Joyeux Noël

****Happy Christmas / Joyeux Noël****

We're a bit too busy dealing with Christmas to give you a post about Christmas. But we will be providing some support over the festive period for those who choose to remain in Brighton...

We know we’ll all be bored of our new toys, and sick of arguing with relatives come the end of Boxing Day, so here’s a chance to escape for a few hours:

SATURDAY 27th DECEMBER
L'AMOUR ELECTRONIQUE
The West Hill (formerly The Belle Vue),
Buckingham Place, Brighton
(it's just up the hill next to Brighton Station!)
9pm – 3am
FREE ENTRY ALL NIGHT LONG.


Dom and Verity will be playing French bubblegum pop, synthesized sounds and electronic nuggets to ease you on your way from Christmas to New Year’s Eve.

We will be joined in record playing duties by Estelle (who is properly French and will show us up).

Come along it will be pleasant and booze-y.


Here's a yuletide youtube to get you in the mood
MERRY PROG-ING CHRISTMAS (don't fear the Prog, kids)

Greg Lake - I Believe in Father Christmas

CAUTION HORSES

Polly is a girl, and Polly has a horse. The horse suffers from depression and is troubled by the voices in its head. The horse is called Blue Monday.

Blue Monday lopes around a windswept paddock to an internal soundtrack of early 80’s Factory Records, as played in 2008 by a bunch Parisian kids on glacial synths, lowwwwww-slung bass and strict, metronomic drums.

It’s Koko Von Napoo.

Now, let’s check those credentials:

• Four young Parisians (3 girls, 1 boy) – CHECK
  
• A love of Factory Records and the sound of crumbling, early 80’s Manchester – CHECK
  
• A name that apparently references a Pre-War Manchester gang: The Napoo (as mentioned in Andrew Davies’ Gangs of Manchester) – CHECK
  
• A name that makes them sound German – CHECK
  

Koko Von Napoo - Polly

[buy Koko Von Napoo from Rough Trade / iTunes]

Now, I had this idea that chevalier was French for cavalier – being that cheval is French for horse, it seemed logical. But I foolishly looked it up. It’s actually French for knight.

But let’s go with my idea anyway… we’ll just imagine it’s a knight on a horse, like this one. Okay?

So, I’m sat there listening to Le Chevalier by Jiji, thinking: that must surely be an intentional pun or in-joke, getting a sweet pop songstress called Jiji (a phonetic mimicry of gee-gee –English slang term for race-horse) to sing a song about a knight (on a horse)… Does this pun work in French? Was someone back there in les années 60’s having a little chuckle as they set the hooves in motion for this record? Am I clutching at straws?

Jiji – Le Chevalier
[this song was re-released on the now deleted compilation Ultra Chicks Vol. 6: Vous Dansez Mademoiselle.  Weirdo Records (USA) have copies apparently...]

Next one out of the horse-box: a slab of avant-hard synth-abuse courtesy of Miss Ann Shenton.

In which our heroine mounts her statuesque, battery-powered steed and summons a choir of heavenly Mellotron-ic beings to lead into battle with an army of evil theremin wielding robots…

Add N To (X) – Ann’s Eveready Equestrian
[buy Add N to (X) from Mute / iTunes]

And we couldn’t do a post about horses without including perhaps the best electronic song ever written about a horse (in our humble opinion). 

Sample lyric:
“Oh glittering horse, you were sold
in a shady shop, on the Edgeware Road”

We give you Simon Bookish.
Everybody scream METAL HORSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Simon Bookish – Metal Horse
[buy Simon Bookish direct from the horses mouth / iTunes]

Re-Launch imminent

Only 1 day to go...

Come and find us barricaded with Eiffel Tower models into a Tricolore-d corner, treating your ears to a late night 6-hour cocktail of electronic goodness, French bubblegum pop and filthy dirty synthcore.

If you come (which you should), you can expect to hear Serge Gainsbourg, Soft Cell, Francoise Hardy, Human League, Stereo Total, Brigitte Bardot, The Knife, Jacques Dutronc, OMD, Michel Polnareff, Glass Candy, BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Stereolab, Pulp, Magnetic Fields, The Chap, Add N to (X), Devo, Air, early electronic delights, Ye-Ye and synthesized weirdness.

Entry is still FREE

Opening times 9pm – 3am

To celebrate the move, there will be a special mix CD for the first 25 who come and ask us for one.

Let the countdown commence...
Pulp - Countdown

To recap:
L’Amour Electronique
Saturday 22 November 2008
(and every following 4th Saturday of the month)
9pm – 3am
FREE entry

The West Hill
(formerly the Belle Vue)
67 Buckingham Place
Brighton
BN1 3PQ

Ssssssh! Quiet in the stacks please…

Hold tight! Here comes a shameless plug.

Today sees the release of Miss Pain’s latest record Shelf-Location ROM / Kiss Cuddle Torture. It's released by Nylon! Friction! and it’s quite good, you know.

It comes pressed onto 2 sides of a crisp vinyl biscuit measuring seven inches in diameter and limited to a mere 500 copies. Or, if you are hip with the times, there is a more profuse, yet slightly elusive mp3 version that you can have but not hold, this includes 6 bonus remixes from the likes of:

Tony Tronic (UK) – slick dance-floor friendly synth-disco
MC Fashion (UK) – a hyperactive 8-bit gabba meltdown
Kemper Norton (UK) – kraut-rock musique concrete
Katsen (UK) – pure and perfect 8-bit electro-pop
r@zorbla.de (Germany) – darkwave trancefloor goth-Soft-Cell disco
Hawnay Troof (USA) – camped-up hi-NRG Euro disco


You can listen to all 8 tracks here!
You can buy the seven-inch here!
You can buy mp3s on iTunes here!

