The Trip [Drag City,2010]
The first solo album by Laetitia Sadier, former vocalist for the underground pop group Stereolab. A simple, repeated four-note motif provides the rhythmic backbone for much of the song as Laetitia’s familiarly husky tones glide smoothly atop. A woozy veil of keyboards and flourishes of electronic effects provide a contrastingly dreamy feel that culminates in a stripped and slowed down finale. The Trip features ten new tracks by Sadier, plus two covers: "Un Soir, Un Chien" by French pop group Les Rita Mitsouko and "By the Sea" by '70s American vocal duo Wendy and Bonnie.
Fabienne Delsol
On My Mind [Damaged Goods,2010]
Originally from Limoges in France, Fabienne was formerly the lead singer of legendary London garage band The Bristols and has been living and working in London. “On My Mind” features Fabienne’s customary mixture of both English and French lyrics sung with plenty of coquettish charm. With songs and production so authentically 60′s they could have been taken from tapes gathering dust in Serge Gainsbourg’s garage for the last 40 years.
The album marks something of a departure from the jaunty beat-pop and ye-ye of her previous albums however, there’s a definite autumnal feel to several of the tracks, putting you in mind of what the much mooted Francoise Hardy/Nick Drake collaboration might have yielded. Lyrically the bulk of the album deals with the melancholic side of love and has a slightly trippy and introspective edge. Most notably on “Strange Shadows” and the title track “On my Mind” with its phased drums and “Strawberry Fields” style moog motifs. You’re unlikely to hear a better record this autumn!
