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Moon Safari

Air

Electronic - Released January 19, 1997 | Parlophone (France)

Distinctions The Qobuz Ideal Discography
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Although electronica had its fair share of chillout classics prior to the debut of Air, the lion's share were either stark techno (Warp) or sample-laden trip-hop (Mo' Wax). But while Air had certainly bought records and gear based on the artists that had influenced them, they didn't just regurgitate (or sample) them; they learned from them, digesting their lessons in a way that gave them new paths to follow. They were musicians in a producer's world, and while no one could ever accuse their music of being danceable, it delivered the emotional power of great dance music even while pushing the barriers of what "electronica" could or should sound like. (Never again would Saint Etienne be the only band of a certain age to reveal their fondness for Burt Bacharach.) The Modulor EP had displayed astonishing powers of mood and texture, but it was Air's full-length debut, Moon Safari, that proved they could also write accessible pop songs like "Sexy Boy" and "Kelly Watch the Stars." But it wasn't all pop. The opener, "La Femme d'Argent," was an otherworldly beginning, with a slinky bassline evoking Serge Gainsbourg's Histoire de Melody Nelson and a slow glide through seven minutes of growing bliss (plus a wonderful keyboard solo). The vocoderized "Remember" relaunched a wave of robot pop that hadn't been heard in almost 20 years, and the solos for harmonica and French horn on "Ce Matin La" made the Bacharach comparisons direct. Unlike most electronica producers, Air had musical ideas that stretched beyond samplers or keyboards, and Moon Safari found those ideas wrapped up in music that was engaging, warm, and irresistible.© John Bush /TiVo

2bis

Florent Pagny

French Music - Released August 31, 2023 | Universal Music Division Capitol Music France

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Glass: Cocteau Trilogy

Katia Labèque

Classical - Released February 23, 2024 | Universal Music Division Decca Records France

Hi-Res Booklet Distinctions Qobuz Album of the Week
Philip Glass' three operas based on films by Jean Cocteau, inspired by the composer's youthful experiences in Paris, are among his most variegated works and perhaps among the ones most likely to win over those unpersuaded by the composer. This release took shape as Katia and Marielle Labèque performed concerts devoted to two-piano arrangements of numbers from these operas in 2020 and 2023; the arrangements are by Glass colleague Michael Riesman. Many recordings of Glass have come from his own orbit, but this one, released by the Deutsche Grammophon label and a presence on classical best-seller charts in early 2024, shows the value in opening up the field. The Labèques bring a fluent but lively quality to the music that illuminates the material out of which the operas are woven. Sample the ragtime-like opening, "Le café," from Act I at the beginning. Elsewhere, one hears echoes of Gluck, Bach, and more, all superimposed on Glass' characteristic repeating patterns. The durable popularity of Katia and Marielle Labèque, still at the top of the duo piano heap, is remarkable, and it has occurred in part because the sisters are unafraid to take on new repertory. Here, they have done a spectacular job.© James Manheim /TiVo

999

Santa

French Music - Released September 9, 2022 | Parlophone (France)

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Symphonique

Edith Piaf

French Music - Released October 13, 2023 | Parlophone (France)

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Les Enfoirés 2024, On a 35 ans !

Les Enfoirés

French Music - Released March 2, 2024 | Sony Music - Restos Du Coeur

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Starmania

Starmania

French Music - Released January 1, 1978 | Warner (France)

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Premiers Symptômes

Air

Electronic - Released January 1, 1997 | Parlophone (France)

It's usually just the collectors and obsessed fans that contend a band's first few singles are really their best work, far better than the material that ends up on their first album. With the French band Air, the collectors may just be right for once. Premiers Symptomes, a five-track EP boosted up to seven tracks for its eventual American issue on Astralwerks, features some of the most gorgeous moments in the duo's discography -- no small task considering the gems included on their full-length debut, 1998's Moon Safari. Almost completely instrumental (except for the surprisingly smooth robot croon on "Le Soleil est Pres de Moi"), Premiers Symptomes offers a half-dozen tracks of beautiful, deliciously downtempo synth-pop. It's far more than just a compilation of substandard early material that works best for collectors, it takes its place right next to Moon Safari as another highlight of French electronica.© John Bush /TiVo
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Civilisation Edition Ultime

Orelsan

Hip-Hop/Rap - Released October 28, 2022 | Wagram Music - 3ème Bureau

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Isa

Zaz

French Music - Released October 22, 2021 | Parlophone (France)

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Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain (Bande originale du film)

