Friday's French music break Lillywood and the prick, "Middle of the night"

Friday's French music break this week comes from a group with the (um) glorious name of Lilly Wood and the Prick.

Great name for a band don't you think?

Er. Pass.

Lilly Wood and the Prick: screenshot from  "Where I Want To Be (California)" official video

"Middle of the night" is the first single to have been released from their latest album "The fight", a fine follow-up to their debut "Invincible friends"

Online information about Lilly Wood and the Prick is a bit thin on the ground.

That fount of all knowledge, both correct and incorrect, otherwise known as Wikipedia, doesn't have a great deal on them. In fact their English entry is - well sparse to say the very least - which means you have to go a-huntin elsewhere.

Their website is a little disappointing although is has links to their Myspace account and the inevitable Facebook page complete with upcoming dates.

So who are they?

Well, they're a duo: singer Nili Hadida and guitarist Benjamin Cotto.

The pair write all their own material.

Their sound is distinctive and categorised  - always a bit of a danger when trying to pigeon hole artists whose music defies labels - as folk Electronic / Folk / Pop.

One thing's for sure - they cannot be mistaken for any other French act - in fact you would have a hard time knowing they were French - more on that in a moment.

Hadida and Cotto were apparently introduced to each other back in 2006 by friends in a bar in Paris and began working together within 48 hours.

"We barely each other at the beginning," Hadida told Nagui, the presenter of France 2's music show Taratata.

"But through music we've had a chance to get closer and really understand how the other person ticks."

Hmmm.  Great story isn't it? And the two seem pretty sincere. There again, who cares whether it's entirely true as their music ain't half bad.

Their big break - in terms of wider recognition came at the 2011 Victoires de la Musique awards (the French equivalent of the Grammys) when the pair walked away with the prize of Best Newcomer (le groupe ou l'artiste révélation du public) ahead of  Ben l'Oncle Soul, Camélia Jordana and Zaz.

Now don't worry if your French isn't very good. The group sings exclusively in English - probably down to Hadida's international upbringing and influences (she was born in Israel, raised in Paris and has lived in London and California).

There's definitely a commercial appeal to their music and unlike some other "foreign groups" writing and singing in English, their lyrics actually make sense.

Hadida's voice is distinctive, and what's more the pair can perform live.

There's no playback or flashy gimmicks necessary as witnessed by this appearance on Le Figaro's music show "Le Live".



Their music is simple without any pretensions although Hadida admits that some of the songs, much like the group's name, are meant to provoke.

Ah yes.

About that name...

"Nili isn't necessarily Lilly and nor am I the Prick. In fact it could be the opposite," Cotto said with a degree of humour in an interview with By the Way blog.

"Seriously though the name is more about a group of words which (to us) sound good together and it's in keeping with how we want to progress: the magical aspect reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland mixed with something a little more down to earth."

Yes. Well.

Maybe they'll think about changing their name should they ever become successful outside of France.

One thing's for sure, whatever they're called, the pair produce some excellent music.

Here's the official clip of "Middle of the night".

Enjoy.

Friday's French music break, Camille - "Que je t'aime"

Friday's French music break this week is a song you might well recognise.

"QUE JE T'AIME" - block caps obligatory in the original recording by Johnny Hallyday in 1969 - is one of the French rocker's many signature tunes.

But a new version released on YouTube last month and available now on download transports the song to a different...er..."universe" (in the sense that the music industry seems to use when describing an artist's "style").

It's by singer-songwriter Camille and while the obvious sultriness of the lyrics remains, her interpretation comes across as far more poetic, tender and altogether much more sensual than Hallyday's earhole- blasting rendition.

Camille (screenshot from Taratata interview, October 2011)

Camille's voice is one which she has used almost as an additional instrument on each of her four studio albums - including the latest, "Ilo Veyou", released in October 2011 - and in live performances (see this one of her singing "Ta douleur" on France 2's music programme Taratata for example).

The remake might be a somewhat unpredictable choice for the 34-year-old but at the same time it's entirely in keeping with her ability to deliver something unexpected.

Her music and style has always defied categorisation, making her probably one of France's most gifted - and dare it be said - musically intelligent popular artists.

"Que je t'aime"  is more than delightful, it's an acoustic jewel - revisited.

If you like what she has done to it, then you'll be able to catch her at one of the many summer festivals or in concert during her national tour which runs until March next year including two dates at Olympia in Paris in October (details can be found on her official website).

For now though, here's the teaser available of her interpretation of "Que je t'aime". Sadly there's no official video yet and the visuals are non-existant.

