Ta Douleur :: Camille

As anyone who knows me is aware, I am a self-confessed Francophile. Big time. The culture, the food, the style, the architecture, the film, the music, the language.... J'adore la France et tout les choses francaises. My current French love affair is with Camille Dalmais, the Parisian singer and songwriter.

Why, you ask?

This is why, mon ami:


She's amazing!

Here's another, "Gospel with no Lord" from her new album "Music Hole", just released in April:


I was listening to NPR a few weeks ago, and heard an interview with her and snippets of some of her songs. The first snippet I heard was "Ta Douleur", the first video from the post. I was enamored immediately by her fearless approach to making crazy sounds with her voice and her body, and the spirit and feel of the music. I loved that she extended beyond the conventional idea of what a voice could do - kind of like a female, French pop version of Bobby McFarrin. She had a great sense of humor, and I think her music reflects that.

If you want to know more about her, here's a few places to look:
Her website: http://www.camille-lefil.com/
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/camilleofficial
A nice article about her

Happy day!

XOXO
Kim

Bonnie and Clyde :: Brigitte Bardot et Serge Gainsbourg

Okay, I'll be a dork and admit that the first time I heard this song was when I saw Rush Hour 3 at the drive-in last summer. It came during a quasi-burlesque scene, and I was utterly mesmerized. I did some googling and found out it was a duet between Brigitte Bardot and a goofy French folk singer named Serge Gainsbourg. They did several numbers together for a French TV special sometime in the late 60s. I love this song primarily for Bardot- her dull droning makes my scalp tingle. It's magic.

Sentimental :: Onili

<---------Meet Onili. Onili is an up and coming pop star from Tel Aviv. I think she is fantastic, I found out about her a few weeks ago and am crazy about her. Her music is sexy and fun, a rock-pop-electro combo that totally gets me. Games, her new EP, was just released, and I can't wait to get my hands on it. In the world of cyberspace, there's not a whole lot out about her yet, but I expect there will be.

I think this song, "Sentimental" is white hot. I like to listen to it obsessively at work when I am feeling trapped in my office. When I do, I pretend that I am in Tel Aviv at a tiny, dimly lit club seeing her live, dancing with a bunch of other sweaty young people and drinking Israeli beer.

She opened for Lily Allen last year for part of her tour, but mostly Onili plays in Israel. Apparently, though, she just added a couple tour dates in the U.S. to her schedule, including a date on Valentine's Day in Chicago. So, check out her website and her myspace, listen to the song, and wait for Onili to blow up. Seriously.

CHECK IT:
http://www.onili.com/
http://www.myspace.com/onili

LISTEN: