French indie pop/electro?

August 15, 2009 11:08 AM

What's some good, danceable French indie pop/electro?

I was recently at a party in NYC that was mostly 20-something French hipster kids. The DJ, also French, was playing a lot of great music I'd never heard before. I'm not positive it was all French, but much of it was, and some people mentioned it was the sort of stuff they regularly danced to in Paris. It was less techno/house-ish (no Daft Punk), and more along the lines of, say, Phoenix, Cut Copy, or the Knife's "Heartbeats" -- melodic, a bit spacey, medium tempo, maybe some disco influences. Some of the songs were even a bit lounge-y.

Does anyone have any suggestions for bands to check out that might fit the above description? Or does anyone in Paris know what the "cool kids" are listening to, French or not, that might not have made its way over to the States yet?

posted by decoherence to media & arts (19 comments total)

Yelle!
posted by oinopaponton at 11:24 AM on August 15 [2 favorites has favorites]

Justice?
posted by freddymetz at 11:49 AM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

Seconding Yelle.
posted by pintapicasso at 12:52 PM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

Stereolab and Stereo Total are fun, if you aren't already a fan...
posted by shrimpsmalls at 1:09 PM on August 15

Thirding Yelle, especially Ce Jeu and A Cause des Garçons. Definitely The Blow as well.
posted by zoomorphic at 1:37 PM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

The Prototypes
posted by slow graffiti at 1:55 PM on August 15

I get the type of musician you're looking out for, and figure you'd like other Euro favorites like:Uffie, CSS, and CocoRosie.
posted by zoomorphic at 2:07 PM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

Yuksek
posted by sarahj at 2:30 PM on August 15

and Hot Chip (from London, though)
posted by sarahj at 2:49 PM on August 15

I like this brand of music too. Not French but similar sounding are:

Peter Bjorn and John
Minus The Bear
Headlights
posted by That takes balls. at 3:11 PM on August 15

Oh man, totally seconding Justice. Get their cross album. Your question almost sounds crafted specifically for them--note that, while they themselves are French, I believe most (if not all) of their lyrics are English.
posted by jgunsch at 3:41 PM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

I realize that Portland is not in France, but I think Yacht fits your criteria pretty well. Their album is brand new, but you can check out anything on the DFA label and find good disco-influenced dance music.
posted by martens at 3:52 PM on August 15

Definitely Justice and definitely Uffie.
posted by fire&wings at 5:46 PM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

I shan't restrict myself to solely French acts: Yelle, Hot Chip, Justice, Uffie, La Roux, Playgroup, LCD Soundsystem.
posted by ekpyrotic at 7:05 PM on August 15 [1 favorite has favorites]

TTC is really rap, but the beats are very techno-like and the voices are very melodic. I don't generally like rap, but I like TTC.
posted by N2O1138 at 12:33 AM on August 16

Kitsuné Maison compilations have an interesting mix.
posted by shinyshiny at 1:49 AM on August 16 [1 favorite has favorites]

No one has said Air yet?
posted by freem at 9:43 PM on August 16

I'm somewhat agog that no-one had mentioned the Valerie Collective, and it's associated acts, Anoraak, College and Minitel Rose. Great French electro pop with a lovely 80s sheen.
posted by my face your at 7:32 AM on August 17

Second on Valerie collective--add Russ Chimes to that collection. Also, get your hands on Yuksek (my current favorite).

Just do yourself a favor and buy Justice's † . All the cool kids think it's passe, but you'll be damned not to dance to it. While you're at it, it's well worth obtaining a copy of all of the Kitsune Maison compilations, as well as the Ed Banger Records compilations. If you like the individuals artists, check out their EPs (a lot of them don't have LPs yet). You'll get exposure to Uffie and Kavinsky (big acts in 2007), and Mr. Oizo just released a new album in 2008.

There's also Simian Mobile Disco, Soulwax, Midnight Juggernauts, and Ladyhawke, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Finally, meet your new best friend: hypem.com
Put in any of these artists, and you'll not only get their work, you'll also get their remixes. The added benefit--you can try before you buy.
posted by whitedoor at 8:47 PM on September 1