I’ve had a rollercoaster of a week. So when I am actually listening to music (as opposed to hurriedly running around), I don’t want roars —I want songs that tiptoe and whisper. Or tiny whirlwinds, both glacial and immense. Mischievous songs that sound like rain on windowsills, the crackle of thunder in the distance, gathering speed and power. Wind-up toy operas. Spiralling violin, crackling static. Songs that could only have come off of an old wax cylinder, or from the future.
A few, s’il vous plait.
The Konki Duet aren’t a duo at all but rather a trio that sings in French, English, and Japanese. Their wry cover of the Visage chestnut “Fade to Gray” completely transformed the song (so much so that I barely recognized it). Their debut album exudes effortless charm, from the spidery Gorey-esque drawings that adorn the cover to the lovely harmonies and clever arrangements.
La Laque are a New York-based band with a marked interest in the Nouvelle Vague (check their website’s gorgeous Posters section for further proof). They first came to my attention with their gorgeously-designed split 12″ with Pas/CAL [available here —what a joy that website is! Happy design delerium]. They’re currently working on their first CD, but until then they’re offering free music on their MySpace page.
Le Volume Courbe is a very recent discovery. Charlotte Marionneau is a French expatriate living in London. Her music has a strange, otherworldly quality to it —she sings like an old soul and the music is a spidery yet tensile collage of fractured beats and guitar loops. Her cover of Nina Simone’s “Ain’t Got No/I Got Life” is celebratory. Find the album if you can —it’s well worth it. And hopefully she’ll tour here eventually.
The Konki Duet | The Konki Shop | The Konki YouTube
La Laque promise a CD EP on the way soon —check their MySpace page for info.
le Volume Courbe on Myspace | Buy “I Killed A Friend” [Astralwerks] | Le Volume Courbe YouTube
The Konki Duet, “Ima wa mori no naka ni”
Le Volume Courbe, “Papillon de Nuit”
IMAGE BY JOSEPH CORNELL, BASTARDIZED BY ME. SORRY, JOSEPH!