C'est la beat
French culture returns with (de) gall in the form of a healthy house scene

By JAMES CONROY
Collegian Staff Writer

In a country where frog's legs and snails are a delicacy, great musical innovations aren't expected. But in the past year, a French house scene has emerged and many people are calling it "Magnifique."

The first act to cross the Atlantic and make waves was Daft Punk. With the release of its 1997 debut, Homework, Daft Punk received much attention as one of the bands that was mainstreaming electronic music. Homework's singles, "Da Funk" and "Around the World," received limited airplay on both radio and MTV, but "Da Funk" was featured on the soundtrack to The Saint along with electronic heavyweights Orbital and Moby.

The band's heavy bass lines, unusual samples and hip-hop-infused break beats placed it in the same category as The Chemical Brothers and Prodigy. However, Daft Punk seemed to get lost in the shadows of its English counterparts -- perhaps because the group lacks "Frenchness."

One act that does embrace "Frenchness" is Dimitri From Paris. Dimitri's full-length debut, Sacrebleu, was first released in Europe in 1996. After selling hundreds of thousands of copies worldwide, the album was finally released in America. A montage of '50s and '60s lounge music mixed the influences of house, Sacrebleu sounds like The Chemical Brothers doing the soundtrack for the next Austin Powers film.

The album's first single, "Une Very Stylish Fille," brings to mind visions of Brigitte Bardot strutting around in some '60s French flick. Listening to many of the songs on these albums, you can't help but think this is music for a yet-to-be-written film.

If Dimitri from Paris wants to bring life back to the days of lounge music, then fellow Parisians Cassius want to revive the days of disco. Although the band's debut is called 1999, it's pretty obvious Cassius wants to party like it's 1979.

The album's first track, "Cassius 1999," samples disco diva Donna Summer's "Love Is Just a Breath Away." But perhaps the strangest, most interesting sample on the album is from the song "Hey Babe." On this track, Cassius samples Willie Hutch's theme from the 1974 blaxploitation film Foxy Brown.

The one thing all these acts have in common is the use of their turntables.

One act, however, that is a break from this norm is Air. Although both Nicolas Godin and Jean Benoit Dunckel, the members of Air, are DJs, many of the songs on their debut, Moon Safari, are played with actual instruments.

Air's sound is distinct, but like Dimitri from Paris, it brings to mind space-age lounge music.

You know you've hit the big time when your music's being used in TV commercials (see Fatboy Slim). In a recent L'Oréal commercial, Air's song "La Femme D'Argent" can be heard.

Although this music might not leave the same taste in your mouth as fine escargot, one thing is for sure -- the French can't be the butt of musical jokes anymore.