We're Back!
Dou-Da-Dou

And the summer holidays are over! We hope that you didn't partake in too much debauchery. I am referring to barbequed ribs, mojitos and the like...

For your spiritual wellbeing we hope that our selections will allow you to overcome the torpor of siestas for the heat of the dancefloor!

It's already our fourth season (where does the time go?) and we are looking to open our horizons by including interviews with artists and reviews of other areas (such as books and graphic novels)...but don't worry. We will never stray too far from the groove which burns inside!

So to get you back into the swing of things gently, we propose a compilation with nostalgic flavours and marshmallows. 

« Dou Da Dou : the unlimited french lost catalogue » (2005, Vadim Music)

Michele Richard "Dou Da Dou"

Marcel Zanini "Wana Nene Wana Nana"

Demis Roussos et Stelio Vlavianos "A Travers Montmarte"

UM Podcast #31 : TOFM - Trilogy 2 (part 1)
TOFM - Trilogy 2 (part 1)

TOFM is back! Fans of minimal tech can't avoid downloading this podcast and sending the link to 10 friends, else they will be cursed for a year (unless you send us a cheque).

Dark landscapes have never been so luminous.

TOFM - "Trilogy 2 (part 1)"
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Tracklisting:

01 - Ambivalent - 808 clap
02 - STL - From a distance
03 - Redshape - 2010
04 - Ribn - Cottbus
05 - Sian - Byzantine conduit (Jonas Kopp mix)
06 - Dub Taylor - Represent
07 - Thom Yorke - Cymbal rush (The Field mix)
08 - Queen Atom - Mi ojo negro
09 - Mike Dehnert - Umlaut 2 (Levon Vincent mix)
10 - People get People - Robin hood
11 - Kollektiv Turmstrasse - Luechtoorn
12 - Clara Moto - Hidding in the bottom drawer

New French Pop

This Saturday night saw the first concert of the promising Divine Orchestra. A beautiful intro with a timid voice which gets braver as the track progresses and always with a clear melody.

I didn't have my camera with me, but I can offer an acoustique video of the group, live from their sofa!

The Divine Orchestra - "The Lover of Two" (2010)

Easy Strings
Michel Legrand - archi-cordes

In 1964 "Archi-cordes", a little known album by Michel Legrand, was released. At that time, he was a young and talented composer and very much en vogue with the New Wave cinema goers.

In front of the media tsunami of the 1960s, the maestro only saw a mediocre wave. As a reaction to that and with a certain derisory spirit, he composed Jerk, Twist, Hully-Gully themes with talent and imagination. These were all in vogue with the youth.

The irony of the story is that that no one realised that this album was tongue-in-cheek and so it knew a certain success, as it was taken at face value. Time passed and everyone forgot about this album....

But history can be ironice... In 1966, the London DJ duo, Karminsky Experience Inc, exhumed this album from its analogue tomb. We can listen to "Come Ray an Come Charles" and "Di-gue-ding-ding" on their excellent complilation " Inflight Entertainment", an easy-listening must-have for connaisseurs!

Michel Legrand « Archi-cordes » (1964, Mercury)

"Di Gue Ding Ding"

"Noix De Coco"

"Come Ray And Come Charles"

UM Podcast #29 : Juanito - French Touch Connection
French Touch Connection Podcast

The '60s and '70s represent a very prolific time in French cinema. The great films were always accompanied by great music: Serge Gainsbourg, Michel Magne, François de Roubaix will certainly be remembered as great composers of music for film.

We present you a podcast not to be missed, especially if you want to hear some rare and specialised tracks.

Juanito - "French Touch Connection"
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Tracklisting:

