Feu Therese
Ca Va Cogner
Constellation
Ca Va Cogner sees the band that used to be Fly Pan Am complete their transformation from noisy art-rock to chilly French disco. Their self-titled debut last year casually hinted at a more populist future for the group, but there’s still something shocking when a band can come in from so far out in left field and put together a collection of songs so directly indebted to pop music. The opening two-shot of “A nous amours” and “Visage sous nylon” are awash in analogue synths, tasteful funk guitar licks and an almost militaristic sense of timing in the arrangement and vocal punctuation. It’s a very calculated, clean presentation and it works wonderfully. On “Le bruit du pollen la nuit,” the slow pulsing ebb and flow of guitar distortion, drum machine, and keys build up in strength, only to give out completely when singer Stephen de Oliveira speaks his French verses in a deep monotone. It’s the epitome of Euro-cool, despite the band hailing from Quebec.
The band’s old affection for instrumental textures manifests on “Le deserts de azurs” and the title track. A heavy dose of reverb and delay on the guitars and a very spare rhythm accompaniment open up the songs like the cloudless sky on an endless plain. When a chorus of children start singing a refrain on the latter’s mid-section, it only lofts the sentiments of joy and wonder higher and keeps the song from touching down.
Much like The Chromatics’ re-invention from noise-punk mongers into nu-disco elite, Feu Therese are poised to share co-dominance of the dance genre if this disc is any indication of what’s to come.
Constellation Records: http://www.cstrecords.com
