All this talk of machines and robots sent me down to road to check out our local electronic music festival - The Ososphere - last night. The main reason for the outing was to see Sébastien Tellier play his set. Ejay will remember that I was outraged when France announced that Tellier would represent them at Eurovision. "You can't do that! He's GOOD!!" I raged. Indeed, Tellier has been critically successful since 2001 and his album 'Sexuality', released this year, was a collaboration with Daft Punk's Guy-Manuel de Homem Christo. I needn't have worried, though. His song, 'Divine', finished 18th out of 25 songs with "quarente-sept points".His music has developed from using traditional instruments to pure and unapologetic synth-pop. This is the big brother of Air and a close cousin of Daft Punk. However, he is not averse to sitting down at the baby grand and giving us a burst of the orchestral and melancholic 'la Ritornelle' which was one of his earliest successes in 2004. Moving from some very competent guitar work, he played through the sensual synth swathes of 'Sexuality' which dominated my MP3 player on the beaches of Arcachon this summer. If you listen to 'Roche' you'll hear why...
Découvrez Sébastien Tellier!
Physically, Tellier is one big contradiction. He is, as my dear father would put it, "built like a brick shit house". Frequent comparisons with rugby player Sébastien Chabal are entirely merited. The look is resolutely hirsute with an unkempt beard and straggly locks covering most of his face. And an outsized pair of 80s shades just to cover up the rest for good measure. What is he hiding? And yet the masculine shagginess is offset by a breathy, almost feminine vocal style and a bright puce V-necked pullover. I'm talking serious pink here. At one point he whipped off the shades and I got a glimpse of the beauty beneath. Under those layers, I suspect, lies a seriously handsome face and I actually think that someone should play him with a couple of excellent bottles of Bordeaux and shave the whole lot off. I'd willingly contribute a smart sweater. Not a 'Cosby sweater'. Or lend him my E2-E4 black T-shirt which is the coolest item in my wardrobe.
But he wouldn't be Sébastien Tellier then, would he?
37 comments:
Nice. I just need a beach now.. At least the sunny day is already here..
I just mentioned you on RR, FP- my copy of E2-E4 arrived a couple of weeks ago and I've been enjoying it a lot, thanks to your last Göttsching post which put me onto it.
Lovely weather - enjoy it. So glad you're enjoying E2-E4. I have to say he's a seriously nice bloke. Very laid back and pragmatic where his wife is a bundle of energy. They're a cool couple.
FP - I do LOVE La Ritournelle, and I look forward to exploring further.
As for fashion items, I love my dad's old 70s golf shoes that I had resoled and converted into spats. I also love my pocket watch.
But my favourites are the Spiritualized t-shirt from 2004 that just says 'Amazing Grace' on it and nothing else, and my Now UIt's Overhead green tee that just has the band's name on it and nowt else.
I love band t-shirts that leave a bit to be wondered about. I CAN'T STAND the basic tour t-shirt that has all the dates on the back and all that jazz. Just not everyday enough for me.
In the great lost item stakes: an Elbow tee that Mrs Frod loved that just said Asleep on the front, and my Ben Folds one that just had a pic of a boy baby and a girl baby, both looking into their nappies, learning about what they are. I still have that one somewhere, but I think its past it by now...
Good question, as ever. Thankyou please.
My sole sartorial indulgence is Duchamp ties, the same garish multi-coloured things than Jon Snow wears on the Channel 4 news; well, them and my T-Mobile cycling jersey (a lovely shade of pink, and obviously their drugs are better...).
@snad
Now UIt's Overhead?
you may have cursed yourself mistake wise!
Lovely tunes for the sunshine FP and a perfect excuse to have my shades on.
about two years ago I found a cash card holder from 89.... we were moving house, sorting stuff.. in it three gig tickets...
Pixies Town and country club #446.
Sugarcubes Brixton Academy.
An evening of Ukrainian Music by the Wedding present.
T-Shirt made instantly...
From Alison records a big bear T-shirt, that's cool.
