French Wishing: Lykke Li

That's what you get for not doing the blogroll; you miss out on the current hype. And that's Swedish lovely Lykke Li. "Lykke Li will be huge. Like, it’s not even a question. Basically Robyn only younger, hotter and better(?), Li takes the best elements of Annie, Peter Bjorn & John and the new breed of British female singer-songwriters to create her own unique lo-fi pop sound", says GWFA. Zeon adds: "I think Robyn's fans would automatically love her. Well, at least in my perspective, I find it hard to just fall a little bit in love with her..." And Stereogum: "Lykke Li defies any sort of formula and is undeniably in for the long run." But what struck me the most (and JOTN, thanks again mon ami) was the description of her influences on her MySpace; "Jane Birkin with no top on." Now, if only Lykke sang in French. Maybe just one song. Or maybe Camille can cover Little Bit, en Français? S'il vous-plait? I'd love to hear her sing: "And for your you I keep my leg apart/And forget about my tainted heart." In French, ofcourse.

Lykke Li - Little Bit
Lykke Li - Tonight
Leif - Little Bit (Lykke Li cover)

Lisa Portelli

You know what they say about people who have a little gap between their front teeth: they're very musical people. Take Vanessa Paradis. Take Rob de Nijs. And take the young (20) singer from Reims, Lisa Portelli. The blondine looks like VP a little, she sounds like Blossom Dearie a little and likes Syd Barrett and bossanova a lot. I adore her young, but wise sounding vocals, the excellent guitarplaying and the intimiste atmosphere of her songs. Like they say here: Derrière ce patronyme au sourire angélique se cache une jeune auteur-compositrice fertile dont les chansons révèlent un caractère bien trempé.
See Lisa's gap in full glory here.

Lisa Portelli - A Mon Meuble
Lisa Portelli - La Coccinelle

Daft Punk fume une pipe

Forget the girls and the sighing for a few minutes. Think about Georges Brassens. Then think of Daft Punk. Now, try 'n mix the two. You think that's impossible? Ofcourse not. La Pompe Moderne, a group of humourists from France, pay tribute to both Brassens (they used to call themselves the Brassens, but for reasons that are beyond my understanding of French, they changed it, see the explanation on their MySpace) and the helmet-wearing filterdisco-gods. They don't use computers, drummachines or effects, just upright bass, clarinets and sax. What you get is Georges Brassens doing DP's Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger, while smoking a pipe. It's great, it's funny, it's a nice interlude, that's what it is.

La Pompe Moderne (The Brassens) - Plus Dur, Meilleur, Plus Rapide, Plus Fort (Daft Punk cover)

French Wishing: Isobel Campbell

Guestpost! Ken on Isobel Campbell:

There is something rather magical and compelling about girls singing in French – maybe it’s just the lure of the exotic, but I think it goes beyond such a simplistic generalization. The appeal of a sweet, fragile voice clearly expressing the emotion welling up from the singer’s heart (love or longing, joy or sadness) is irresistible. I don’t mean to imply that this notion is something unique to French singers, but I do think that the French pop tradition has perfected it and expresses it with graceful elegance. It would be wonderful to hear Alison Krauss, Nanci Griffith, or Susannah Hoffs cover songs from Keren Ann or Emily Loizeau, but my favorite wish would be for Isobel Campbell to record her album Milk White Sheets in its entirety, entirely in French...her voice is so tender and seductive that the result, I’m sure, would be truly sublime – intimate, beautiful, and melancholy.

Just listen to her sing and see if you don’t find yourself French Wishing along with me...sigh.

Isobel Campbell - Beggar, Wiseman, or Thief
EXTRA:
Gentle Waves feat. Isobel Campbell - Evensong (French version) (thanks Wouter)

Marianne Dissard...

is looking for gigs in Europe, coming March. Her album (with help from Calexico) is nearly done, she loves to play her songs. When she's here, she won't bring Matt Mitchell (with whom she so sensually performs Quand Refleuriront Les Lilas Blanc on Filles Fragiles), but instead Naim Amor (her amant) comes along. If you're a clubowner, and you love to have the both o'them, contact Marianne via her Myspace, or send me an email, I will pass it on.

French Wishing: Histoire de David

Guestpost! Jan Willem on Dave's True Story:

In the series of songs that ought to be sung by French girls, a case can certainly be made for I’ll Never Read Trollope Again by New York beat lounge duo Dave’s True Story. This band, consisting of witty songsmith and guitar player Dave Cantor and blissfully laidback parlour siren Kelly Flint, somehow manages to strike a balance between nostalgic lounge jazz and utterly contemporary lyrics. In this particular song, from their 1998 CD Sex Without Bodies, Miss Flint laments the unfortunate association of a lost lover with her favourite novelist: 19th century English author Anthony Trollope. This gives rise to a hilariously elaborate rhyme scheme that lets ‘Kafka’s tale about that lonely vermin’ chime with ‘Immanuel Kant in German.’ It is tantalising to contemplate what a translator of genius might be able to accomplish in a French version. Naturally this would need to feature a slew of Francophone novelists and philosophers. Any suggestions for a whip-smart French girl singer who might cope with such a song?

Dave's True Story - I'll Never Read Trollope Again

Manda

How it works nowadays: you're an unknown artist, it's your dream to collaborate with a fairly known triphop/lounge-collective, you send 'm a message via their MySpace site, and bang, you end up on their new album ánd you go on a European tour with them. Happened to French singer Manda, she was picked up by Morcheeba. The latter, you might know them from songs like Trigger Hippy and Rome Wasn't Build in a Day, used to have one singer, Skye, but for new album Dive Deep the producers decided to take the Massive Attack-route and invited several vocalists. Like Thomas Dybdahl, Judie Tzuke and Manda. Her song is the only French one on Dive Deep. It's gentle, it's short, it's nice.

Morcheeba feat. Manda - Au Dela