Since the library is the scenario for one of the songs (Shelf-Location ROM is, of course, where you will find the romance novels), let’s celebrate with a couple more library and book related pieces of music:

It’s Cursor Miner with a jaunty little paean to the wonders of the public library, it always makes me think of all those short informational films they used to show in the middle of Play School in the eighties (shots of cans trundling round the conveyer belts in the baked-bean factory set to a sprightly Radiophonic Workshop tune).

Knowledge is power, and there’s a lot of knowledge to be had down the library. And as if that isn’t enough, Mister Miner reminds us that: “The library, the library, it’s the place where books are free”. Unless, that is, you borrow one and don’t return it – then you’ll get a hefty fine, an admin charge, and you’ll have to refund the cost of a replacement book. Make sure you get your books back on time kids!

Cursor Miner – Library


And now, we Broadcast some shuffling electronic/harpsichord dreaminess for all you book lovers out there – I’d forgotten quite how strange and beautiful this one is:

Broadcast – The Book Lovers



Bonus edition:
Here’s a lo-fi version of Shelf-Location ROM recorded purely with battery-powered instruments live on Radio Reverb last October. Mmmm, tinny…

Miss Pain – Shelf-Location ROM (battery-powered – live on Radio Reverb)

Cease and Desist

A few days ago we received notification from blogger that someone has served a Cease and Desist notice against our humble little blog. The objection was to our post "SETLIST + PODCAST - 26 APRIL 2008", which has now been removed by blogger.

At first we thought it was a joke, but it would appear not.

We have not been able to obtain information as to what part of the content is in question, but we can only assume that someone out there objects to having their music included within our hour-long mix, and they're the kind of person who can pay someone to sit and trawl the interweb for sites that have posted music by the artist in question. They could have just emailed us at lamourelectronique(at)misspain.co.uk and we would have removed it ourselves...

Here's the full set-list (minus the podcast link), take a look and see if you can guess which of them it might be

Sarah
Silvery – “Horrors”/“Orders”
Ladytron – Another Breakfast With You
Les Roche Martin – Tu As Peur De Bruit
Ginette Reno – Des Croissants De Soleil (Pour Dejeuner)
Large Number – Chronosynclasticinfundibulation
Kid Carpet – Your Love
Tracey & The Plastics – Queerion
Terre Thaemlitz – Cars
Stereo Total – Ta Voix Au Téléphone
Monster Bobby – Heaven Hides Nothing
Einsturzende Neubauten – Blume (French Version)
Verity
Jacques Dutronc – L’Idole (Je N’en Peux Plus)
Jarvis Cocker & Kid Loco – I Just Came To Tell You I’m Going
Pet Shop Boys – Shopping
Petula Clark – Le Coeur Qui Bat
Françoise Hardy – Le Temps De Souvenirs
John Foxx – Europe After The Rain
Stereolab – Motoroller Scalatron
Ivy – L’Anamour
Godley & Creme – Under Your Thumb
Dominic
The Passions – In Love With a German Filmstar
Suzanne Gabriello – Z' Avez Pas Lu Kafka (Mirza)
Silicon Teens – TV Playtime
Fabienne Delsoll – I’m Gonna Catch Me A Rat
Felix Da Housecat feat. Miss Kittin – Madame Hollywood
Crystal Castles – Crimewave
Ladytron – Black Cat
Clothilde – La Chanson Bête et Méchante
Annie Phillippe – Pour La Gloire
Sarah
Noisy Pig – Magic Pee (feat. Brezel Göring)
Hot Chip – Pure Thought
Tom Tom Club – Genius Of Love
Peepholes – Trouble In Heartbreak High
Blue Minkies – Kevin
France Gall – Ne Sois Pas Si Bête
Ria Bartok – Tu Te Moques De Moi
Roxy Music – Re-Make/Re-Model
Miss Pain – Shelf-Location ROM
Verity
The Human League – Love Action
Neon Neon – Belfast
Michel Polnareff – Oiseau De Nuit
France Gall – Les Sucettes
Add N to (X) – Adding N to X
Soft Cell – Bedsitter
Magnetic Fields – Swinging London
Ray Davies/BBC Sporting Themes – Breezy Bounce
The Normal – Warm Leatherette
Depeche Mode – Master and Servant
Dominic
Stella – Je Ne Peux Te Voir En Pe
Anna Karina – rollergirl
Serge Gainsbourg – Qui Est ‘In”, Qui Est ‘Out’
Stereo Total – Vive Le Weekend
Best Fwends – Dream Off
Ssion – Call Out Our Lions
Large Number – The Number People
Adèle - Je Ne Veux Plus d'Accordéon
Echokrank – AbwAerts
Les Hou-Lops – Oh Non!
Jacques Dutronc – Sur Une Nappe De Restaurant
Cobra Killer – LA Shaker
Liz Brady – Palladium (The Hip)
Sarah
*******PODCAST BEGINS*******
Dandi Wind – Balloon Factory
Motormark – Eat Sleep Drink Think
The Associates – Club Country
Glass Candy – Love After Sundown
Mick Harvey – Ford Mustang
Hefner – The Science Fiction
Verity
Vanessa Paradis – Joe LE Taxi
Yazoo – Don’t Go
Neon Neon – Neon Theme
Cerrone – Supernature
Devo – Mongoloid
Les Georges Leningrad – Mammal Beats
Stereo Total - Vilaine Filles, Mauvais Garçons
Serge Gainsbourg - Shu Ba Du Ba Loo Ba
The Knife – Bird
Dominic
The Mae-Shi – Lamb and Lion
Margaret Berger – Seek I’ll Hide
Jany L. – Restaurant Chinois
Adèle – C’est Bon
Stereo Total – Lunatique
Kap Bambino – Took Life
*******PODCAST ENDS*******
Françoise Hardy – Apprends Le Moi
Jane Birkin – 18-39
Sarah
Luke Haines – Off My Rocker at The Art School Bop
Bis – Action and Drama
Metal Mickey – Lollipop Lollipop
Verity
Stereolab – Wow and Flutter
Pete Shelley – Homosapien
Pulp – She’s A Lady
Dominic
The Ting Tings – Fruit Machine
Jacques Dutronc - A La Queue Les Yvelines
MGMT – Time To Pretend
Sarah
Devo – Uncontrollable Urge
Verity
New Order - 586
-FIN-