I also had an oversized Kiss me kiss me kiss me T-Shirt used as a night shirt by various Females I shared student houses with.. really fond memories of that one!
and backstage crew t-shirts
Prodigy, bjork, chemical brothers, sold the oasis one... Michael Ball you know really cool stuff.
Underworld did good subtle tees too, tho the skinny rib womens ones were best.
My Home made Tank Girl one from the missus has to win top spot tee.
(Only bettered by my Designs when I set up my T-Shirt company... ummmmm.)
Oh man, I'm going to start typing with my eyes closed...
shane - let me say right now that if you set up a t-shirt company, I'll buy one for sure. Do it!
Hi guys, sitting down with a cup of yorkshire tea to catch up...
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Snadfrod, I think La Ritornelle has just made it into the soundtrack of this year's Arcachon film which I will start editing when the weather turns crap. Ihose spats and pocket watch sound like you are getting some kind of 'Brideshead' vibe going there. Totally in this autumn for obvious reasons. I love that 20s kind of look. And donds for the Ben Folds T shirt - I think I know the one you mean.
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Abahachi: ....though not worn together, eh? :-))) Very posh make, Duchamp. A great tie can make or break an outfit.
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Saneshane: it IS sunny music, isn't it? I'm not actually sure I could have listened to it all day if the weather hadn't been so great. There's a wonderful Human League vibe in there. Listen to 'elle' and then 'Louise'. Get me?
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Speaking of which I'm missing Darce over on the Mother Ship. Any chance of getting things sorted?
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Saneshane II: and of course CREW T shirts of any kind get extra cool points. Well except Val Doonican ones. I still have some old Edinburgh Festival ones kicking around somewhere. Wonder if they still look cool? And I'll order one of those T shirts too!!
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Keep em coming peeps!
after snadfrod mentioned it, I began to recall clothes I loved that got lost, some of which I still pine for...
oh for my lilac, indian cotton skirt with tiny printed gold paisley patterns on it which I left at a boyfriend's house before splitting up with him. A My Bloody Valentine T shirt with Bilinda Butcher holding a knife to her throat on it which disappeared and my favourite black top which I took off at an Alternative Music Society disco when I went to dance and which was callously stolen :-(
I'm a terrible hoarder, so I've still got purple velvet bell bottoms in the loft. I'm with Snadfrod on tour T shirts, but I'm in more in abahachi's camp, cos I always buy art exhibition Tees if they do them - I treasure a Braque one I have. And having lived in Wimbledon, I really used to enjoy wearing my "They came from SW19" tee (a publicity stunt for a Nigel Williams book, with a picture of a hovering flying saucer over Wimbledon Common). To be honest, thought, the onset of middle age spread has converted me to looser fitting garments these days! But I'm second in the queue for a saneshane special. Bring 'em on...
Evening fp.
Re RR - Nope, not going back. My laptop is still completely crippled by the new format once a thread gets above 100 comments, and on my PC the keystroke response delay is still wholly unacceptable, let alone the continuing issues with Refresh & CtrlF. And this weekend there's a new one - my firewall repeatedly says Internet Explorer is trying to download files to me from the RR pages but won't tell me what they are. I'm outta there, I'm afraid, and I'm sad as hell about it!
Talking of sad, RIP, Mr Blue Eyes, though I never found one of your sauces I liked.
:o(
But on a happier train of thought, I'll see your Elle vs. Louise comparison, and raise you a vocal Tellier vs. Gartside vibe!
BTW, Phil Oakey has a voice I'd kill for, so I'm afraid Monsieur Tellier comes a rather poor second in that score.
And in the (newly built, delivered & installed this week) DsD wardrobe, "coolest" and "most prized" clothing items are definitely different things, so a random sample of items I'd chuck in the *You've-got-10-mins-to-pack-and-you're-not-coming-back-for-12-months* grab-bag:
Feet: pack the Adidas Gazelles (plum/peacock), wear the Converse All-Star hi-tops (softest leather I've EVER owned, and I've never seen the same design again since!)
