Francoise and the Atlas Mountains flood the senses with album Plaine Inondable
7 out of 10
Indie label Domino re-releases the French art-indie band’s pre-cursor critically acclaimed E Volo Love – Plaine Inondable is out on 5 November.
First released in 2009 on Fence Records, Plaine Inondable is the band’s third album. Since then, they have become darlings of the underground navel-gazing scene, famed for beautiful and melancholic rhythms.
Recorded in Francoise’s hometown of Saintes in France, he commandeered local friends in the shape of Unkle Jelly Fish and Bost Gehio to become the Atlas Mountains. The album, translated as Flood Plaines, is named after the town’s winter landscape and Charente River that frequently bursts its banks and floods the surrounding fields.
Knowing this about the album helps put it into context – as it marks a departure from Francoise’s signature sound of lo-fi electro, casio-esque beats. Opening with Friends, it’s hauntingly atmospheric; from the tinkle on the ivories to the slow strings that seem to weep at Francoise’s seductively down-beat French accent.
In contrast, Be Water (Je Suis De Leau) is a happy-go-lucky track with a massive nod to French mountain folk music. Homing in on the skills of an all-female polyphonic choir, the track is beautifully simple and completely refreshing.
Wonder subtly borrows from guitar soundscapes normally used by Chapterhouse or early Verve. It accents the beautifully atmospheric track. It plods through with the odd wimper from the slide guitar.
Moitiee has more jazz influences with a thudding piano, rhythmic brush drumming and a soaring horn section.
There’s something slightly drunken about this track, like a young man stumbling through the winding cobble streets of a French mountain village after a night drowning his sorrows at a local tavern.
Remind is my favourite track from the album, its complicated guitar section and haunting backing vocals is something that the great Thom Yorke could've have easily put together. The sort of multi-layered acoustic sound that doesn't leave you feeling like you've been abused by beige.
The album is ten tracks of harmonies, gentle guitars and sad piano chords that’d be perfect for listening to on those cold autumnal evenings with a roaring log fire, a glass of merlot and a good book.
Francoise cites influences from fellow countrymen (and women) Serge Gainsbourg and Francoise Hardy – both of whom I am a massive fan of, and listening to this I can see how he fused the two. He draws on Hardy’s seductive innocence and Gainsbourg’s experimental hedonism. Also, throwing in a splash of Leonard Cohen for added melancholy and stripped down emotion.
This album is faultlessly beautiful. They mesmerised me when I saw them perform at South Street, Reading and will probably see them again when they return in October.
Indie label Domino re-releases the French art-indie band’s pre-cursor critically acclaimed E Volo Love – Plaine Inondable is out on 5 November.
First released in 2009 on Fence Records, Plaine Inondable is the band’s third album. Since then, they have become darlings of the underground navel-gazing scene, famed for beautiful and melancholic rhythms.
Recorded in Francoise’s hometown of Saintes in France, he commandeered local friends in the shape of Unkle Jelly Fish and Bost Gehio to become the Atlas Mountains. The album, translated as Flood Plaines, is named after the town’s winter landscape and Charente River that frequently bursts its banks and floods the surrounding fields.
Knowing this about the album helps put it into context – as it marks a departure from Francoise’s signature sound of lo-fi electro, casio-esque beats. Opening with Friends, it’s hauntingly atmospheric; from the tinkle on the ivories to the slow strings that seem to weep at Francoise’s seductively down-beat French accent.
In contrast, Be Water (Je Suis De Leau) is a happy-go-lucky track with a massive nod to French mountain folk music. Homing in on the skills of an all-female polyphonic choir, the track is beautifully simple and completely refreshing.
Wonder subtly borrows from guitar soundscapes normally used by Chapterhouse or early Verve. It accents the beautifully atmospheric track. It plods through with the odd wimper from the slide guitar.
Moitiee has more jazz influences with a thudding piano, rhythmic brush drumming and a soaring horn section.
There’s something slightly drunken about this track, like a young man stumbling through the winding cobble streets of a French mountain village after a night drowning his sorrows at a local tavern.
Remind is my favourite track from the album, its complicated guitar section and haunting backing vocals is something that the great Thom Yorke could've have easily put together. The sort of multi-layered acoustic sound that doesn't leave you feeling like you've been abused by beige.
The album is ten tracks of harmonies, gentle guitars and sad piano chords that’d be perfect for listening to on those cold autumnal evenings with a roaring log fire, a glass of merlot and a good book.
Francoise cites influences from fellow countrymen (and women) Serge Gainsbourg and Francoise Hardy – both of whom I am a massive fan of, and listening to this I can see how he fused the two. He draws on Hardy’s seductive innocence and Gainsbourg’s experimental hedonism. Also, throwing in a splash of Leonard Cohen for added melancholy and stripped down emotion.
This album is faultlessly beautiful. They mesmerised me when I saw them perform at South Street, Reading and will probably see them again when they return in October.
As a writer, I listen to music like it’s a story trying to tell me something or transport me to another place; Francoise does this to a tee. You could easily get lost in the music and let your imagination run wild – where it’ll take you is somewhere beautiful where even misery is something to relish.
Helen Andreou
First published 01/09/2012
Helen Andreou
First published 01/09/2012
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