“So Lee” (boomed the headmaster), “You have made Mrs Clark, your French, teacher cry again” 

Me: Sorry Sir, It will not happen again.

Headmaster: …and she is pregnant.

Me: Well you can’t blame that on me…I don’t even like her.

Six of the best (from deputy headmaster, delivered a 40 yard run up) and no more French classes for me. Thus my french illiteracy. However, some music transcends the need for je ne se pas (ing) and this superb Allumettes au bout des îles EP by Cœur-joie is one of the most precise and exemplary reasons why.

Initially, the best of the release is heard in Léovénement, Holunder and Les ailes du désir. Here metronimic beats act as a foundation upon which layers of fractious Wire style, faux jangled riffs and the sort of anti-melodies that perfectly house a strange mix of The Velvet Underground and Blanco Tranco, cool meets disinterested vocals. They are tracks you find something else in during every subsequent listen and provide the perfect alt.jangle.

The sound becomes a bit more developed and slightly more traditional in Dimi l’étoile and the title track as Madbil style, twee vocals, are surrounded by a dense, rumbling jangle meets post-punk mix of The Chameleons or The Wake sound, that will undoubtedly make them playlist fodder, such is their brilliant immediacy.

Beyond the above, the modernity of the current jangle-gaze scene, is floated through all manner of 80/90s indie-pop flutterances (my word…I have copyrighted it, be warned!) in L’éclate and Festina Lente, to show that this act can just as easily ascribe to traditional beauty as they can to obtuse jangle.

A truly great debut,from a band that certainly have the absolute potential to stand at the shoulder of the recent alt. jangle greats. Out today (18.02.22), grab a CD or Cassette here.

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