Keks: pack the Valentino jeans, wear the £3 Morrisons value ones I emergency-bought in Carlisle three years ago. Yes, really!
Tops: pack the TOFFS 70s LFC home shirt, those three shirts I got for less than a third of their £70 each original price (I'd coveted them for months and was just about to snap when the business went bust and they had a Strictly Cash Only last day clearout), the Glitter Bay polo shirt (pink, since you ask!), and the UFO, Elbow, Portishead & Steve Earle tour Ts; wear the Mad Cowes short sleeve sweatshirt and - if it's gonna be cold - my original run Jaguar F1 team fleece.
Two ties to go with the shirts: one Paul Smith 'cause the colours are pleasingly gross, and one from the Grateful Dead collection, which is just gorgeous(ly understated).
Coat: no, I'm cracking now ... I just can't choose.
And then, damn! I'm gonna need a pair of trousers to go with the shirts, and then I can't wear white ankle trainers with that, so now I'm back with shoes . . . Ackg~ #WARNING-BRAINOVERLOAD#
When I was a teenager I was a big fan of Welwyn Garden City feminist punks S*M*A*S*H (unfairly derided by the music press I might add for their ham-fisted lyrics like "I may never ever get to see Machiavelli on the telly" or "Jill Shepherd's got an appalling unemployment record" - which I thought were great - and true!) who had a nice line in band T-shirts. Ostensibly Army surplus T's with stencilled slogans.
I had (and still dig out from time to time) "Not Your Star Fucker" and my mate had "Smalltown Git".
But if I may move away from clothes slightly to accessories, I love the idea of rock'n'roll mixed with the mundane. So in the spirit of HMHB's "Joy Division Oven Gloves" .....
(On the off chance you haven't heard:
http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=JEag0ss9pFU
....I have a Guitar Wolf shopping bag, which I use for groceries...perhaps my coolest item!
Morning morning! Not great to have stuff nicked, Beth. That's teeth grinding stuff, that is. My mam always regales us with the tale of when her and dad went out to a 70s dinner club (as you did in those days) she had a really nice FAKE fox fur jacket - good quality fake if you see what I mean. She left it in the wardrobe of the restaurant and when they left, someone had taken her jacket and replaced it with something of such poor quality it looked like a piece of roadkill. Grrrrrrrr.
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GHE: Fashion is cyclical. I can confidently promise you that those purple velvet bell bottoms (just typing those words is making me giggle) WILL be back in fashion ca. 2012. So hang on to them. And donds for cool art exhibition t shirts too.
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@ Darce: Yes I was gutted over Paul Newman too. What a beautiful man. A Hollywood marriage that survived Hollywood. A multi million food business and all given to charity and some hum dinger films. Hope they show one on telly tonight. He's very loved in France. As is Clint Eastwood. My mam used to buy his stuff and liked it. I'll check out Gartside (who or what is Gartside?) but you can see what I mean, though. Here's a thought. Both big blokes. Phil Oakey against Sebastien Tellier. 3 rounds. Marquis of Queensbury rules. Who wins? I love your wardrobe analysis! I nearly mentioned the converse all stars - I've just bought a pair of red ones which I have wanted since I was exactly seven years old. My best friend had a pair and I just thought they were the greatest thing I'd ever seen. I wore them to the Ososphere on Friday - in fact they are spot welded to my feet at the moment. On the RR front can I ask if you use Firefox? It's very light compared with bloody IE and might speed things up a bit. You're really missed over there!!
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@ Japanther: EXCELLENT lyrics!!!! And I am now whizzing off to ebay to see if I can get a Joy division oven glove. You're not joking are you? They really exist, right?
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And while we're on, did anyone actually buy a pair of those very very nice Factory/Hacienda trainers? I wonder how much they're going for now....off to check.
