Thursday, November 19, 2009

G.P.S. - Quand Revient L'ete


Garage Psychiatrique Suburbain killed some, if not all, prejudices about French rock n' roll. For an early-eighties pop-savvy band, recall this was the era of Simple Minds, they rocked just fine. You can hear the guitars, the keyboards sound like a pub-rock holdover and the song is irresistibly catchy no matter what your mother tongue. It was ancienne and moderne all at once sorta like if the Go-Go's had been French (and guys). Of course, as befits the the French, there was touch of ironic distance, as if this was the musical equivalent of Euro Disneyland.


(What French lesbians and caged tigers have to do with this I can't say.)

This single from 1982, was a bit behind the times, with its surf-punk/new wave sound that fit somehwere between Plastic Bertrand's "Ca Plane Pour Moi" and The Barracudas "Summer Fun". So while the video is hilarious (sometime intentionally so) the band here, and on the more straight-up punk "Samedi Soir", acquit themselves of all charges of being cheese-eating surrender monkeys.


Quand Revient L'ete 7"

Here's a MySpace page but I believe their sole CD is out-of-print.

4 comments:

  1. Holy Katrina & The Waves Batman! O.K., it's simultaneously more punk and twee (is that possible?)than "Walking On Sunshine". All I'm saying is if the vintage 1985 boot fits you're gonna have to wear it, G.P.S.

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  2. ...oops, I meant those 1982 boots...and bermuda shorts?!? I guess Anthrax had another French connection, aside from Trust.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trust_(band)

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  3. Well they're certainly no Bérurier Noir, but when it comes to returning to 80's francaphonés, how about pulling out that Mitsou "Bye Bye Mon Cowboy" single?

    C'mon, I know you have it. ;)

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  4. CPB
    Yeah K & W or the Bangles would all be fair points of comparison. It seems to succeeed as a kitschy-retro sixties pop band in the eighties you need to the ladies.
    I read that entire thing on Trust - my head fills to teeming with useless and pointless knowledge.

    Bio
    BN were more of a punk band and GPS more of a pop band but each of them deserved more success than Mitsou or even Jordy the French rapping baby and her single "Il Est Dur Etre Un Bebe).

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