MEG salad sandwich

>> Third time's a charm for the Montreal Electronic Groove fest

by SCOTT C

The fact that <>, the guitaristic house band from Montpellier, France, are slated to help kick off the third edition of the Montreal Electronic Groove is a reminder of how the fest has evolved since '99. At that point, the idea was just taking shape, playing host to visitors from France like Ekova, Kid Loco and <> as well as locals like Maüs and Ram. The intention of organizer Mustapha Terki, a French ex-pat who'd invested the previous decade in serving as the Quebec liaison for the Printemps de Bourges festival, was to triangulate the MEG lineup through Montreal, Paris and Lyon (this year expanded to Ottawa and T.O. as well), spreading the word about cool club-music acts from primarily but not exclusively francophone regions.

It'll be wicked to see <> once again--not only are they a fantastic live act, one of the best in dance music, they've also got some of the most totally boss video montages to accompany their tunes. They've got a new album lined up, and will be previewing it for us this week.

"The new album is called Music Kills Me," explain the husband-and-wife psychologist team Jean-Philippe and Patou of <>, "and it comes out in January or February of next year. As the title indicates, the principal theme is death. At the same time, it's an extremely positive and energetic record. The treatment of the theme of death is on an aesthetic level, not a philosophical one--in the same manner as with pop art figures like Andy Warhol and his Catastrophes series."

Spreading the gospel

The band's sound, that of alt-rock guitar assault nestled into fluid live house grooves, has been tastefully expanded on Music Kills Me. Vocals now feature in the mix, as do substantial disco elements. "There are vocals on two or three pieces. Two were sung by a gospel singer from Montpellier, whose voice falls into the tradition of the great soul singers. For another tune, we used a sample of the fiery voice of Steve Marriott, formerly of the band Small Faces."

As always, we can count on those awesome visuals--including a bunch of overdue new ones. "For our show at the MEG, we'll be playing four new tracks taken from the album--'Le Rock Summer,' 'Professor Suicide,' 'It's Time to Go Now!' and the title track. Each one will have its own new video montage. As for the rest of the set, we decided to hold on to the tunes and accompanying videos that we like the best, like 'Le mobilier' and 'Guitaristic House Organisation.'"

But what about that one with the rapid-fire history-of-alt-rock album covers on parade? The one that had vinyl junkies going, "Got it, got it, need it, lent it out, got it?" Ooooh, bad news. "Sorry," say J-P and Patou, "but 'Rock Classic' and the montage of album covers won't be part of the set. Next time!"

Oh, well. Anyway, <> have been developing a presence here at the same rate as the MEG itself. Signed to the V2 label, they made a foothold in Montreal with their MEG set, the key to a foothold in North America (if you doubt me, just ask Supertramp or Chris de Burgh!). Since then, they've toured the continent as part of Moby's summer festival Area: One. "That tour was a great experience for us because it allowed us to be discovered by a crowd that had never heard of us. Also, we got to meet some amazing artists, like Carl Cox, New Order and the Orb. The only problem was that we were always showing up late, because our tour bus was routinely breaking down and our driver was just hopelessly swamped by things. We would have liked to stop by Montreal, too."

New world genetics

If the MEG helped break <>, it might well do the same this year for Telepopmusik--a French trio comprised of French pop act Autour de Lucie's Fabrice Dumont, sound engineer Stephan Haeri and Christophe Hétier, better known as DJ Antipop, who has an odd penchant for found sounds of the spoken-word variety.

Between the three of them, they cover most of the ground available in pop music--pop-rock melodics, ambient soundscaping and funky if off-kilter club noise. Moreover, they cross over onto each other's turf as often as not. "The roles in Telepopmusik are schematically as you describe them," explains Hétier, "but the strength of the group lies in our capacity to disrupt the familiar certainties of each member, to reach a music that's inseparable from our three personalities."

That strength comes through loud and clear on their debut joint Genetic World, also slated for a late-winter release over here. The trio is supplemented by visits from numerous eclectic guests. Angely McCluskey of the Wild Colonials lends her sweet pipes to a quartet of tracks, while chanteuse Soda-Pop, known for her work with English big-beaters Dirty Beatniks and odd-rockers Earthling pops in on three.

Then there's Canada's own connection in Berlin, Peaches and Chilly Gonzales. Their collaboration with Telepopmusik, on the snappy, silly "Let's Go Again," was a totally off-the-cuff affair where corner barstools stood in for anything resembling an actual studio.

"I DJed after one of their concerts and they loved it. As a result, I suggested that we do a sort of ping-pong thing. They improvised for 20 minutes on a mini-disc and we built the track around that. You know, their label Kitty-Yo is sort of the little German brother of Catalogue, our label. I also love their sense of entertainment."

Finally, there's U.K. rappah Juice Aleem, who's worked with Dynamic Syncopation, among others. But hold on--good as he is, why an English MC when France has been churning out capable rappers the last few years?

"Our influences are essentially English and American. It seemed natural for us to seek out collaborators from outside our immediate surroundings. English hip hop loves mix-ups and fusions--and so do we!"

The strangest co-conspirator probably doesn't know he's on there--it's a strange-sounding character going on about Albert Einstein's bisected brain (one of Antipop's sneaky snippets). What's up with that? "It's from a documentary about a Japanese professor who criss-crosses the United States, looking for the brain of Einstein. He finally finds it in the end and jumps for joy--a bit like us when we finished the album!"

Telepopmusik join Trevor Walker, Llorca, Cyril K. and Christian Pronovost at Sonic Club on Wednesday, Oct. 24, 8:30pm, $15, and Mateo Murphy, Rollercone and <> at Club Soda on Thursday, Oct. 25, 8pm, $25