Yann Tiersen

Film Soundtracks - Released April 23, 2001 | UGC Images - ADA France

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Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie Poulen (known to Western audiences simply as "Amelie") was a magic realist romantic comedy by French auteur Jean Pierre-Jeunet which introduced French composer Yann Tiersen to listeners worldwide. Tiersen's whimsical, deceptively simple instrumental music was equally influenced by composers like Chopin and Satie, as well as contemporaries such as Michael Nyman and Philip Glass, and emerged as an enjoyable blend of European classical music and French folk. Playing a variety of instruments from piano and violin to accordion and xylophone, Tiersen composed a number of delicate, charming pieces which suited the somewhat magical mood of the film very well and deservedly made him a star in his own right.© Sergey Mesenov /TiVo
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L'Ecole du micro d'argent

Iam

Hip-Hop/Rap - Released January 1, 1997 | Parlophone (France)

Distinctions The Qobuz Ideal Discography
This album is one of the cornerstones of French hip-hop music. Its release was a major act for IAM as they finally found a sound to match the quality of their lyrics, as well as for French hip-hop, confirming the fact that rap has a lot of followers in the Hexagon. Like their peers from the suburbs of Paris, NTM, IAM went to New York to instigate the production of this album, seeking for the essence of the sound one can only find in the Big Apple (their previous album was also cut in N.Y.). They teamed with Prince Charles Alexander, the mixer and engineer who worked a lot for Bad Boy Records. They even got close to the Wu-Tang realm through Sunz of Man members on "La Saga." The sound has definitely changed from the previous albums: at first putting themselves in the Egyptian tradition (look at their names), they now have found the musical depth they deserve as ones of the few best lyricists of France. Definitely influenced by the Wu-Tang soundscapes, the opening track is the story of the battle between their school, from the silver mic, against the wooden mic school, in a Bushido style. Too bad that non-French speaking listeners won't get the lyrics; they cannot appreciate the quintessence of IAM's style. However, most of the album sticks to the traditional approach of storytelling, as it covers the city life in its darkness: little brothers that want to grow too fast and be the new caïd ("Petit Frère"), money hungry women who have sex without giving their names, the difficulties to have a similar chance and destiny than a boy growing up in the well-off (about equality of chances) and much more. Not many subjects of relief here, we only breathe thanks to the banging instrumentals and phrasing of the MCs. IAM takes the time to raise questions we don't want to hear, and stories we don't want to remember. This album is just hip-hop as its best: quality of the production with skilled lyricists in top form. This would just be one of you first "must-have" purchase if you plan to approach French rap music.© Vincent Latz /TiVo

Evidemment

France Gall

French Music - Released February 1, 2005 | Warner (France)

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Chroniques d’un cupidon

Slimane

Pop - Released September 1, 2022 | Universal Music Division Capitol Music France

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Dutronc & Dutronc - La tournée générale

Thomas Dutronc

French Music - Released November 24, 2023 | Universal Music Division Label Panthéon

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La planète sauvage

Alain Goraguer

Film Soundtracks - Released January 1, 1973 | Universal Music Division Decca Records France

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In 2000, the European label DC Recordings reissued on CD the soundtrack from the cult sci-fi animated film La Planète Sauvage (released in English as The Fantastic Planet). The René Laloux film, which won a Special Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1973, was supported by a soundtrack by Alain Goraguer, mostly known for his work as Serge Gainsbourg's arranger. Goraguer's music consists of 25 short vignettes. Each is a contextualized adaptation of one of three main musical themes. The main theme is very reminiscent of Pink Floyd's "Atom Heart Mother Suite" (same half-time tempo, mellotron, harpsichord, and wah-wah guitar), and the other two are a ballad and a circus-like waltz. The music is very '70s-clichéd and will appeal to fans of French and Italian '70s soundtrack stylings. Although repetitive, the album itself creates an interesting marijuana-induced sci-fi floating mood, blending psychedelia, jazz, and funk (the album has been sampled by a few hip-hop artists). The 16-page booklet includes stills from the film, a description of the plot, and biographical notes on the composer, the director, and the illustrator, all in English -- but, alas, no musicians' credits. DC Recordings reissued the album on both CD and LP, the latter version also including a poster.© François Couture /TiVo

Live au Cirque d'Hiver

Christophe Maé

French Music - Released March 18, 2022 | Parlophone (France)

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Chimène chante Piaf : L'intégrale

Chimène Badi

French Music - Released October 6, 2023 | Parlophone (France)

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La tournée historique (Live à l'Accor Arena, 2023)

Michel Polnareff

French Music - Released November 24, 2023 | Parlophone (France)

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La fabuleuse histoire de Mister Swing

Michel Jonasz

French Music - Released April 29, 1988 | MJM - ADA France