In her latest post, Kasey prepared a delicious meal that she envisioned as a bistro style dinner. She has split her meal into two parts, and so this is likewise part one of a two part playlist for your bistro-themed meal. For the meal, Kasey served sole roulades with a side of crispy potatoes. And the perfect background music for our fictional bistro? Nouvelle Vague’s 2004 self-titled release, of course. Nouvelle Vague is a French musical collective led by Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux. Their name translates literally to “new wave” in French which is an intentional reference to: 1) French “new wave” cinema (with the album art paying homage to said cinema), 2) the new wave musical movement from which they select the majority of the songs they’ve recorded (all of which are covers), and 3) the style in which they perform these cover songs: bossa nova (which is Portuguese for “new wave”). Although this sounds like it could be unbearably artsy and pretentious, rest assured – it is playfully smooth and seductive. A guaranteed hit to complete the atmosphere for your casual but hip bistro (or dinner party).
There are a lot of reasons that Nouvelle Vague were able to pull off this collection of covers so well. First, their selection of songs to cover was flawless: Joy Divison’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” The Clash’s “Guns of Brixton,” The Cure’s “Forest”, and the Undertones “Teenage Kicks” – to name a few. Secondly, they manage to keep the performances flirty, witty, and stylish. Even their appropriately loose, slouchy take on The Dead Kennedy’s “Too Drunk to F***” is performed with a sorta sloppy sexiness.
Click here to download a few tracks from the album:
Nouvelle Vague – Love Will Tear Us Apart (Joy Division Cover)
Nouvelle Vague – Guns of Brixton (The Clash Cover)
Nouvelle Vague – Making Plans for Nigel (XTC Cover)
Head back to eating/sf to read Kasey’s recipe for sole roulades and crispy pan fried potatoes.