Look! New Poster!

Yes we have a lovely new poster to show-off our lovely new night in a lovely new venue.

Here it is:

SETLIST from 23 AUGUST 2008 (+ mp3s)

There were technical issues with the recording equipment and so there is no podcast this time. Instead, we've picked one mp3 each - they're at the end of the post...

Sarah
The Chap – Baby I’m Hurtin’
Visage – Damned Don’t Cry
Baxendale – Battery Acid
Japan – Quiet Life
Human League – Almost Medieval
Serge Gainsbourg – Chez Les Yé-Yé
Christie Laume - L'Adorable Femmes Des Neiges
Fad Gadget – Love Parasite
Dominic
LCD Soundsystem – All My Friends
Boy from Brazil – Pocket Rocket Queen
Serge Gainsbourg – Ford Mustang
Michel Polnareff – Tout Tout Pour Ma Cherie
Les Georges Leningrad – Missing Gary
Les Papyvores – Psychédelic Badge
Electronic Movements – Syncopation
Golden Boy and Miss Kittin – Rippin Kittin
Stereo Total – In / Out
Verity
John Foxx – New Kind of Man
Men Without Hats – Safety Dance
Jacques Dutronc – Les Playboys
Jeff Wayne – The Fighting Machine
Air – Playground Love (Highschool Prom Mix)
Kraftwerk – Antenna
Air and Françoise Hardy – Jeanne
OMD - Souvenir
Magnetic Fields – With Whom to Dance
Sarah
The Knife – Rock Classics
Simon Bookish – Portrait of the Artist as a Fountain
Kid Carpet – I Don’t Want to Fall in Love With You
Noisy Pig ft Baby Donut – Wrong Time Capsule
Dauerfisch – Endlich Vögeln
Anne Kern – Oh! Seigneur, Ecoute ma Prière
France Gall – Pense a Moi
Brigitte Bardot – Everybody Loves My Baby
Sylvie Vartan – Koibito Jidai
Plastic Bertrand – C’est Le Rock ‘N’ Roll
Dominic
Frank Alamo – Ma Biche
Françoise Hardy – Le Temps de L’Amour
Cats in Paris – Loose Tooth Tactile
Ladyhawke – Paris S’enflamme
John Baker / BBC Radiophonic Workship – Brio
[French Language]
John et Jehn – 20L07
Nancy Holloway – Tu N’es Pas Venu
Gabriel Yared – La Poubelle Cuisine (Betty Blue OST)
Adèle – C’est Bon
Jina Miko – Dum Dum
Polnareff – Dans La Maison Vide
Verity
OMD – Enola Gay
Eurythmics – Tous Les Garçons
Experimental Pop Band – Punk Rock Classic
Mareva – Les Cornichons
Sparks – Beat the Clock
Marie Möör – Pretty Dry
France Gall – C’est Air La
Stereolab – Wow and Flutter
Serge Gainsbourg – Marilu
Sarah
Stereo Total – Komplex Mit Dem Sex
Add N to (X) – Iron Man
Quintron and Miss Pussycat – Swamp Buggy Badass
50 Centime – In Da Club
Sparks – Never Turn Your Back on Mother Earth
Neil Young – Sample and Hold
Devo – Too Much Paranoias
Dominic
Brigitte Bardot – Contact
Ananda Shankar - Back Home /
[French Language] /
Jiri Bezant / Jiri Malasek – Erotica /
Henri Salvador – Beta Gamma, L’Ordinateur
Nino Nardini – Catch That Man
Kap Bambino – New Breath
Jacques Dutronc – L’Amour A La Chaine
Verity
Future Bible Heroes – I’m a Vampire
Heaven 17 – Temptation
Comix – Touche Pas Mon Sexe
New Order – Bizarre Love Triangle
Add N to (X) – FYUZ
Neon Neon – I Told Her on Alderan
Sarah
The Associates – Club Country
Denim – Brumburger
Les Roches Martins – Les Mains Les Poches
Dominic
Les Dandy’s – Amour et Mariage
Françoise Hardy – Je Pense a Lui
Brezel Göring – Ich Bin So Süchtig (mit Christiane F)
Verity
Mareva – Pourquoi Pas Moi
Simon Bookish – Terry Riley Disco
Joceleyne – Nitty Gritty
Sarah
Ria Bartok – J’y Pense Tout Bas
Bis – Eurodisco
Stazi – Your Love is Lethal
Dominic
Chantal Kelly - Notre Prof’ d’Anglais
Michel Polnareff – La Mouche
Sarah
Magnetic Fields – I thought you were my boyfriend
Dominic
Les Shades – Orage Mechanique
Plastic Bertrand – Ca Plane Pour Moi
Sarah
Polysics – Kaja Kaja Goo
Verity
Françoise Hardy – Je Changerais d’Avis


