Bernardino Femminielli

Here's some new music from Paris based artist Bernardino Femminielli.  "Memoires d'un Auto-Sabotage" is a cool mix of airy electronica and French pop that feels like it's being beamed in from alternate reality version of France.  Check out "Raconte-moi ton Histoire" featuring German duo Neuzeitliche Bodenbelage below and snag a copy of the LP here from Knekelhuis.

Bolbec

Here's a very cool and cinematic mix of library music, French pop, psych, and jazz from French duo Bolbec.  The band's album "Foutu Felin" is out now on Batov Records.  Get it here and listen to the fantastic album opener "Cafe Frappe" below.

Forever Pavot & Melchior

About to head out to a book store opening, but before i leave, here's some weird kosmische electronic music from French artists Forever Pavot and Melchior.  Listen to "Reality (La Boum)" below and grab the "La Boum / TinTin" 7" here from Born Bad Records.

Laure Briard

Here's some new pop from French artist Laure Briard that's just steeped in the sounds of the '70s.  Listen to the mellow "Rocking Chair" below and pre-order the artist's upcoming new album "Voyage Mental" here from Midnight Special Records.

Noir Boy George

I can often be a total sucker for French pop, and French artist Noir Boy George brings the pop with the upcoming "POLYTOXICOMANE DE TOI" EP, throwing in elements of electronic pop, no wave punk, and more to quirky, delirious delight.  Check out "Injecte-moi" below and pre-order the record here from Pan European Recordings.

Daily Jam - Comme

Here's a gentle, gorgeous track from the lovely and wonderful Francoise Hardy.  Listen to "Comme" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - Initials B.B.

There is a mountain of stuff to get done in front of me, holiday season and all, and i just can't bring myself to get started.  Just going to listen to some Serge Gainsbourg instead.  Check out "Initials B.B." below, our Daily Jam.

Melody's Echo Chamber

Friday brings us new music from Melody's Echo Chamber.  The artist's fourth album, "Unclouded," comes with psychedelic pop aplenty, and album opener "The House that Doesn't Exist" channels the sounds of French pop to delightful effect.  Check it out below and pre-order the LP here from Domino.

Kit Sebastian

Here's an excellent new track from London-based duo Kit Sebastian that finds the band in their usual mix of world pop, Turkish psych, and French Ye-Ye music.  Listen to "Certain Things You Can't Explain (I'll Just Let Myself Go)" below and download the single here from Brainfeeder.

Daily Jam - League Chicanos

Here's a track from French pop artist Sebastien Tellier to get your through your Sunday.  Listen to "League Chicanos" from the artist's 2004 album "Politics" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - L.S.D.

Swinging into my busy season at work and thinking of the copious amount of drugs i would like to do because of it.  Here's some French psychedelia from Popera Cosmic to put me in that right headspace.  Listen to "L.S.D." below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - Notre Generation

Here's some sweet and melancholic '60s French pop from Stone to wind down your Saturday to.  Listen to "Notre Generation" below, our Daily Jam.

Daily Jam - Brûlure

I need something pretty this morning.  Something warm.  Something peaceful.  Here's Francoise Hardy with "Brûlure," our Daily Jam.

Léonie Pernet

French artist Léonie Pernet released somber new track "Réparer le Monde" a week ago.  The title translates to "Repair the World," which is something i think we can all agree would be good.  Give it a listen below and download it here from InFine.

Daily Jam - Les Uns Et Les Autres

In the early '80s, French composer Pierre Barouh found himself in Japan working with a slew of that country's jazz and session musicians.  The result was "Le Pollen," an album that mixed element of French pop, Chanson, jazz, synth pop, and more.  It's kind of an oddity, but also one of my favorite musical discoveries this year.  Check out "Les Uns Et Les Autres" from the record below, our Daily Jam.

Juniore

And now for a fun mix of '60s pop, surf rock, psychedelia, and French pop from Paris trio Juniore.  The band's new album "Trois Deux Un" is full of throwback grooves and is out now.  Get it from the band here and listen to the album opening "Le Silence" below.

Daily Jam - The Way You Look Tonight

It's Sunday, so here are some Sunday sounds from French duo Air.  And here's hoping i get to catch them live in Austin in October.  In the meantime, let's listen to "The Way You Look Tonight," our Daily Jam.

RIP Françoise Hardy

RIP to a fashion icon and an unbelievable hip woman.  RIP to the original Ye-Ye girl.  Farewell to an absolute all-timer and one of my favorite voices of all time, the indelible Françoise Hardy.

Bibi Club

Montreal duo Bibi Club make a wonderful mix of French pop and electro-tinged kosmische psych pop, headphone music for the cool kids.  New album "Feu de garde" just dropped on Friday.  Get it here from Secret City Records and listen to the mellow sounds of "You Can Wear a Jacket or a Shirt" below.

Daily Jam - Il Est Trop Loin

“Cause Doris Day could never make me cheer up quite the way those French girls always do.”

I open with a lyric from the great Neil Hannon and his baroque pop band The Divine Comedy because he’s really onto something. There is a certain mystique surrounding French women that pervades so many aspects of our pop culture, and I am certainly not immune to the allure. Whether it’s the smoking, cool, and flirty aloofness of the women portrayed in any number of French New Wave films, the pouty and detached chic of the country’s fashionistas, or the throngs of yé-yé girls making music over the last half century, I am so there. And I have been smitten with original yé-yé girl Françoise Hardy for the better part of 20 years.

With a range of material spanning decades, and in different languages, it can be a tad daunting to dive into the musical works of Mlle. Hardy. As a fan, even I haven’t been able to traverse everything, but I always seem to be able to stumble across something I’ve never heard before…and that new (to me) song tends to become my obsession for a while. In 2017, i found myself looping “Il Est Trop Loin,” from the artist’s 1967 album Ma Jeunesse Fout L’Camp, and it may be my favorite thing that Françoise Hardy ever recorded. The song, which loosely translates to “It Is Too Far,” is a reworking of Peter, Paul, and Mary’s “Sorrow,” itself a reworking of the traditional American folk song “Man of Constant Sorrow,” originally penned by Dick Burnett. Featuring Hardy’s almost mournful vocals laid over a plucked electric guitar, a minimal tambourine beat, and a rising wave of soft strings and choir voices, “Il Est Trop Loin” sounds like the psych-tinged lament of a lonely soul, the world hanging heavy. It’s a wonderful interpretation of a song that’s now over a century old.

Those French girls will continue to cheer me up, to amaze me.

Listen below, our Daily Jam.