Clothes-wise I don't really do labels and I have no band merchandising, so I'd have to say my most cherished item is a handed-down light brown suede jacket given to me by a family friend who has since died... he gave it to me when I came to Germany, I've worn it all over Europe and had it sewn back together at a factory in Istanbul when it was on the verge of falling apart.. Every time I wear it The Chills "I love my leather jacket" goes through my head..
http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=AdCvil6r6cA
Sounds like a real classic. There are some items like that that you just hope will go on forever. Particularly if there's sentimental value involved. I persuaded Frogprince to get some Harris Tweed jackets when we were over in GB last time and he's totally seen the point of them ever since. They're virtually indestructible and look brilliant with jeans and a black rollneck underneath.
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No luck on the Joy Division ovengloves or Hacienda trainers. Ebay not coming up with the goods this morning. Oh well.
Forgot to say that I really enjoyed the Sebastian Tellier tracks, they made my Sunday afternoon working at home feel like I was on the Riveria with an ice-cold cocktail in hand, rather than at a dining table 5 floors up with Tokyo's imposing skyline staring back at me through a grey, overcast sky. Thanks.
And I forgot to mention my Crime T-shirt which a mate in the T-shirt business sorted out for me a couple of years ago. San Francisco punks...sorry (they hated being called punk) rock'n'rollers Crime were THE number 1 coolest (not the BEST mind you, but certainly the coolest!) band to ever walk the planet in my humble opinion. Cool names; Johnny Strike, Frankie Fix, Hank Rank, cool personas - they dressed in Police Uniforms on and OFF stage!! and simple, noisy but melodic perfect punk songs. (Sonic Youth did a good cover of "Hotwire My Heart")
http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=HPVVUCNXts4
Japanther - I find it utterly magical that you are able, on a Tokyo afternoon, to listen to something that I am currently listening to in France. Sending you a virtual Pina Colada!!
Can't say that fashion/clothes is a really a 'me' thing - I don't mean that I'm a naturist - not that there's anything wrong with that - oh god, I think I should start this post again...
Right - clothes, where was I? The only item of clothing I have that means anything more to me than keeping me warm, dry and relatively respectable is an old jumper that I bought way back in the early 80s. It's the sort of thing that Stuart Adamson would have worn in his Big Country days - which may not mean much to many of you but I know exactly what I mean. It's seen better days and I don't wear it very often (ToffeeGirl doesn't entirely approve) but whenever I'm feeling down and suffering from a bout of man flu, out it comes and on it goes. Makes me feel all snug and warm and comfortable - like being hugged by your mum when you're six years old (psychiatrists, please don't push like that - form an orderly queue - that's better).
I found a picture of myself wearing it when I was recently married (ca. 1984?) and I have to say that I looked pretty darned good in it - the affect may not be quite so good with the middle aged paunch but it still works for me...
OK Toffee - you've opened up the comfort clothing chapter which is a different kettle of fish. Gloves off now. Honesty time. I know exactly what you mean by the 'Stuart Adamson Big Country' look. It's a "Cosby Sweater", isn't it? That moment in High Fidelity where Rob is feeling so bad that he has put his comfort sweater on.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQv-c4460xE
SUB-QUESTION: What's your Cosby Sweater? I have. Gulp. A. Gulp. Greyvelourjoggingsuit. WHICH WAS FASHIONABLE IN THE 80S IN A KIND OF FAME MEETS FOOTLOOSE WAY. But now it gets used whenever I'm feeling one under par and need to lounge around at home. And I love it. So there.
@ fp - Gartside is Scritti Politti's Green's other name.
Ok - that's a big yes. Absolutely. With less hair.
Frogprincess- it really is amazing eh? the wonder of the modern age!
to complete my day of feeling French, Mrs Japanther just made a deeee-licious pot-au-feu (i'm sure that's spelt wrong!) served with shallow-fried aubergine, cherry tomato and cucumber salad and, as we say in Japanese, France-pan (yes! the Japanese word for bread is "pan"!), all washed down with a bottle of Riesling (from Oz i'm afraid). C'est magnifique!
