Arrogant Frenchman’s summer playlist for Europe
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Maria BlazogiannakiFrench history speaks for itself, but it is not said enough is how much the French adapt, transform and take over space and time. The proof lies in the music, be it from bands such as Passion Pit or MSMR
France is loved for its eighteenth century, but adored for 2012. The French are one step ahead everyone else. Whether its about Darwin, genetics or the bible, it’s an inexplicable, indescribable fact. In order to understand what it feels to be French, you have to be French. There you go, I just shocked. I’m sure I already have three people who fainted, 50 unfollows on twitter and maybe the soon-to-come scud of one of our founders who promotes interculturalism.
All the same, facts are facts, especially in the summer. The French are better dressed - all you have to do is go to Benidorm to see Germans, English and Spanish in their flip-flops. French is spoken or brought up everywhere on the beach – from french kiss to ‘Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?’ to ‘Oh shit, I’m in a cul-de-sac’; such expressions damage the Italian stallion’s own score. The Frenchman is hot. Sometimes, we are misunderstood, like I feel I am here after two (too) long paragraphs. We sometimes smell like ‘cigarette and entitlement’, as a jealous American writer tweeted during the 2012 oscars ceremony, which saw best actor going to Jean Dujardin. But arrogance is just a shade of pride, my lil’ lady. After all – cigarette or not – we can always nit-pick; the Frenchman remains The Artist. And a good artist that respects himself, he plays, terribly well at that.
All of this just to say that I couldn’t see anyone better here than a Frenchman to perfect your musical education and bring you the playlist of the summer. This is a playlist that will be plunged into history, that will stink of cigarette, arrogance and hipster-mania, because the Frenchman is the new hipster. Remember, ‘he adapts, transforms, takes over’, and so he’ll share with you artists that nobody knows yet, cool-because-underground songs and clips DIY-because-otherwise-it’s-mainstream.
The ordeal is over, time for some space for the music. It was maybe hard, but I know that deep down you think ‘this guy writes so well’. The final word of the story is that after this, you will feel a bit more French, so a bit calmer on the beach. And this, without even listening to a word in French, since no one from the following songs is with French lyrics. Now this is SWAG!
5. Passion Pit: I’ll be allright (from second forthcoming album Gossamer)
4. We Were Evergreen: Vintage Car (from the EP Flings)
3. B. Fleischmann: Broken Monitors (from the album The Humbucking Coil)
2. Concorde: Candy Boy (from the album Summer House)
1. MSMR: Hurricane
Images: main (cc) alexkrafcik; hipster (cc) patrickwilken/ videos ‘Passion Pit’ (cc) passionpitVEVO; ‘We Were Evergreen’ (cc) WeWereEvergreen; ‘B. Fleischmann’ (cc) ThePommarola; ‘Concorde’ (cc) Concorde; MS MR (cc) Pietonpassage/ all via youtube
Translated from La meilleure playlist d’Europe par un Français