Nouvelle Vague & Berry
Prince Bandroom
June 24, 2010
With So Frenchy, So Chic at the helm we knew we were in for something special this particular Thursday evening at Prince Bandroom.
For three hours we were wisped away to Paris, funnelling our way through the indie Marais area with relative newcomer Berry, before strutting through the Moulin Rouge-inspired Pigalle district alongside renowned troubadours of 80s reinvention, Nouvelle Vague.
The enigmatic Berry was first to the stage, oozing understated Parisian chic, dressed head-to-toe in black. Making waves in Europe with her debut album Mademoiselle, the petite chanteuse brought nothing more to Melbourne than herself, two colorful guitarists and her soft, breathy voice. And yet, that was all that was needed. Subtle beauty permeated through the stories she told.
Smiling and swaying, eyes closed, she began with the ‘Demain’. But it was the melancholy ‘Le Bonheur’, which she introduced in broken English as a song about those who have died, that first evoked emotion from the crowd. Shifting pace slightly, she launched into her more upbeat French-pop song, ‘Cheri’. The crowd were tapping their feet and developing a crush on Berry, and by the time she treated us to the title track from Mademoiselle, our ‘Love Affair’ with her (and that very song – the only with English lyrics) was well and truly cemented. With her constant smile and enchanting voice, it’s fair to say that there was a definite je ne sais quoi about this so frenchy, so chic femme that stood before us.
It was time to change gears as Nouvelle Vague took to the stage with their trademark cow bells and tambourines, and plenty of wolf whistles from the crowd. The quirky cover band demanded our full attention the minute they walked on stage, and despite the Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux being the masterminds behind the band, the femme fatale lead singers headed the charge. French maid inspired dresses, fishnet stockings, and Chanel cat ears in tow, Phoebe Killdeer and Mareva Galanter lead us into a country rendition of Depeche Mode’s ‘Master and Servant’ — complete with sultry dance moves — a vibrant version of Plastic Bertrand’s ‘Ca Plane Pour Moi’ and then slowed the tempo with XTC’s ‘Making Plans for Nigel’.
Knowing some of the originals is part of the fun, but it isn’t essential for you to be able to appreciate Nouvelle Vague. The kooky performance — including roaming the stage and the floor while attacking kazoos — was eaten up by the crowd, which peaked when ‘Too Drunk Too Fuck’ was delivered. During a call and response, they shouted the word ‘fuck’ so loud it was surely heard in Paris. We were well and truly seduced.
Nearing the end, the crowd was treated to another Depeche Mode classic ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’, which was so heavy on samba and percussion solos that the vibrations sent the crowd into a frenzy, leaving that wonderful buzz you feel through to your core. They followed up with a jazzy version of the Violent Femme’s ‘Blister in the Sun’, then closed the memorable evening with Joy Divisions’ ‘Love Will Tear Us’ — Galanter drew the crowd in with her lullaby-like manner, overriding the heartbreaking emotion of the song.
That quick trip to the City of Lights ended as we walked back onto Fitzroy Street, where we were reminded that we had been entertained by the crème de la crème of new wave French music in our very own city.
