Various Artists "Nouvelle Génération Francaise II" 1995(comp)-disc1**

Random selection generated headache for me today. In particular a double cd with 34 artists and very little information available. Internet search yields absolutely no evidence of its existence. It is nevertheless as real as you and me (well, me at least. I don't know about you). It seems to be a co-production of the Ministries of Culture and Foreign Affairs with the intention of promoting modern French music and culture abroad. Given that I am the proud owner of the only known (to me, that is) copy worldwide, it's safe to say it hasn't met with the success those bureaucrats envisioned. Tonight I will present the 1st cd, sub-titled "Chanson, variete, rock". It starts off with a dramatic cabaret number from Patricia Kaas and continues with 3 more female artists: velvet-voiced ("voix veloutee" according to the liner notes) Liane Foley, Nilda Fernández with a slightly countryish song featuring celtic pipes and Axelle Renoir with the kind of ballad you'd hear at "Grey's Anatomy"- maybe you do hear it in Grey's Anatomy in France, after all they dub everything in French. "Alain Bashung's "Ma Petite Entreprise" is the first song I like, somewhere between Serge Gainsbourg's pseudo-reggae and Chris Rea. Charlélie Couture is (liner notes, again) evidently a man of many talents including design and songwriting. Pow Pow seem to want to be the French Beautiful South but they still have a long way to go. From there on, things begin to warm up: Enzo Enzo play jazzy and breezy pop and Les Têtes Raides offer their very Parisian melange of cabaret, jazz and indie rock. Le Clam's play fast gypsy chanson-punk in the style of Mano Negra. Kent offer a C&W number with fiddle and Fredericks Goldman Jones another forgettable pop song. The name Patrick Bruel rings a bell but the song sounds like 80's Phil Collins at his worst. Jean-Louis Aubert (leader of 80's new-wave Telephone) seems also to be stuck in that decade. Stephan Eicher is apparently a Swiss gypsy, a curious combination for me to visualise. Some folkloric elements save an otherwise boring song. Daran Et Les Chaises present a typical indie ballad (think Travis, Starsailor, Coldplay etc). Noir Désir are, at last, authentic rockers, playing intense and powerful post-punk. Arno is famous but this is the first time I heard his music."Je Ne Veux Pas Etre Grand" echoes Tom Waits' "I Don't Want to Grow Up". He's very theatrical and reminds me somewhat of Jacques Brel and Leonard Cohen but his voice is more ragged. Overall, I wasn't really impressed by what I heard. Only 2-3 really good songs and maybe another 4-5 passably good. Not a great case for French music, monsieur le Ministre...

**** for Les Papiers(Les Têtes Raides), Tostaky (Noir Désir)

*** for Fatiguée D'attendre (Patricia Kaas), Ma Petite Entreprise (Alain Bashung), Jacobi Marchait (Charlélie Couture),Juste Quelqu'un De Bien (Enzo Enzo), J'attends Mon Tour (Les Clam's), Dormir Dehors (Daran Et Les Chaises),  Je Ne Veux Pas Etre Grand (Arno)

** forDoucement (Liane Foly), On T'a Appris (Nilda Fernández), Lulu (Axelle Renoir), Le Poisson Dans La Vitrine (Pow Wow) Allons-Z'à La Campagne (Kent) Juste Après (Fredericks Goldman Jones) Combien De Murs? (Patrick Bruel) Entends-Moi (Jean-Louis Aubert) Rivière (Stephan Eicher)