charlotte gainsbourg

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is anyone else excited about this release? has anyone heard anything from it?

"Singer/actress/Serge Gainsbourg spawn Charlotte Gainsbourg has this formula down pat. Everyone may have forgotten her 1986 debut Charlotte Forever (or never really known it in the first place), but a recent Billboard story reports that the daughter of everyone's favorite creep will be collaborating with Air, Jarvis Cocker, and producer Nigel Godrich on her new album, 5:55.

Cocker and the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon contribute lyrics, and David Campbell (aka Beck's dad) arranges strings on the album, which is scheduled for release August 28 in Europe and September 4 in the UK. A North American release date has not yet been scheduled."
http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/page/news/36827/Air_Jarvis_Cocker_Guest_on_Charlotte_Gainsbourg_L#36827

― el juan (el juan), Sunday, 9 July 2006 18:42 (nineteen years ago)

there are snippets here: http://www.myspace.com/charlottegainsbourg

would love to hear the full tracks, seems like she's finally following her father's footsteps (not to mention her mum'' s too)

― el juan (el juan), Sunday, 9 July 2006 18:45 (nineteen years ago)

very exciting indeed. she's gorgeous & her voice on the snippets sounds great.

― jed_ (jed), Sunday, 9 July 2006 19:09 (nineteen years ago)

Really looking forward to it. But why does Jarvis Cocker have to pop up on every Gainsbourg-related release?

― Jay Vee's Return (Manon_69), Sunday, 9 July 2006 19:46 (nineteen years ago)

err - I mean every recent Gainsbourg-reated release.

― Jay Vee's Return (Manon_69), Sunday, 9 July 2006 19:47 (nineteen years ago)

Why shouldn't Jarvis pop up? He at least captures the spirit of Gainsbourg better than someone like Brian Molko (why the hell does he show up on most of that stuff is a better question?)

― Jacobo Rock (jacobo rock), Sunday, 9 July 2006 20:26 (nineteen years ago)

so, "the songs that we sing" is the first single, and is available in france already, anyone know anything about release dates in the u.k.?

oh, and i agree about brian molko. i fucking hate the guy. he strikes me as a creepy gainsbourg fan. the same way nicholas cage is a creepy elvis fan.

― el juan (el juan), Monday, 10 July 2006 00:33 (nineteen years ago)

the track sounds pretty good - her voice is a bit weak

― timmy tannin (pompous), Monday, 10 July 2006 00:50 (nineteen years ago)

saying her voice is weak is sort of missing the point - within that breathy chanteuse style, her voice is no worse than her mother's. i'm looking forward to it.

― Jacobo Rock (jacobo rock), Monday, 10 July 2006 03:57 (nineteen years ago)

exactly, i dont think anyone is expecting vocal acrobatics from charlotte gainsbourg

― el juan (el juan), Monday, 10 July 2006 12:31 (nineteen years ago)

The magpies have become ravens.

― Momus (Momus), Monday, 10 July 2006 15:00 (nineteen years ago)

hey, that's just my first impression, sorry if i forgot to drink the kool-aid
xpost

― timmy tannin (pompous), Monday, 10 July 2006 15:26 (nineteen years ago)

two months pass...

I'm really loving this record. Treat it as the new Air album with CG on vocals and it works, but then I'm biased; Air are another of those bands whom I actually want to make the same record over and over. The Britpop bandwagon doesn't bother me because I can ignore the sleeve credits and just luxuriate in the music. The soothing, Birkin-perfect English voice makes such a wonderful contrast to the hectoring one-level Beyonce I heard bawling through HMV as I was buying the album.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:27 (eighteen years ago)

i really want to hear this, i have mentally bracketed it alongside the nancy sinatra album from the other year already.

beyoncé's voice is amazing though marcello.

― The Lex (The Lex), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:36 (eighteen years ago)

being a bit of a CG (and SG) fan, I wanted to like this, but what I've heard is pretty underwhelming. the vocals didn't strike me as breathy chanteuse, just not very confident, not very accomplished, and weirdly lacking in character. the music was exceptionally sterile and uninvolving too.

Treat it as the new Air album with CG on vocals

hmmmm. I suspect this might be the problem.

― guanoman (mister the guanoman), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:37 (eighteen years ago)

seriously needs to be a picture thread.

― a rapper singing about hos and bitches and money (Enrique), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:38 (eighteen years ago)

"He'd be working with Timbaland and Missy Elliot, or Dre and M.I.A. Always pushing on, always provoking."

oh monsieur currie, with these up-to-date references you are spoiling uz.

― a rapper singing about hos and bitches and money (Enrique), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:41 (eighteen years ago)

I would hardly call Jarvis "the Britpop bandwagon"...nitpick aside, yeah, this is a fantastic album. Between this and the Darkel album coming out in a week, I am one very satisfied Air geek.