Verity's mp3 choice
Comix – Touche Pas Mon Sexe
Dominic's mp3 choice
Gabriel Yared – La Poubelle Cuisine (Betty Blue OST)
Sarah's mp3 choice
Anne Kern – Oh! Seigneur, Ecoute ma Prière

THE HORROR! THE HORROR!

Miss Black glides down the street to an internal Hammer Horror soundtrack, she stops to check her hair and make-up in the vast windows of Top Shop – a blood-curdling scream… there is no reflection… just a vacant day-glo mannequin gazing back… the Hammer Horror organ music spills out into the high street, and Miss Black takes flight…

Ladytron – Miss Black

Quick! Hide! It’s Darren Spooner - skeletal-thin and dirty-faced. He’s been at the grease-paint again, and he’s wielding a bull-whip with dastardly intent… WHIP-CRAAAAAACKKKK - the werewolf howls and a menacing electro-glitter-beat kicks in.

Mother nature’s beasts gather and circle: eager to please and hungry for blood… For he is the Beastmaster…

Relaxed Muscle – Beastmaster

Groping around in the darkness, your heart races. A howling gale has just blown up, the unmistakable CREEEEEEEAAKKKKKK of a coffin lid sends a shiver down your spine…

[Rod explanation below – thanks to Go Faster for the funny pic]

The Moontrekkers – Night of The Vampire

[this was famously banned by the BBC as being “unsuitable for people of a nervous disposition”. Joe Meek throws down a spine-chilling tape collage and The Moontrekkers stomp out a surf-guitar & Clavioline-fuelled nightmare. Real horror-show!]

[And now an explanation about the Rod Stewart picture: A little known group called The Raiders arrived at Joe Meek’s studio for an audition. Joe was enjoying the noise until their vocalist, a young Rod Stewart, opened his mouth. Joe stood with his fingers in his ears going LA-LA-LA until Rod stopped, and was promptly dismissed. Meek signed the band and they became his house band from then on. Conclusion: even Joe Meek who was famously tone-deaf couldn’t bear the sound of Rod’s gravelly tones]

Eeeeeeek! This one really gives me the heebee-geebies. It’s the bit where he starts sounding like an evil demented muppet talking to itself “do you know the beast who discovered the internal calculus?” Scary…

Evariste - Connais-Tu I'animal Qui Inventa Le Calcul Integral


[there’s a French wikipedia entry on Evariste, and not much else - here’s a rather poor Google English translation (click the link to Joel Sternheimer - his real name). It seems Evariste had a PhD in theoretical physics, but decided he wanted to make frightening psychedelic records to scare the be-jeezus out of folks like you and me.]

In need of a little light relief after Evariste brought the heavies ‘round? How about Future Bible Heroes’ ode to the joys of being a vampire:

“I survived for 700 years and I still look seventeen”… hmmm, me thinks they may be exaggerating a teeny bit.

Future Bible Heroes – I’m A Vampire





[psssst! Spiked Candy made a trick or treat post last Hallowe’en, and it seems there are still a few mp3 links working including Stella’s wordily titled ‘Si vous connaissez quelque-chose de pire qu'un vampire, parlez m'en toujours, ça pourra peut-être me faire sourire’ (translation: ‘If you know of something worse than a vampire, tell me, it will make me smile’).  Spiked Candy has been VERY quiet for a while now, we hope she comes back soon]

I spy (with my little eye)

Everyone out there’s ranting on about James Bond double-o seven… Now we have no idea what a Quantum of Solace is, and we couldn’t really give a flying Nick Nack.

Let’s go back to a time when Bond themes were good, and when CGI wasn’t relied upon as a valid plot-replacement device: It’s 1969, Jean-Jacques Perrey unleashes The Amazing New Electronic Pop Sound of Jean-Jacques Perrey. Track 7 is his very own Moog-ed up homage to Her Majesty’s number 7 spy - a poignant, understated little ditty, which probably wasn’t even considered for official Bond-theme material because its composer was French!

Jean-Jacques Perrey – Mister James Bond

[Space Age Pop has a nice little biog of Perrey including links to get hold of his albums.]


Rewind three years: At the height of her fame, Petula Clark must have been itching to get her voice ‘round a Bond theme. But Mister Barry snubbed her, so she penned her own, complete with comedy dying sound effects.

Petula Clark – L’Agent Secret

[Dans Mon Café posted this song in January 07. It’s all gone quiet over there at the moment, and I imagine the mp3 link is long-dead now. However, a helpful reader left a comment with the lyrics in English and French, so you can see all the ways those secret agents died, and how to be the best!]


Here's something every spy should carry in their briefcase:

But there are other spies too y’know…

Plastics will tell you all about the most elusive spy ever to operate out of Tokyo:

Plastics – Top Secret Man

[I love Plastics, they’re like Japan’s answer to Devo and The B-52s. If anyone out there knows where I can hear more Plastics, please write in.]