I have what I call my Superman coat, and rarely gets an outing, because I'm so careful about it. It got its name because, like Jerry Seinfeld and his Suede jacket, whenever I put it on, it's like a Superpower, I've even had people compliment me in the street, everything seems to go smoother. There's also my bright Fuschia cashmere sweater, which had one guy stuttering when he tried to tell me it was "p-p-p-positively ravishing".
Shoes wise, it's got to be my Air Stabs, or the bright red Jordan 1s. There's another pair which is now too small for me, they were Bo Jackson's shoes, but I forgot their name.
Donds for Ejay's superman coat and, having seen a photo of you Frenchy, I'm sure that fuschia cashmire looks wonderful. You just have to be able to wear it. You could give Monsieur Tellier lessons. I'm not kidding you his pullover was the colour of the deezer player I've posted. J'ai fait exprès...
My eldest son is a full on turntablist these days and i've come across Tellier in his boxes of late ... usually whilst retrieving my own highly prized items from the 70's, 80's and 90's. I enjoyed checking out the tracks you posted and looked at some of his Youtube Jerry Garcia tributes as well :&)&&&
Most prized and coolest item in my wardrobe? A deep blue Harris Tweed Kilt Suit, made by Howie of C21st Kilts; worn with pockets, webbing belt, 16 hole boots and the latest VDGG tour T shirt.
http://www.21stcenturykilts.com/funkintro.htm
*coolest ... I should have said 'attention seeking' really :-) nearly caused a riot amongst school parties when I was trolling round The Louvre in it earlier in the year.
i have some nice shoes that i'm very fond of, i shall post a photo at some point.
Did that design piece in today's G. re. classic cars ring any bells with anyone here? I've been interested in cars, real ones, not the rubbish, all my life and I've wondered a few times if it might be appropriate to do a posting here on that subject, DsD has just opened that window, anyone else interested.
... But cars are still a sore point, and now I'm off for a week's work in NoInternetLand, so leave it til the weekend would you, gf?
@ Tatanka: Full Scottish evening dress is just about the sexiest outfit I can think of. Seriously. I saw some real Celtic beauties in Edinburgh...
@ Blimpy: We need to see those shoes, guys, don't we....?
@ GF and Darce: Let's save the poor guy's sensibilities and talk about cars...next week? :-)
Have a good 'un. FP.
@ goneforeign ... as a driver of older Citroëns for 25 years I was pleased to see the Déesse getting her slim hips onto a rather phallocentric list.
Tatanka: I had a DS in the early 60's, probably the most comfortable car I've ever owned.
@ gf ... I sold my most recent DS last year but have an '89 CX Safari on the road at the moment. Fortunately there's another DS owner in my street, so I get to stroke one most days ^^
ooh I wish I had a DS...I have a C3, does that count?
I'm just catching up after a busy weekend. I tried to post some more clips on Clip Joint but the comments are closed! Strange.
Clothing...I have a dress from the 60s. It's smallish but it's made from a quite thick almost upholstery like material and it's bright emerald green with bright lapis blue flowers on it. We used to have art openings in my apartment right after college--one night only, an excuse to have a part really. The first time Mr. Steenbeck came to my apartment was such a night--he had a painting on the wall. ANd I was wearing that dress. And he noticed it because...it looked like his grandmother's swiimsuit!! Later we all crammed into my very small room and watched dailies I'd just gotten back of my first feature projected on a 16mm projector. That has to be one of the most hopeful moments--nothing every looks as good as it does as silent rushes. Sigh.
I also like a very worn used-to-be-black but now soft dark charcoal hoodie, in the comfort category.
And this music is interesting--sounds soundtracky, if you know what I mean.
@ tfd get yourself a second C3 and knit your own C6 ... then you're talking ;)
There's a nice blue and silver D, (rust free south african import) in this month's Citroenian for less than the price of a C3; great everyday car, cheap classic car insurance, goes up in value ... what's stopping you?
Just dropping in to thank you for those posts - donds for Steenbeck's emerald dress. See you when they deign to post Clip Joint this week....
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