― Telephonething (Telephonething), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:47 (eighteen years ago)

"Everything I Cannot See" is an incredible song. I can't quite work out who or what she's singing about loving but having to leave behind unless they have the courage to follow her - France? Her family's legacy? The past in general?

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Monday, 11 September 2006 09:58 (eighteen years ago)

oh monsieur currie, with these up-to-date references you are spoiling uz.

But it's precisely this sort of mainstream, not-too-avant artist that late Gainsbourg tended to work with. Session musicians, black musicians, musicians with popular success and a pedigree, were always his preference.

― Momus (Momus), Monday, 11 September 2006 10:54 (eighteen years ago)

http://xs68.xs.to/pics/06073/Sly-and-Robbie-ouside-Chann.gif

― Run Ruud Run (Ken L), Monday, 11 September 2006 10:57 (eighteen years ago)

makes such a wonderful contrast to the ... Beyonce I heard bawling through HMV as I was buying the album

You need to do your record shopping in Chiswick, Marcello. They were playing 5.55 in its entirety in Fopp when I called in there on Saturday.

First thoughts: an odd mixture of Carla Bruni-style acoustic pop and more etheriel soundscapes (I get the Air reference, but I think it's as close to shoegazer). Like guanoman, I was regretting the lack of character ('presence' might be the better word) in Charlotte's vocals in the first two thirds of the record. BUT there's a couple of songs towards the end where her delivery is rather more biting, and those tracks seemed to work really well.

― zebedee (zebedee), Monday, 11 September 2006 11:10 (eighteen years ago)

I wouldn't call it lack of character or presence; her voice is like a conscience serenely nagging at the back of your head. The dispassionate approach works quite brilliantly on songs like "Flight AF607105" which are actually about the inability to feel anything. However, as you say, "Everything I Cannot See" is the penultimate track where she suddenly discovers emotion, and it works so well precisely because of the relatively unemotional build-up (though I think it deeply emotional because I can relate to so many of the feelings expressed).

"Beauty Mark" is quite stunning, too.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Monday, 11 September 2006 11:27 (eighteen years ago)

This is a beautiful record. Also, a bit confused that Marcello likes it.

― zeus (zeus), Monday, 11 September 2006 12:41 (eighteen years ago)

This is great. Listened to it on the commute today, and wallowed in everything but the two skipping tracks. Rats. Anyway, 'Everything I Cannot See' is the standout for me so far as well.

― Buffalo Stan (Buffalo Stan), Monday, 11 September 2006 12:49 (eighteen years ago)

I'm a bit confused about your confusion (xpost).

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Monday, 11 September 2006 12:49 (eighteen years ago)

No offence, I just thought that the main ILM verdict will be negative, as Serge Gainsbourg-necrophilia and Air-ripoff. The best comparison is early Black Box Recorder, I think.

― zeus (zeus), Monday, 11 September 2006 12:57 (eighteen years ago)

Yes, that's a fair comparison actually.

What you have to remember is that I'm not "main ILM."

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Monday, 11 September 2006 13:01 (eighteen years ago)

I know, I know, sorry about that. So instead of 'confused' I say 'pleasantly surprised'.

― zeus (zeus), Monday, 11 September 2006 13:08 (eighteen years ago)

I just thought that the main ILM verdict will be negative, as Serge Gainsbourg-necrophilia and Air-ripoff.

Also, there aren't a lot of Gainsbourg fans on ILM (equivalently, there aren't many regular posters who like SG and are vocal about it), and therefore there aren't a lot of people who would care enough to raise much of a fuss. There is no "ILM verdict" on albums that fairly few people care about to begin with. (this is a good thing, btw)

Looking forward to hearing this.

― NoTimeBeforeTime (Barry Bruner), Monday, 11 September 2006 13:37 (eighteen years ago)

The best comparison is early Black Box Recorder, I think.

That's the bit that I'm struggling with: the Nixey-esque blank breathiness. It's going to take a while longer...

― mike t-diva (mike t-diva), Monday, 11 September 2006 21:10 (eighteen years ago)

i listened to six songs of the album and only one stuck out, the mesmerising, atmospheric little monsters. the others were uninspired, nice sounding, tepid, easy listening stuff. air has always been a retro act redoing 70s fusion music without any spark.

btw i am a serge gainsbourg fan on ilm. but not too vocal about it, that's right. l'homme à tête de chou still is the most poetic album about (physical) love i have ever heard.

― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 18 September 2006 11:37 (eighteen years ago)

After the first couple of listens, the title track is my favourite. Your "nice sounding" description feels correct. About five or six tracks in, I tend to not notice that I'm playing the album anymore.

― NoTimeBeforeTime (Barry Bruner), Monday, 18 September 2006 13:00 (eighteen years ago)

seriously needs to be a picture thread.