And talking of Devo, here’s their De-volutionary cover of the US Danger Man theme from Duty Now For The Future.

Devo – Secret Agent Man

[I much prefer this earlier jerkier garage-version featured in the short film In the Beginning Was The End: The Truth About De-evolution. Things to look out for: Booji Boy’s wayward hand-jiving; 2 ape-masked men paddling the behind of a strange looking china-doll lady; the monkey-masked man that goes “SE-CRET!”; and the home-made electronic drums that look like car hub-caps. One thing to ignore: the idiot who introduces the video]

Devo – Secret Agent Man

ATTENTION!

There will be no L'Amour Electronique this Saturday.

Instead look at this:

Femme Fatale

Warning! There is a big fat shameless name-drop in this post.

Last weekend John Cale presented a tribute concert to Nico at the Royal Festival Hall, 20 years after her tragic death. We couldn’t go, but here’s our own little L’Amour Electronique tribute to the teutonic femme fatale…

The first time Verity and I saw Stereo Total in London, we snuck backstage (we had a big box of 120 Miss Pain Heartbreaker seven-inches that we’d picked up on the way to the venue – so it wasn’t particularly easy to sneak anywhere). We went searching for Brezel, and I rather gracelessly stumbled in on him taking a piss. He didn’t seem to mind though, and even chatted with us for a while afterwards. We gave him a copy of our single and went merrily on our way.

When they got back off tour he sent me an email it went:
“thank you for your 7 inch. It is a Hit !!”

We stayed in touch on and off, and when we played in Berlin he gave me a seven-inch which he explained as: two remixes of Berlin’s biggest smackheads – Nico and Christiane F. It came with a little bag of powder, of which he advised: “Don’t take it – It’s not drugs!”

When we got back off tour, I played the record. It too was a Hit !! In fact it’s been a constant feature in my record box, and I’ve played the Christiane F remix just about every time I’ve DJ’ed since.

Here’s the Nico side:

Brezel Goring – Eulogy To Lenny Bruce (featuring Nico)

I’ve just been re-reading Sylvie Simmons’ A Fistful of Gitanes (by far the best English language Serge Gainsbourg biography out there, if you ask me). It was there that I first discovered Serge had recorded with Nico - here’s an extract from the book:

“Banned in France for its nudity [!], it [Strip-Tease] starred Christa Päffgen as a dancer desperately seeking work in the nightclubs of Paris. Serge had taken the statuesque German blonde into the studio to record the theme song, but he didn’t like her sombre, death’s-head voice and binned the tape. It would be another two years before Päffgen moved to New York, where she was taken up by Andy Warhol and introduced into The Velvet Underground under her better-known name, Nico.”

Strip-Tease (1963) (Clip 1)


Strip-Tease (1963) (Clip 2)


Incidentally, the title track to Strip-Tease was recorded by Juliette Gréco in the end, but the Nico version surfaced on a box-set Le Cinéma de Serge Gainsbourg 10 years after Serge’s death (you can imagine him muttering in his grave about that one…)

Nico – Strip-Tease


Bonus mp3 – it’s Francoise and Brezel’s cover of Nico’s ode to the residents of the Chelsea Hotel (from their Do The Bambi album)…

Stereo Total – Chelsea Girls

5th Birthday (and last soirée at The Penthouse)

L’Amour Electronique is FIVE this month! Come and celebrate with us this weekend…

SATURDAY 27th SEPTEMBER
L’Amour Electronique
The Penthouse, above The Freebutt, Phoenix Place, Brighton
8pm until 1am
FREE ENTRY all night (and cheap-o drinks too)

We will be playing our finest selection of French bubblegum pop, synthesized ditties and electronic goodness, including some new gems picked up in Paris this week. And we will have a special guest DJ and Polnareff fanatic to join us in our quest.

As well as celebrating, you can also commiserate with us as this will be our very last soirée at The Penthouse – Booooooooooo!
It’s okay though, cos we have already secured ourselves a brand new home with a belle vue (and much nicer toilets) where we will be every 4th Saturday from November – Woooooooooo!

So come and help us go out with a great big
SHE-BAM!
POW!
PLOP!
WHIZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!

Now, how about a dash of Polnareff to get you through to the weekend?
Michel Polnareff – L’Oiseau De Nuit


See you at the weekend
L’Amour Electronique
xxx

Now we are 5 - a retrospective

Zut Alors! It would appear that we have racked up 5 whole years of French and electronic pop goodness under the tricolore banner of L’Amour Electronique.

Here's a little poster artwork retrospective...

The Negativ and Non-Negativ

In case you didn't join us for our krautrock psychosis tour of Deutschland over the weekend, and you're feeling a bit left out, we have just the ticket - A trip to Negativland.

Nurse! The pNEUmatic drill...

Neu! - Negativland


And now for the antidote, courtesy of Berlin "neuro, non-electro duo" Echokrank.

I hear Valkyries...

Echokrank- Non-Negativland

.................................................................................

ADDENDUM

Neu! should need no introduction.

And if they do, then you should visit the following sites:

Neu!

Neu!er

Neu!esten

Echokrank are Hotleg (drums) and Brezel (synths).

They make über-irreverent, ultra-lo-fi cut&stick bubblegum musik.

They have a new album out on Gagarin Records, and if you are lucky enough to live in Germany, Holland or Belgium, you may catch them on tour this week.
You may recognise one of them from our good friends and L'Amour Electronique faves Stereo Total.