01 - Dernier domicile connu - François De Roubaix (Dernier Domicile Connu, 1969)
02 - Je n’avais qu’un seul mot à lui dire - Serge Gainsbourg et Michel Colombier (Anna, 1966)
03 - Route de nuit - Michel Magne (Les Tontons Flingueurs, 1963)
04 - Adieu l’ami - François De Roubaix (Adieu l’Ami, 1969)
05 - Ne nous fâchons pas - Bernard Gérard (Ne Nous Fâchons Pas, 1965)
06 - Joe - Michel Magne (De La Part Des Copains, 1970)
07 - Le crocodile porte-clé - Bernard Gérard (Des Vacances En Or, 1970)
08 - Olivier - Francis Lai (La Leçon Particulière, 1968)
09 - Cadavres en série - Serge Gainsbourg (Le Pacha, 1968)
10 - Les cadences infernales - Vladimir Cosma (La Zizanie, 1978)
11 - Yacht - François De Roubaix (L’homme Orchestre, 1970)
12 - Tamouré - Michel Magne (Les Tontons Flingueurs, 1963)
13 - Chewing-gum attack - Vladimir Cosma (Rabbi Jacob, 1973)
14 - Youkoun-Koun - Georges Delerue (Le Corniaud, 1965)
15 - La scoumoune - François De Roubaix (La Scoumoune, 1972)
16 - Play Dirty - Michel Legrand (Enfants de Salauds, 1968)
17 - Flirt à Cocody - Michel Magne (Le Gentleman De Cocody, 1963)
18 - Générique - Michel Magne (Mélodie En Sous-sols, 1963)
19 - La dame dans l’auto - Michel Legrand (The Lady in a Car with Glasses and a Gun, 1970)
20 - Cine Qua Pop - Michel Magne (Tout Le Monde Il Est Beau, Tout Le Monde Il Est Gentil, 1970)
21 - Nues dans l’eau - Georges Garvarentz (Sapho, 1970)
22 - Pop Mod - Claude Bolling (Le Magnifique, 1973)
23 - Soirée Jerk chez les Dumonceau - Michel Legrand (Tendre Voyou, 1966)
24 - Haschisch Party - Georges Garvarentz (Un Beau Monstre, 1970)
25 - Danger - Serge Gainsbourg et Jea-Claude Vannier (Cannabis, 1970)
26 - New Délires Again - Serge Gainsbourg et Michel Colombier (Manon 70, 1968)
27 - Largo - Bach, Michel Magne et les Swingles Singers (Galia, 1965)
28 - Dernier domicile connu (autre version) - François De Roubaix (Dernier Domicile Connu, 1969)

Surf in Rouen
The Divine's Orchestra - The Lover Of Two

I've already written an article on the promising group, The Divine's Orchestra, from Rouen, with their very surf-Rock sound. They have lived up to their promise with this new single, still written by Benjamin, but this time accompanied by the singer Manon Grange,  whose voice, both detached and warm, really suits this track.

"The Lover Of Two" is a single which evokes American 60s pop. It has a very west coast psychedelic feeling suited to a lo-fi atmosphere, which really works, in spite of the voice being a bit too much in the background.

In any case, I really love this track, which contains more talent than 3 episodes of X-Factor.

Bring on the album....

The Divine's Orchestra - "The Lover Of Two" (2009, Flecca Records)

Ultramagnetique Podcast #25: TOFM - Move 004
UM Podcast - TOFM - Move 004

25 podcasts already! Time flies...

Still fond of minimal sounds but certainly less dark, this "Move 004" is one of TOFM's best mixes. A beautiful intro from london composer Lazarus, followed by Even Tuell's "Untitled" track: this is a super start for a set which shows an interesting evolution in TOFM's style.

Enjoy.

TOFM - "Move 004"
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Tracklisting:

01 - Damian Lazarus - Moment
02 - Even Tuell - Untitled A1
03 - Mr G - Sometime I Cry (Radio Slave mix)
04 - Kevin Griffiths - Cantona Kung Fu
05 - Oleg Poliakov - Midnight Vultures
06 - Boris Werner - Desert Blues
07 - Mountain People- Mountain 007.1
08 - Seuil - Walk The Line
09 - Agnes - Who Cares
10 - Scott Grooves - Coco Brown
11 - Jenn - Black
12 - Scott Ferguson - I Cried For You (Walk in the Park Mix)

Emilie Simon
Emilie Simon - The Big Machine

Even though the film "The Emperor's March" was released in the US without the original soundtrack composed by this promising French composer, Emilie Simon does not hold a grudge.

After moving recently to New York, she is shaking the Big Apple with her "Big Machine" sound.

This is a work of Pop, with vocals that channel, rather than copy, the great Kate Bush.

Emilie Simon "The Big Machine" (2009, Barclay)

"Nothing To Do With You"

"Ballad Of The Big Machine"

"Rocket To The Moon"

Come Back Françoise
Françoise Hardy - Comment te dire Adieu

There are certain tunes which last forever. This one could very well have stayed in the annals of forgotten music, as "It Hurts to Say Goodbye" did not know much success, until Françoise Hardy's American editor proposed the track to her. Smitten, she asked Serge Gainsbourg to compose lyrics to this falsely joyful tune. "Comment te Dire Adieu" went on to become a huge hit and was to be the title track of the singer's 1968 studio album.

