Album Notes

Sounding as current as any of the recent output from France's Ed Banger, Kitsune or Institubes labels, and on influential blueprint for the evolution of the French electronic music genre at large, the majority of the performers featured on B.I.P.P.P. never made it beyond limited DIY pressings of 500 or 1000 copies of 7" vinyl singles....NO FUTURE!!!


"Early-80s postpunk begat not only marquee acts like Depeche Mode, but a "cold" wave of bands unknown outside their native France. This compilation presents a rare glimpse into a parallel universe that eschews English for français, and guitars for monochrome synth stabs and robotic vocals, offering cool, Kraftwerkian homages to the mechanics of movement (a la TGV's "Partie1") These idiosyncratic bands helped set the blueprint for current dance artists like Daft Punk, and it's fascinating to hear how this revolution all began"
-- Entertainment Weekly

“Obscurantists and beard-strokers, we’ve got the record for you: “Esoteric” would be a generous way to describe the compilation, which delves into the wacky subgenre of Synthwave, a blippy, beepy off-shoot of New Wave that emerged in France in the late ‘70s. Though not much here will ring many bells -- most of the songs were culled from obscure 7-inch singles by acts with the longevity of fruit flies -- the collection as a whole is a veritable treasure trove of post-nuclear pop: Ruth’s “Polaroid-Roman-Photo” is an infectuous “Je T’aime Moi Non Plus” for the technocratic age, Visible’s “Le Jour Se Leve” is a bleak, tinny, march-of-the-robots anthem; and Comix’s “Touch Pas Mon Sexe” is a masterpiece of Devo-esque nerd-rock.”
-- Interview Magazine

“There are those times when I feel like an anachronism; when I wish I’d been all growed up in another decade -- sometimes it’s the 1870s, other times it’s the 1960s, but most often it’s the late 70s and early 80s. Man, what a time to be alive! The world was full of wonder and people dressed like a party could break out at a moment’s notice. Like, one minute you’re sitting there in your blazer with giant Klaus Nomi shoulder pads just doing your taxes and before you know it 500 of your closest pals from Studio 54 show up and you just have got to get down. Robots are everywhere playing funky synthesizers. Rick James and Ian Curtis are Indian-wrestling over by the kitchen. Gary Numan and Grace Jones are on the waterbed getting weird. Stuff like that just doesn’t happen these days. But you know what? One day a CD marked “B.I.P.P.P.” shows up and your house and you put it on and you just know. You know what people did so many drugs back then. Then you realize why they dressed like that. Or else you might just be inspired to buy a Moog off eBay and get down with some conceptual art. Either way, really.”
-- Skateboarding

“I’ll be honest, before I heard this comp I didn’t really know what French synth wave was, but apparently it’s music from over ten years ago that somehow influenced anything that anyone has ever liked in the last couple years. The Comix’s “Touche Pas Mon Sexe” is full on space disco in a Risky Business white shirt and sunglasses combo, while Mary Moor’s “Pretty Day” is CSS without the jubilance and guitars--ice cold keys and monotone chants too cool for everyone. Every song on here sounds like running a marathon on 1981.”
-- FADER