It doesn't really matter too much though.

If you want to compare and contrast to the original by Johnny Hallyday, click on this link.

Happy listening - and have a great weekend.

Friday's French music break, Shaka Ponk - "My name is Stain"

Friday's French music break this week is one that follows what seems to have become something of a trend for singers and groups in this country.

It's in English.

screenshot from official video on YouTube

Mind you, that doesn't mean it's any more comprehensible as the lyrics of "My name is Stain"  aren't particularly inspiring or complicated  at first glance and run along the lines of...


"The guy next door, is such a whore
the food I eat is poison or
I eat no food cause I can't find a store"

But heck, how often have you heard and liked a song that seems to say little or nothing?

Founded in Paris at the beginning of the last decade, SHK PNK  as they're apparently often referred to - take a look at the official website - by friends, family and fans are at heart a six-piece band (seven if you count the virtual monkey who appears with them on stage and in videos) comprising François Charon or Frah, CC, Mandris Steve and since 2010 the Anglo-Egyptian singer Samaha Sam.

Their music is a blend of electro-rock, funk, hip hop and punk (where was the kitchen sink?) and on their official Facebook page Shaka Ponk - sorry it's hard to stick with the vernacular - SHK PNK is - wait for this, "a mutant rock band that explores the virtual to have better roots in reality."

Huh?

Work it out for yourself if you can - or must.

Several years and three albums down the line the group has found commercial success with a series of sold out dates in France and of course TV appearances such as the one recently on France 2's music show Taratata.

And they'll be back at Olympia in Paris in November.

http://www.olympiahall.com/rock-electro/shaka-ponk.html

Their latest album, "The Geeks And The Jerkin' Socks" released in June 2011 has so far spent 30 weeks in the charts and the single "My name is Stain" peaked at number seven for three weeks and is still receiving plenty of airplay.

That's enough with the statistics already.

Here's the song whose lyrics do apparently have a sense behind them  (listen to the beginning of the interview with Nagui on Taratata if you're keen to discover more) even if they are pretty obscure and contrived.

It actually doesn't matter one iota though as the melody is irresistible and that's usually what sticks in the head.

Have a great weekend

Friday's French music break - Irma and Jason Mraz, "Can't take my eyes off you"

Friday's French music break this week is admittedly something of a stretch because neither of the singers is actually from France.

 Irma and Jason Mraz (screenshot montage from Taratata)

Nor is the song come to that: one that is more than 40 years old and has been heard time and time again because it has apparently been covered by more than 200 artists.

Add to that the fact that one of the artists was featured just a week ago in this same slot and...well, you could be forgiven for thinking that it's all a bit of a cheat.

Besides, it would be all but impossible to come up with a version of a song sung by so many that would impress wouldn't it?

Think again.

This live performance of Franki Valli's 1967 hit "Can't take my eyes off you" came during a screening of France 2's music show Taratata recently.

It's Cameroonian-born Irma - you remember her from last week's post - and US singer-songerwriter Jason Mraz getting together to blend voices in an acoustic version of the song.

Quite simply, it's music our ears were meant to hear.

More please.

So, click on the link below, it'll take you to the performance on Taratata - and enjoy!

IRMA and Jason MRAZ - Taratata

Friday's French music break - Claire Denamur, "Bang bang bang"

Friday's French music break this week has more than a hint of the US to it

Claire Denamur's "Bang bang bang" features an hypnotic twanging guitar, a country music-influenced rhythm and a simple, catchy chorus, which should all go a fair way to making it a hit.

Claire Denamur (screenshot from official clip)

Even before its release it had been receiving a fair amount of airplay, and should get something of a boost when the recording Denamur made for the television music show Taratata is broadcast in October.

The 27-year-old apparently spent a chunk of her childhood in the States and that has heavily influenced her music and style described as, "characterised by very text-based gender relations and intimate country folk acoustic music sung with a slightly rough and ready - or 'broken' - voice."


Of the quality of her voice, she's quoted as saying in a recent article about her music in the national daily Libération, "It's that of a heavy smoker who knows the joys of bourbon!"

And that's not too far off the mark.

Distinctive? Yes.

Unpleasant? Most definitely not.

And very Blues.

Plus she write her own material which has to be the mark of a true "artiste" doesn't it?

"Bang, Bang, Bang" is the first track to be released from her second album "Vagabonde" - also well worth a listen.

Check out a review of that album on the French radio station France Inter and zap over to her official website for concert dates.

In the meantime, here's "Bang, bang, bang".

Cool video.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Da5e1ni2MzE&ob=av2n