Hardy, one of France's national treasures, became an truly international underground star, in particular in England. From Bronski Beat to Freddy Mercury, her fan club really gives one pause for thought and she is also revered even amongst heterosexuals! (Damon Albarn, Thom Yorke).

To get back to "It Hurts to Say Goodbye", the original, it was composed by Arnold Goland. This talented American orchestrator only had moderate success with it. I have to admit, however, to preferring his version, which I find very Burt Bacharach, with its sparkling brass section, which makes me want consume Margarita without moderation!

Arnold Goland - "It Hurts To Say Goodbye" (1967)

Melody in C
The Do

An example of a group who became known via the internet, even before signing with a label. The first album was released at the beginning of the year, a few articles in the press and voila, our duo are on their way to fame and fortune.

Their success begs us to ask questions about the strategy of the big labels, but it is also a prime example of the success of the new modes of diffusion, something we discuss regularly on this blog. Even in the golden age, before Internet, big labels were happy to have the little underground labels unearth new talent and they were then happy to pick them off, once they were established.

As for this Franco-Finish duo, Dan Levy & Olivia B. Merilahti, they've brought us a Rock-Pop epic with various influences, ballads, Hip-Hop and a sound which reminds me both of Cocorosie and Bjork. The result makes for some very interesting listening.

The Do - "A Mouthful" (2007, Cinq7/Wagram)

"Playground Hustle"

"On My Shoulders"

"Song For Lovers"

"Queen Dot Kong"

UM Podcast #22: Juanito - Babylon By Dub
Ultramagnetique Podcast - Juanito - Babylon by Dub

Friends of Dub, Good evening!

It is which great pleasure that I invite you to float along to the excellent selection of my great friend and partner in music, the one and only MC Juanito.

From classics (LKJ, Burning Spear), to the old (the always excellent Dub Specialists of Studio One), but also to the unexpected, with the amazing mashup by Shantel. A true selection of Dub richness, with Lee Perry the unchallenged King.

I have a personal weakness for the fantastic "Abyssinean Dub" and the lesser known Blue Asia, who will transport you to better world.

Juanito - "Babylon By Dub"
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Tracklisting:

01 – Alania – Jah Jah is Comming (DS Special Edit)
02 – Aswad – Mosman Skank
03 – Prince Far I & The Arabs – Long Life
04 – Dub Specialists – Running Dub
05 – Linton Kwesi Johnson – Reality Dub
06 – Burning Spear – All Over
07 – Djigui – Ladilikan (vocal & dub mix)
08 – Femi Kuti – Eregele (Seven Dub mix)
09 – Loop Guru – Aphrodite’s Shoe
10 – Beats International – The Invasion of the Estate Agents
11 – Rona Hartner & Dj Click vs Shantel – Inele Inel de Aur (Bucovina dub)
12 - Dub Specialists – Live in Harmony
13 – U Roy & François Kervorkian – Rootsman
14 – Rockers Hi-Fi – Transmission Central
15 – Echo Pilot – Madcircus Dub
16 - Blue Asia – Abyssinean Dub
17 - 17 – Manusound – I Have a Dream
18 – Molécule - Daims

Frog Blues
Don Cavalli - Cryland

This husky "sandpaper" voice, along with the black guitar from the South indicate that we are deep in the bayou. However, Don Cavalli is white and was born in near Paris. I can feel the readers disappointment with those last words. You would have preferred to hear a story of an album recorded by a criminal from New Orleans, one who died in his cell in an alcoholic coma after having read Jennifer Aniston's biography.

I am pleased to shatter these prejudices with confirmation that Don Cavalli's music is honest and direct. He has a rare and dry voice, inspired compositions and an impeccable bass-drum pairing. The production is analogical and sounds as though is has just come straight from the Sun studios of Memphis: wah-wah, disco and vintage compressors.

The social welfare should be prescribing Don Cavalli, instead of anti-depressants.

Don Cavalli - "Cryland" (2007, Because)

"Vitamin A"

"Summertime"

"New Hollywood Babylon"

"Cryland"

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