Here is footage of Echokrank captured on our visit to Berlin in 2007.

Nightclubbing & Nachtmusik

Here’s some claustrophobic kraut-disko to set you up for a Friday night.

First up, Parisian duo Zombie Zombie, paying homage to one of Iggy’s darkest, most oppressive moments

Quick! Book that budget flight to Berlin, we can be there in time for an amphetamine breakfast, then we’ll live it up like it’s 1977.

Zombie Zombie – Nightclubbing

Tsssk! You were in such a rush to book the flight, you forgot about the return tickets.  Stay calm, neck these downers and we’ll catch a train… How about a little night music, courtesy of Modular Records, to lull away the journey?

Eine Kleine Nachtmusik – Etrinken

Deutschland passes by in a foggy, motorik blur – You dream of 12-hour krautrock marathons chez-Can, in a dank warehouse crudely sound-proofed with prison-issue mattresses… You hit metallic beats with Kraftwerk, after sneaking in the place of Wolfgang Flür’s showroom dummy… Your head pounds with pneumatic drills and rapier-like guitar scrapes and klangs as you crawl your way out of Negativland… You are Damo Suzuki… You are Damo Suzuki… You are Damo Suzuki… No, I am Damo Suzuki…

Dam Dam ou Dum Dum

Look, here comes Michèle, she’s been hanging out with that peculiarly monikered gang Ses Wouaps.

She’s got a sweet spot for her Wouaps, with their preppy, geek charm and their twangy guitars, and they love her for that spooky operatic wail of hers. Together they made a record with a nonsensical title and a sinister undertone, the kind of thing Joe Meek liked to knock out in his Holloway Road bolthole - the vampiric Moontrekkers making a horrorshow din, and a peroxide beehived gal on lead vocal.

Are the lyrics littered with references to bloody carnage and death? Not to these ears, but it would certainly sit moodily alongside any death disc. All drenched in reverb, it gives me those same goosebumps I get when I hear Johnny Remember Me by John Leyton and Give Us Your Blessings by The Shangri-Las.

Michèle et Ses Wouaps – Dam Dam

Jina Miko’s got the bubblegum pop thing down pat – the cute untrained voice; the odd nagging telephone ringing in your eardrum sound; the little ‘woop’ before the Lipstick On Your Collar-esque guitar solo comes in; and a production so hot and distorted it sounds like the tape was melting when they laid it down...

But the best thing is it sounds like she’s saying “Dom Dom” rather than “Dum Dum”, and I’m a sucker for any French girl who calls my name…

Jina Miko – Dum Dum

L'Amour Electronique - dansez la décadanse this Saturday

You are cordially invited to join us for a soirée of pop music spanning the following genres/styles:

French Pop
(Ye-Ye, Gainsbourg, Dutronc, chanson, Quebecoises, Space disco, Polnareff, Pop a Paris, etc)
Synthesized Pop
(Post-punk, kraut, new romantic, 8-bit, Moog pop, synthcore, casio-core, nu-rave, etc)
Electronic Pop
(electronic pioneers, musique concrete, BBC Radiophonic Workshop, theremin sounds, electronica, electroclashing, etc)

see earlier posts for setlists and podcasts from previosu nights

In case you haven't realised, the night is called
L'AMOUR ELECTRONIQUE
it takes place at
THE PENTHOUSE, ABOVE THE FREEBUTT, PHOENIX PLACE, BRIGHTON
starts: 8PM
ends: 1AM
FREE ENTRY ALL NIGHT
and drinks offers too.

Come and dance La Décadanse - Serge will explain how...
Serge Gainsbourg et Jane Birkin - La Décadanse

L'Amour Electronique approves of bendy-legged dancing

This chap was at L'Amour Electronique in June. We marvelled at his super-duper, jumbo cord, rubber-legged dancefloor moves...




Maybe he'd been watching Sylvie on his Scopitone before he came out that night...
Sylvie Vartan - Est-ce Que Tu Le Sais?




But we all know, Johnny taught her a few moves back when they met...
Johnny Hallyday - Le Twist




It's okay though, because Johnny and Sylvie got married and were the "Golden Couple" of the post-yé-yé generation

Podcast and setlist - 26 July 2008

watch out for Sarah's Devo double-header - c'est fantastique!

