Le Pop 9 - Au Debut

The new Chanson generation, re-modernized and reshaped! A new generation of artists is born to shake up the French pop scene. It isn't without reason that the Le Pop 9 compilation is subtitled Au Début: 16 new French artists, none of which have ever appeared on a Le Pop compilation before, hereby introduce themselves. The modern sound of the current French pop scene allows for it's listeners to rediscover the creativity of chanson-pop in all it's different facets. The 2018 generation is influenced by electronic sounds and production styles deriving from R&B and hip-hop. The two brains behind Polo & Pan are DJs, Hollydays' singer is a Rihanna fan whilst her partner prefers Amon Tobin and Aphex Twin. Whoever sees the high achieving Angèle on stage will be perplexed by her dance moves until one finds out her brother is the famous Belgian rapper Roméo Elvis. And there's more: Ezéchiel Pailhès first appeared in electronic duo Nôze whilst the George Moustaki prize winner Laurie Darmon drifts from chanson into speech song and stands beside a human beatbox performer on stage. La Femme, awarded twice by the Victoire de la musique, showcases their Francophone indie pop with four keyboards on the stage. No trace of guitar rock nostalgia of the old times. And in Poésies the singer Chaton's voice is made foreign through autotune effects, so that the song becomes a subtle reminiscence of modern dancehall. In comparison to the cool naturalness of Flavien Berger, arguably the central figure of the new scene, many bands aiming for international success with their average English are made to look like wannabe hipsters. The wealth of ideas hidden behind Ali Danel, who for instance reinterprets a Paul Éluard poem onto an Afro-beat backdrop, seem in line with a contemporary re-appropriation of Gainsbourg's Percussions principle without making it sound a little out of date. But the special thing about it all is that, in it's very essence, the music remains chanson. The language and words define the genre, with voices central to the production and melodies remaining frameworks in which the songs are structured. And so, Le Pop 9: Au Début is simply another piece of evidence of the vitality and vibrancy of a genre that is being constantly renewed musically amidst changing frameworks and thus remaining perpetually fascinating. Also features Pomme, Eddy Crampes, Alexia Gredy, Adrien Soleiman, Achille, and Gérald Kurdian.