Monday, January 04, 2010
Care About Air
Song of the Week is, conceptually, meant to be a musical fresh breath of air. This week, that air takes the form of Air, the French electronic duo enamored of spacy, sweet melodies and the tinkle and plunk of 70s synthesizers, here with the ethereal ‘Sing Sang Sung’… Think Moog and Wurlitzer… This twosome didn’t expect to become musicians – Nicolas Godin studied architecture and Jean-Benoit Bunckel was a mathematician – but they heeded the siren call of music in the mid-1990s and leapt forth with 1998’s classic chillout album ‘Moon Safari,’ notably the songs ‘Sexy Boy’ and ‘Kelly Watch The Stars..’Air is back this year with an extremely strong fifth album, ‘Love 2,’ that’s become my own personal chillout soundtrack of the moment. ‘Sing Sang Sung,’ its leadoff single, is both soothing and a tonic, a ‘just cheer up’ card from Saturn: ‘sing sang sung sing me a song / do did done don’t be so down’… Here's one copy of the video that hasn't yet been made 'embedding-proof' by their record label...
There’s definitely a unique ‘Air sound’ that permeates all five albums and numerous side projects, sometimes remarkable, but nearly always pleasant.. Still, unpredictability and whimsy have marked the critically acclaimed pair’s career path – they followed up their megahit debut by scoring Sofia Coppola’s ‘The Virgin Suicide…’ (and later contributing to her ‘Lost in Translation’ and ‘Marie Antoinette).. Their second album proper, ’10,000 Hz Legend,’ was as dour as Radiohead, while its remix album giggled at REM with the title ‘Everybody Hertz’. Here are some other memorable Air videos.. Enjoy the breathable air….
From 2005, 'Surfing On A Rocket'...
Live on Jools Holland, their signature song, 1998's 'Kelly Watch The Stars'...
From 2007, 'Run'...
Also from 2007, 'Venus'
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