Verity
Françoiz Breut – Vingt à Trente Mille Jours
John Foxx – You Were There
Jeanne Morreau - La Tourbillon (Jules Et Jim OST)
Glass Candy – Life After Sundown
Ruth – Polaroid-Roman-Photo
Baccara – Parlez-Vous Français?
Depeche Mode – The Meaning of Love
Dominic
Serge Gainsbourg – Le Poinçonneur Des Lilas
M.A.R.R.S. – Pump Up The Volume
Serge Gainsbourg – Hotel Particulier
Gillian Hills – Rentre Sans Moi
Michel Polnareff – Beatnik
Thomas Leer & Robert Rental – Day Breaks, Night Heals
Ladytron – He Took Her To A Movie
Brigitte Bardot – Gang Gang
Glass Candy – I Always Say Yes
Françoise Hardy – Fleur De Lune
Sarah
Laurie Anderson – O Superman
Japan – Fall In Love With Me
Sylvie Vartan – De Bonheur
Alice Dona – Les Trois Couleurs De L’Amour
John Foxx – Glimmer
The Associates – Those 1st Impressions
Peepholes – Milk + Honey
Relaxed Muscle – The Beast Master
Verity
Jacno – La Poupée Qui Fait Non
Françoise Hardy – Ça a Raté
Kraftwerk – Ohm Sweet Ohm
The Buggles – Johnny On The Monorail
Soft Cell – Bedsitter
Dominic
Fabienne Delsol – I’m Gonna Catch Me A Rat
Stereolab – Tempter /
French Language Disque
Von Südenfed – Fledermaus Can’t Get It
Norman Frechette et Les Hou-Lops – J’Etudie Mon Grec
Anna Karina – Rollergirl
Space – Magic Fly
Sarah
The Human League – Rock ‘n’ Roll
Stereo Total – Cannibale
The Chap – Fun and Interesting
Metal Mickey – Lollipop Lollipop
Kid Carpet – I Don’t Want To Fall In Love With You
Kemper Norton Collective – Denaissance (live)
*****PODCAST BEGINS*****
Verity
Pulp – Countdown
Dauerfisch – Peter Thomas Kam Nicht Zahlen
Mareva Galanter – Pourquoi Pas Moi?
Add N To (X) – Adding N To X
Petula Clark – L’Agent Secret
Magnetic Fields – Smoke and Mirrors
Deux – Game and Performance
Dominic
Holy Fuck – Royal Gregory
Jacques Dutronc – Et Moi Et Moi Et Moi
Clothilde – Et Moi Et Toi Et Soie
Brezel Göring – Ich Bin So Süchtig (mit Christiane F)
Christine et Ses Copains – Mon Mini Croulant
John et Jehn – 20L07
Françoise Hardy – Les Petits Garçons
Sarah
Nicole Croisille et Pierre Barough – Un Homme et Une Femme
Fayrouz – L’Amour De L’Autre
Depeche Mode – Boys Say Go!
Devo – Satisfaction (I Can’t Get Me No)
Devo – Praying Hands
Giorgio Moroder – From Her To Eternity
*****PODCAST ENDS*****

Verity
Stereolab – John Cage Bubblegum
New Order – Round and Round
France Gall – Nous Ne Sommes Pas Des Anges
Louis Philippe – L’Oiseau De Nuit
BBC Sporting Themes/Ray Davies – Breezy Bounce
Jacques Dutronc – La Leçon Gymnastique du Professeur Dutronc
Dominic
Hot Butter – Popcorn
Of Montreal – Suffer For Fashion
Die Perlen – Jeudi Noir (Tony Punk remix)
Stereo Total – (I Hate) Everybody In The Discotheque (version by Echokrank)
Frank Alamo - Ma Biche
The Mae-Shi – Lamb and Lion
Blue Sisters – Il Va T’Aimer
Sarah
Grace Jones – La Vie En Rose
Jean-Michel Jarre – Oxygene
Dauerfisch – So Gut
Miss Pain – Shelf-Location ROM (r@zorbla.de hardcover remix)
Captain Sensible – Happy Talk
Verity
OMD – Enola Gay
Dominic
Stella - Pourquoi Pas Moi?
Sarah
Christie Laume – Rouge-Rouge
Verity
Serge Gainsbourg et Brigitte Bardot – Comic Strip
Dominic
Françoise Hardy – Non Ce N'est Pas Un Rêve
Sarah
Orlane Paquin – Le Train De 10h03
-FIN-

DOWNLOAD THE PODCAST
[This podcast has now been archived, download it from here, 73.3mb, duration: 64m03]

Computer L.O.V.E. pt.1

This Devo mix of Datarock’s Computer Camp Love surfaced a little while ago. It seems like the ideal marriage: what are Datarock, if not the present day Devo?

The mix: it’s not really a huge departure from the original – but they’ve added some vicious Whip It-esque percussion hits (though I hear “She’s not that kind of a girl”) there’s also a nice little twist when Judy (“that’s a nice name”) gets a cameo appearance, and tells her side of the story, apparently she faked the big ‘O’ (and we’re not talking about her Roy Orbison impression)…

Datarock - Computer Camp (DEVO Mutato Mix)

Talking of the big ‘O’:

YMO Anecdote 1: One morning about half a year ago, We had to get up at some really stupidly early hour to do something really stupidly important. So we set the radio to come on at stupid-o’clock on Radio 2. I have this strange half-dream/half-awake recollection of hearing Yellow Magic Orchestra playing in the background whilst some montone DJ, who’d presumably been moved to the graveyard shift as a punishment, waffled endlessly to himself and the 2 insomniacs who were still tuned in. Thankfully my mind’s eye was picturing 8-bit colour explosions and pixelated mayhem, rather than DJ Monotone, in his grey shirt, whispering down his grey windshield...

Yellow Magic Orchestra – Computer Games

YMO Anecdote 2: Our reporter on the frontline who goes under the alias Feline1, relayed to us news of a small-scale synth-geek uprising when Yellow Magic Orchestra played the Royal Festival Hall in London on 15 June. It seems that even though they were billed as YMO, they only actually played about 3 YMO songs. Naughty. Feline1 wasn’t best pleased and felt like demanding his money back…

Yellow Magic Orchestra – Computer Games


Talking of Feline 1: On my birthday last year he gave me a CD-R of ZX Spectrum Madness. It seems he sat down on his trusty old ZX Spectrum 128K and played some of his favourite games and simultaneously recorded the soundtracks to some of them. So I get to hear some ace 8-bit anthems from the likes of David Whittaker, Dave Rogers and Rob Hubbard. And now you do too.

