at the Cowley Club on SUNDAY, best double bill of the year so far…

labels >> french stuff