cafebabel.com

French indie band Stuck in the Sound: 'Filling stadiums would make me impossibly nervous'

('Naomi R',) — Fri, 18 May 2012 15:58:15 -0000

Released on the independent French record label Discograph, the Parisian four-piece is making its mark with their new album 'Pursuit'. After ten years together in 2012, they’re dreaming of an international fame such as that of Phoenix or M83 - but not Coldplay

The Experimental Tropic Blues Band: 'We started in the playground and haven't stopped since'

('Hayley',) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:56:46 -0000

With the support of the independent music collective 'JauneOrange', the TETBB trio has been an explosive part of the Walloon rock scene for over a decade. Between a barge in Paris, recording in New York and a joint, the 'best Belgian rock band of all time' explain the then and now

Top three songs: Polish music legend Czesław Niemen

('Agata Jaskot',) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:15:00 -0000

His John Lennon-style glasses and long hair were mandatory for a beat generation artist. An uneven beard completed the rock and soul musician’s look on the streets of Poland. 17 January 2012 marks the eighth anniversary of the death of the much-loved singer-songwriter, 64

Rock band Turbo: ‘absence of taste’ an ‘incurable disease’ in Hungary

('Ili Pusk\xc3\xa1s',) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 18:12:31 -0000

When it comes to psychedelic-progressive rock music, Turbo is Hungary’s number one. Bass guitarist Jero and singer Balázs Tanka on genres, role models and taking different viewpoints on music tastes and truths in general

REM ‘call it a day as a band’ after 31 years and 15 albums: editors pick

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 12:07:47 -0000

The American rock group are as old as the most sprightliest of us here at cafebabel.com HQ in Paris. They formed in Athens (Georgia!) in 1980 and announced their split on 22 September. Here’s a video ode to some of our favourite songs for today’s soundtrack

French-American folk musician Redeye: 'I was a bit unsure about country music'

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 12:47:53 -0000

Guillaume Fresneau is relatively unknown except for his outing as part of French band Dahlia. Moving on from the rock direction, he exclaims why it's good to be independent, travel and find yourself. His five-track EP 'Be The One' was released in February 2011

French duo John & Jehn: 'in England, no-one cares about boundaries'

('emily',) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 20:00:00 -0000

On 29 March a duo like none of the other new faces on the French music scene released their second album, 'Time For The Devil’. Fans of Joy Division and The Velvet Underground, the couple live and compose in London, which might be why their album exudes the feel of the British new wave

Swiss singer Sophie Hunger: former jazz 'fascist'

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 11:30:00 -0000

It's promo promo promo in Paris for the folk singer-songwriter, who's finishing up a tour of Europe via Glastonbury to shows in the Czech Republic and Austria. The mellow 27-year-old from Zurich is on the French festival circuit to continue the escape from the 'sad' studio

Ghinzu: bad boys of Belgian rock

('Hayley',) — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 11:00:00 -0000

'The more it cuts, the sharper it gets. Ghinzu ? Already counting three 'rock-noise' albums to their name, completely carried away when live and relaxed in interviews, the slogan for the knife is as far as possible from describing how these five partners-in-crime attack the European stage. Interview with John Stargasm and Jean Montevideo, sharper than ever

Porn, drugs and Domenech: a Eurovision of World Cup songs

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 18:29:04 -0000

As the World Cup moves into the next phase – sixteen of the best battle it out for the second round from 26 June – we follow the 2010-featuring European teams in song. Spain, Holland and Germany are EU favourites as runners-up on 11 July, with Brazil or Argentina to win, according to betting agencies

Stalin, rock music and bad weather: story behind suicides in Lithuania

('Kate Stansfield',) — Mon, 17 May 2010 16:58:28 -0000

The River Neris splits Vilnius down the middle: to the North lies the university, the stadium and terraces with views; to the south is the heart of the capital: cobbled, colourful, and impeccable. But a sinister notice hangs from one of its bridges, followed by a telephone number

Music: (subversive) songs for the European city

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 10:35:08 -0000

Madrid's famous Gran Via boulevard celebrated its 100th anniversary on 7 April, with a local survey seeing 'Gran Via' by crooner Antonio Flores top a list of songs dedicated to the city. From monkeys in Berlin to Red Bull and Swedes in Barcelona via Stalin in Warsaw, a selection of offbeat videos suggested by the cafebabel network

Belgian band Absynthe Minded: 'we’re not playboys'

('Alison Frank',) — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 10:45:00 -0000

Since 2002, the acclaimed jazz rockers from Ghent have flirted with an indescribable style. As the Belgian five's tour stops in Paris to celebrate their fourth disc in eight years, we meet to talk about their passion for quality music, platinum albums and the women in their lives

French band ‘Zakarya’ play Klezmer in Saint Petersburg

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:00:00 -0000

Think you need a clarinet and melancholy yiddish tunes to play Jewish folk music? Then you’ve yet to hear the French quartet. As their Russian concert winds down, accordionist Yves Weyh discusses the audience's strength of imagination, ‘imaginary’ film scores and avant-garde Klezmer

Trade of Nazi propaganda is booming in Poland

('Steven Lydon',) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Punishable in Germany, legal in Poland: SS badges, swastikas, t-shirts illustrated with extreme-right symbolism and far-right music are sold in border markets on the Oder and Neisse. Poland is the biggest producer of nazi propaganda in Europe. Although the marketing of political goals is forbidden, trade with Nazi devotees is not

Music duo Kim Ki O: ‘the danger of being Turkish’ for Europe

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 08:45:00 -0000

The Swedish pop elite love them, but EU bureaucracy is preventing Ekin Sanac and Berna Göl from breaking Europe. In Istanbul, music is an unstable bridge between east and west. Part two of a special feature

In London? Hang out at Pure Groove or Cafe 1001

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 17:00:00 -0000

The one thing that has always characterised the idea of the Big Smoke aside from its climate is its lively music scene. Since the sixties, London has dictated the guidelines of European and sometimes global musical trends, acting as a forge and launch pad for small or slightly more established rock bands. I discover the Chew Lips in between Farringdon and Brick Lane

The Russian music rundown

('Lydia Bigos',) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 10:43:37 -0000

As the Eurovision song contest 2009 final takes place in Russia on 16 May, we check out the pop, hip hop and even central Asian choirs marking its music scene today. Music videos

Music: Morcheeba, Brisa Roché and Moi Caprice

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:00:00 -0000

San Francisco feelings, Danish bands with French names and a rap collective named after a freedom movement: Europe's best music crop this month