This one’s quite a jaunty little number, just perfect for going out for a spin in yr hydrofoil (or yr hydrofool) on a Sunday afternoon.

Rob Hubbard – Theme from Hydrofool (ZX Spectrum 128K)
[nb. watch out for the abrupt ending]

........................................................

addendum:

Thanks Lew for pointing out the ZX Spectrum game is actually called 'Hydrofool'. I'll be the first to admit my knowledge of ZX Spectrums starts and ends with playing Horace Goes Skiing during the last Computer Science lesson of the school term when I was about 10...

If anyone goes out for a spin in their hydrofool this week, be careful, they handle a lot differently from the old hydrofoil pictured.

L’Amour Electronique – podcast / mixtape & setlist 28 JUNE 2008

Phew, just in time to give you a taster for tonight's L'Amour Electronique, 8pm-1am at The Penthouse, Phoenix Place, Brighton.  Entry is free all night long.  Come and say salut!

here's last month's setlist and the mix is at the bottom...

Dominic
Mireille Darc – Helicoptere
Serge Gainsbourg – Requiem Pour Un Con
Rod Freeman and The Blue Men/Joe Meek – I Hear A New World
Kraftwerk – Computer World
Serge Gainsbourg et Charlotte Gainsbourg – Lemon Incest
Stereo Total – Holiday Innn
Jane Birkin – Ex-Fan Des Sixties
Pamela – Une Autre Autoroute
Ladytron – amTV
Sarah
Adult. – Pray For Pills
Cobra Killer – Mund Auf-Augen Zu (Stecker Raud, Ich Dreh’ Durch)
Catherine Clousot et Jacques Rousseau – Dansons La Capucine
Josephine Baker – Si J’Etais Blanche
Simon Bookish – Michael
The Human League – Life Kills
Plastic Bertrand – Sha La La La Lee
Françoise Hardy – Je Changerais D’Avis
Charlotte Gainsbourg – 5:55 (Metronomy remix)
Mick Harvey – Jazz in the Ravine
Verity
Claudine Longet – Love Is Blue
OMD – Souvenir
Schneider TM – Camping
Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy
Ruth – Polaroid-Roman-Photo
Michel Polnareff – Ta-Ta-Ta-Ta
Ladytron – The Way That I Found You
Serge Gainsbourg – Elaeudanla Teiteia
Neon Neon – Dream Cars
Dominic
Leonard Cohen – First We Take Manhattan
Françoise Hardy – Suzanne
OMD – Messages
Les 5 Gentlemen – Si Tu Reviens Chez Moi
Jacques Dutronc – Sur Une Nappe De Restaurant
Jany L. – Le Restaurant Chinois
I Monster – Full Speed To Metric
Sarah
The Associates – Waiting For the Loveboat
Edith Nylon – Femmes Sous Cellophane
New Order – Dreams Never End
Electronicat – Frisco Bay
Le Tigre – Tres Bien
Hug Party – Tasty Ladies
Verity
Venini – Carnival Star (version 2)
Bis – Love Will Tear Us Apart
Mareva Galanter feat. Jacno – Bang Bang
Desireless – Voyage Voyage
Brigitte Bardot – L’Appareil A Sous
Jacques Dutronc – Mini Mini Mini
Stereolab – Emperor Tomato Ketchup
Silver Apples – I Have Known Love
*****PODCAST BEGINS*****
Dominic
Stella – L’Idole Des Jaunes
Cats In Paris – Loose Tooth Tactile
Jacques Brel – Les Filles et Les Chiens
Echokrank – Abwaerts
The Chap – I Am Oozing Emotion
Zombie Zombie – Nightclubbing
Jacques Dutronc – On Nous Cache Tout, On Nous Dit Rien
Sarah
Stereo Total – Orange Mecanique
Jimmy Somerville – Puit D’Amour
OMD – Joan Of Arc (not included due to technical problems)
John Foxx – Mr No
Nicole Croisille et Pierre Barouh – Un Homme et Une Femme
Josephine Baler – La Petite Tonkinoise
Les Georges Leningrad – Fifi F
Hawnay Troof – Bad News From The Stars
Verity
Villeneuve – Oh No
Neon Neon – I Lust U
Erasure – Lay All Your Love On Me
CKC – 20H25
Mareva Galanter – Les Cornichons
The Knife – Bird
*****PODCAST ENDS*****
Dominic
Ladyhawke – Paris S’Enflamme
The Human League – Seconds
Stereo Total – Musique Automatique
Miss Pain vs Tony Tronic – Shelf-Location ROM (Overdue Under the Shelf remix)
Ronnie Bird – Chante
April March – Tu Mens
Datarock – Computer Camp (Devo Mutato mix)
Sarah
Add N to (X) – Hey Double Double
Soft Cell – Youth
A-ha – Manhattan Skyline
Verity
Etienne Daho – Tombé Pour La France
Depeche Mode – Just Can’t Get Enough
OMD – Enola Gay
Heaven 17 – Temptation
Dominic
Kap Bambino & Khima France – Seed
Sarah
T.Raumshmiere feat Miss Kittin – The Game Is Not Over
Dominic
Katy David – Plus Tard (Call Me)
Sarah
Devo – Sloppy (I Saw My Baby Getting)
Dominic
Michel Polnareff - Voyages

- FIN -

DOWNLOAD THE PODCAST

[This podcast has now been archived, download it from here, 71.1mb, duration: 62m07]