Shows

A primer on pop-electro showcase Ooh La La

by Lorraine Carpenter

Though the bands are largely English-language (and, in one case, actually English), the touring Ooh La La festival aims to bring the sound of France to North America. Have a listen and look at the four pretty amazing acts playing SAT tonight.


Maudits anglais Citizens!

Founded in 2009 by Universal France’s Sylvain Taillet, Ooh La La began as a love affair between California and France, and has now spread out to the east side, bringing four excellent acts to NYC and MTL. Here’s a taste of what’s on tap tonight at SAT:
 
Citizens!
“True Romance”

One of these things is not like the other, and that would be Citizens!, a Brit-electro-pop quintet who look like they just fell off a Burberry runway. Why is a band from England part of Ooh La La? Their debut record, Here We Are, produced by Franz Ferdinand singer Alex Kapranos, was released in the spring on French label Kitsuné. See a bunch of people make out in this video.
 

 
Housse de Racket
“Roman”

If you’re a fan of Air, Phoenix and Chilly Gonzales, there’s a good chance you’ve seen or heard Pierre Leroux and Victor Le Masne before. Prior to launching this project, they were session players and touring members with all of the above, and you can hear it in the music they make on their own. Their debut album, Alesia, was released by Kitsuné last year.
 

 
Lescop
“La Forêt”

Whoa, watch out, Automelodi. The union of post-punk and synth-pop may have happened across the Channel, but Mathieu Lescop captures the sound of 1981 oh so nicely. And en français. His eponymous debut album is out now on Pop Noire.
 

 
Tomorrow’s World
“So Long My Love”

Air’s Jean-Benoit Dunckel and New Young Pony Club’s Lou Hayter team up on this sci-fi torch song, released as a single just last week. Like the previous track, it also appears on the compilation Kitsuné Parisien II.
 

 
All of the above play Ooh La La at SAT (1201 St-Laurent) tonight, Tuesday, Oct. 16, 7:30 p.m., $26.50

Posted in Shows

by Lorraine Carpenter

Editor in chief
Lorraine Carpenter was born in Montreal and studied communications and journalism at Concordia. She co-founded Cult MTL in 2012 following 12 years at the now-defunct Montreal alt weekly the Mirror, where she worked in editorial as copy editor and music editor. She’s dedicated to supporting the cultural scene in Montreal.

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