Rue de Siam (1981) is the second and final album by French post-punk band Marquis de Sade, a group celebrated for their dark, sophisticated sound that blends post-punk, […]
France
One of the most sampled albums of all time, Soul Makossa is the stunning debut from the Lafayette Afro-Rock Band, a peculiar sort of invented band comprised of […]
Originally released in 1965 as Musique Classique Algérienne – Stikhbar, Istikhbars and Improvisations is a collection of solo piano music from Algerian legend Mustapha Skandrani. Istikhbars are traditional […]
Highly recommended for fans of Robert Ashley and Lovely Music Ltd., The Beat My Head Hit is a beautiful exploration of voice and text by a NY-based 4-piece […]
DJ Mag’s Ben Cardew writes that “Air’s debut album ‘Moon Safari’ was a gentle antidote to the wave of French Touch at the time. With an emphasis on […]
ssabæ is a “nebula of friends gathering in studios, meadows and tiny apartments all over France.” Le Roi Est L’Oiseau (The King and Mister Bird) follows up the […]
A French oddity from multi-instrumentalist / underground icon Luc Marianni, Six Synthetic Suites combines a modern classical composition approach with experimental and avant-garde electronic production. Each of the […]
“Le Groupe de Recherches Musicales (The Group of Musical Research) of the O.R.T.F. (Office of the French Radio-Television) is known in the world principally as the promoter of […]
Dub master Bill Laswell meets the pan-Andalusian-Arab guitar musician/singer Lili Boniche. The story goes that Boniche was nearly retired after a successful career performing throughout France in the […]
Released on Gilb’R’s long running and very excellent Versatile Records, Tropiq is a late ’90s classic. Nicolas Chaix aka I:Cube doesn’t often miss and these four tracks are […]
A tropical grail lovingly reissued on 12″ by BeauMonde Records, Ni Bel Jounin is the lone single by the Creole-speaking French reggae band Cap’tain Creole. Originally inspired by […]
French singer-songwriter Isabelle Mayereau’s debut album is a collection of funky chansons loaded with Fender Rhodes, hard-hitting “rare groove” style drums, and deep bass. While these are very […]
An all-time classic album from Jean-Marc Cerrone, Cerrone 3 (Supernature) was a departure from the happy, sexy, party sound that the artist explored on the European Disco pioneer’s […]
French pianist, guitarist, composer Henri Roger’s first album Images… is a beautiful collection of left-field electronics comparable to Heldon, Conrad Schnitzler, early Tangerine Dream, Mort Garson, Roedelius, and […]
Nino And Radiah is the 1974 cult classic album from Italian-born French singer-songwriter Nino Ferrer and American model, singer, actress Radiah Frye. The duo are a perfect musical […]
Waves of analog synthesizers, circular breathing + soprano saxophone, harmonium drones, indigenous Borneo war drums, Moroccan tuned keyboards, and other magical soundscapes meet natural rainforest sounds on Ariel […]
Much like their debut Electronique Guerilla, Heldon’s sophomore album is still very much inspired by Robert Fripp’s “Frippertronics.” However, along with the usual No Pussyfooting tape guitar loops […]
An early pioneer of “world music,” Henri Texier takes his double bass to uncharted territory on Varech, blending avant-garde jazz with Celtic, African, Indian, and Middle Eastern elements […]
French-catalan composer Pascal Comelade presents 18 minimal compositions featuring his signature “Bel Canto” sound, which is characterized by mixing cheap toy instruments (plastic guitars and accordions, toy pianos, […]
This is music for intrepid explorers of sound. Bruno de Chénerilles of Alesia Cosmos developed sci-fi soundscapes for the radio station France Culture before self-releasing Exclusivo! in 1983. […]
Established experimental film-maker David Hykes’ interest in traditional and sacred music, specifically western Mongolian khöömi performed in Tantric Tibetan Buddhism, would lead him to form The Harmonic Choir […]
French Composer and piano virtuoso Benoit Widemann began his obsession with harmony as a child and quickly found his place in the 70s prog rock scene in Paris. […]
Featured in the psychedelic section of Chee Shimizu’s Obscure Sound disc guide, Photo Musik is an underrated gem from French guitarist Christian Boulé. Boulé was a peripheral member […]
After helping to establish the new wave scene in Paris with her partner and ZE records founder Michel Esteban and creating France’s first real noise zine, Lizzy Mercier […]
We first heard this wonderful obscurity on the excellent Okonkole y Trompa music blog curated by record collectors Satoshi Yamamura and PAM. Comme Au Moulin is the self-released […]
Few records in our collection could instantly silence the room at In Sheep’s Clothing quite like Emmanuelle Parrenin’s Maison Rose. Recorded in 1977 with the golden era of folk […]
If spacey electronics are your thing, this is your record! Released in 1976, Patrick Vian’s Bruit et Temps Analogues, was way ahead of its time in terms of […]
Bip Redon, Dominique Lentin, his sister Isabelle Lentin (of Virgule IV), and a few other unknown musicians make up the mysterious L’Empire des Sons. Not much is known […]
A highly eclectic and pleasant mix of samba, flamenco, European folk, chanson and dreamy space pop that plays like the soundtrack to an obscure 70’s movie. Paradia is […]
A highly underrated gem, and one of my first five Discogs purchases when I first began collecting vinyl, mainly for the funky, hypnotic, head-turner “Marabayasa” – a fun […]
Nudge your Serge Gainsbourg record over a smidge to make room for another fabulous, eccentric Frenchman in your collection: Michel Polnareff. Polnareff’s is well worth a full listen, […]
