Nouvelle Vague
Nouvelle Vague (Luaka Bop)
By Garin Pirnia
Published: November 11th, 2005 | 12:09pm
Producers Marc Collins and Olivier Libaux, a.k.a Nouvelle Vague, tapped several international female singers to do bossa nova and lounge covers of post-punk and new wave ’80s songs, ranging from the mainstream (Depeche Mode) to the obscure (Tuxedomoon). The singers supposedly never heard the originals, thus enabling them to put their own spin on them, yet creating similar inflections and tempos of their predecessors.
The album opens with an excellent cover of the Joy Division-classic “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” sung by mono-named Eloisa doing a breezy, relaxing-by-the-Seine rendition. On “Just Can’t Get Enough,” gone are the ‘80s synths replaced with clanking drums and sound effects, but the contagious “doo doo doos” are still intact. Tuxedomoon’s “In a Manner of Speaking” becomes even more forlorn, and Public Image LTD’s funky “This is Not a Love Song” evolves into a sultry jazz song. The real surprise is the cover of the Dead Kennedys’ “Too Drunk to Fuck.” Vocalist Camille takes this punk song and belts it out with coquettish giddiness, emulating drunkenness, laughing and cursing throughout. The only song that doesn’t quite work is the cover of Killing Joke’s “Psyche,” where the singer opts to sing in a sinister voice. The album ends with Marina Celeste altering the propulsive Josef K track, “Sorry for Laughing,” transforming it into a soulful song integrating an acoustic guitar and piano.
The idea to re-imagine ’80s music is ingenious and ambitious, and Nouvelle Vague demonstrate it can be masterfully done. Now on to Bubblegum covers.
Issue #35
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