Did I say my blog is supposed to be as eclectic as my music tastes? I've never stopped listening to rock music, but growing old made me open up my mind as you will notice from #3 and #2. That's how that young German's electro pop came to my - still - rough ears.
Colours and Moving on are the perfect background music you need while choosing your cocktail dress before heading to a fancy party.
If I hadn't read about him on German magazine Musik Express before listening to him, I would have thought that boy was another talented guy from London. Ok he's from Cologne.
#3 Of Montreal - Innocence Reaches
After the release of Deerhoof's The Magic, Polyvinyl Records is really doing a good job this year. I'm happy I subscribed to the indepedent label's newsletter and took a few seconds to read some names so I could remember them and check out their music later.
Of Montreal is part of it and I think their new album is perfect for a chilling Sunday afternoon (with your cats if you're lucky enough to have some). My Fair Lady is the best example to illustrate the atmosphere that the record conveys.
Same for A Sport and a Pastime or the very psyhedelic Les Chants de Malodor, but I have to say I hate two songs. Even for an experimental pop band, I don't think the aim of music is to make your ears bleed through the music itself in Let's Relate or through Kevin Barnes' awful vocals in Chaos Arpeggiating.
Gratuitous Abysses is more rhythmic, but it's not really going to make you dance (
My "coups de coeur" go here to Def Pacts and Ambassador bridge, though I prefer them live where Kevin Barnes def CAN sing.
#2 La Femme - Mystère
This time, I didn't even hear about their new record through the internet. I just received the September edition of French music magazine Rock and Folk. Oh, in case you were wondering where I got the name of my blog from...Now you have a clue.
I read the interview with Marlon and Sasha and can't disagree with the critical acclaim. I like their 80's music with three keyboards, their smooth vocals and how they achieved to use various influence from that era - I can only recognize Taxi Girl as it's not the music I usually listen to - to create and build up their own sound. Their live performances are also remarkable: they even brought a little life into that boring, pretentious French "Victoires de la Musique" ceremony 2 years ago.
Mystère is a really good album even if I'll never be a fan of this band because of the - what appears to me as - often too stupid lyrics in French. That's the case of Où va le monde where the male vocals are also disturbingly too weak. But the video is just awesome.
http://www.vevo.com/watch/la-femme/Ou-va-le-monde/FR1A91600627
Plus, the smooth male voice can also be bizarre in a good way as well as the simple but nice, universally meaningful and realistic lyrics these guys can write. That's why Nous étions deux from their first record Psycho Tropical Berlin is - along with Le Blues de Françoise - my favorite song by La Femme.
I just hope you're not a native speaker yourself, then you will think all the lyrics are great since most people instinctively find anything that comes out in French witty and sexy. Even this:
Well, that being said, their second record has some brillant songs: my favorite is Sphynx where - don't ask me why - the far away sounding female voice is a good point.
I also like Télégraphe and Tatiana is as worth listening as watching through that excellent live performance by cute Marlon.
Record to be released in September 2016.
#1 Har Mar Superstar - Best Summer Ever
Well, I did not mean it but it's a fact for this article: I came to know each album through a different media. I'm glad I listen to Oui FM everyday - the best radio I know - and its web radio broadcasting independent rock without interruptive ads at all and heard Lady You Shot Me a few months ago for the first time. I thought "Woww. Nice soul song", had a glance at the musician's Wikipedia page, liked the idea of that overweighed shirtless character called Har Mar Superstar and did not think further. Then I heard that awesome very pop Anybody's game a few weeks later, could barely believe it came from the same artist that wrote the other soul track and finally checked out his last record on Soundcloud.
While having here in Hamburg the worst summer ever, I literally fell in love with Best Summer Ever, full of love songs. I enjoy listening every single piece, from the very pop and sad ballads Youth Without Love, I Hope and Don't Erase to the nice 80's keyboardy It was only dancing through the very rock Famous Last words that just got me. Such an eclectic album! From so much keyboard and pop to that sudden loud energic interlude before ending up the whole thing with that ultimate beautiful ballad called Confidence.
Of course, the record also includes soul music: How Did I Get Through the Day.
What a voice! That was my favorite song from my favorite album of the year. Yes, in front of Deerhoof's The Magic. But both are American and therefore have awful tour dates with - needless to say - almost nothing planed for Europe...
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