-- a rapper singing about hos and bitches and money

^^^^cosign

― and what (ooo), Monday, 18 September 2006 13:06 (eighteen years ago)

After the first couple of listens, the title track is my favourite.
that's funny, i didn't hear the title track yet.

― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Monday, 18 September 2006 13:45 (eighteen years ago)

eleven months pass...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6981963.stm :-/

― StanM, Thursday, 6 September 2007 16:14 (eighteen years ago)

seriously needs to be a picture thread.

-- a rapper singing about hos and bitches and money (Enrique), Monday, September 11, 2006 9:38 AM (11 months ago) Bookmark Link

― and what, Thursday, 6 September 2007 16:20 (eighteen years ago)

two years pass...

just saw her in SF last week walking around w/baby and husband.

new one being produced by beck. sounds like Silver Apples and Yoko Ono. pretty fucking impressed!

http://www.thefader.com/2009/10/09/charlotte-gainsbourg-irm-produced-by-beck-mp3/

― jaxon, Saturday, 10 October 2009 22:27 (fifteen years ago)

this is indeed pretty damn good!

― spiny doughboy (baaderonixx), Saturday, 10 October 2009 23:45 (fifteen years ago)

one month passes...

New album is v. v. good

― Marcus Brody Ta-Dow! (Capitaine Jay Vee), Saturday, 5 December 2009 05:43 (fifteen years ago)

three weeks pass...

Yes it is!

― StanM, Monday, 28 December 2009 13:43 (fifteen years ago)

one month passes...

this thing seems to be getting praised all around. Might need to check it out

― saaberonixx (baaderonixx), Thursday, 28 January 2010 11:26 (fifteen years ago)

title track sounds a lot like liars

― congratulations (n/a), Thursday, 28 January 2010 14:10 (fifteen years ago)

is really good.

― sean gramophone, Friday, 29 January 2010 23:49 (fifteen years ago)

really?

loved the last one but that might be because i love pretty much everything air does. the idea of beck producing was a real turnoff.

― scent of a wolfman (s1ocki), Saturday, 30 January 2010 17:14 (fifteen years ago)

best album beck has made in years

― zappi, Saturday, 30 January 2010 18:18 (fifteen years ago)

― sean gramophone, Saturday, 30 January 2010 18:21 (fifteen years ago)

i really love the diskjokke remix of "irm", gonna check the album out despite the beck thing

― لوووووووووووووووووووول (lex pretend), Saturday, 30 January 2010 19:44 (fifteen years ago)

best album beck has made in years

― zappi, Saturday, January 30, 2010 10:18 AM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

― sean gramophone, Saturday, January 30, 2010 10:21 AM Bookmark

― zvincter (The Reverend), Saturday, 30 January 2010 20:33 (fifteen years ago)

wow this is kind of amazing.

― i get mines the fast way, the balaclava way (M@tt He1ges0n), Monday, 1 February 2010 23:26 (fifteen years ago)

from the cortex to medulla---

― لوووووووووووووووووووول (lex pretend), Monday, 1 February 2010 23:29 (fifteen years ago)

i hear the liars too

also

"in the end" is on some mad francois hardy type ish

― i get mines the fast way, the balaclava way (M@tt He1ges0n), Monday, 1 February 2010 23:30 (fifteen years ago)

I've found myself listening to Time Of The Assassins on repeat...

― Jeff LeVine, Monday, 1 February 2010 23:39 (fifteen years ago)

trick pony sounds like autolux

― super sexy psycho fantasy world (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Monday, 1 February 2010 23:47 (fifteen years ago)

I kind of like this, but my two favorite songs are the one that sounds just like Nightblooms and the one that sounds like T Rex, which makes me wonder how much I actually like this...

― dlp9001, Tuesday, 2 February 2010 01:46 (fifteen years ago)

one month passes...

man, what an amazing album. doesn't sound at all like beck

― jaxon, Sunday, 21 March 2010 01:38 (fifteen years ago)

Quite possibly my favourite of the year so far.

― seandalai, Sunday, 21 March 2010 02:01 (fifteen years ago)

I agree with all the above (best beck album in a long time, one of faves of 2010 so far.)

doesn't sound at all like beck

I think there are a lot of Beck-esque songwriting touches here, but being filtered through Charlotte most of them go down really easy. I can imagine Beck singing a good deal of these songs though.

― Michael F Gill, Sunday, 21 March 2010 02:14 (fifteen years ago)

three years pass...

Fun, if inessential: CG covers "Hey Joe" in a Melody Nelson style:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ddEkj-7qA8

― freemen (on the) space (seandalai), Wednesday, 18 December 2013 21:22 (eleven years ago)

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charlotte gainsbourg - 5:55