As Blisspop regulars have probably noticed, I can’t get away from the French House and Disco trio Les Loups from Germany. I first posted about them in late 2010 and have been closely following the group since. Listening to work as its been released throughout the past year and a half, I’ve developed a more mature appreciation for these genres and can thank Les Loups for educating my ears along the way. From their first few unmastered productions in 2010 to some EP and single releases in 2011, they’ve consistently been a fuel to my youthful love for this style of music. After much anticipation, informal releases/teasers, and date delays, the long-awaited official release of Les Loups’ debut LP Club CÅ“ur has finally been set for April 6 on So Sound Recordings.
[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/les-loups/club-coeur-theme-intro[/soundcloud]
Les Loups – Club CÅ“ur Theme: Intro
“Being influenced by Jazz, Indie Rock, House and Hip Hop, the Les Loups trio got together and started to produce French House based on disco samples from the late 70s and early 80s, creating their own trademark fresh sound.” The album features 10 hefty tracks, roughly half of which have been shared online previously, including the addictive gem “Perfect Situation.†The other half of which are brand new and ready to become staple tracks to keep you stuck to the dance floor. However, as it’s likely you’ve listened to their work before, almost every track unofficially released previously has noticeably been revisited and mastered with a French touch led by Michael Woodruff.
A personal favorite of mine, “Good Friends,†was streamed as a teaser on the web for a while until it was taken down early last year without any note on whether it would return. Fortunately, the track was pulled back onto the production table only to be mastered and pieced into the LP at a much smoother quality than before. The soft synths heard in “Amicus“ have been brought into the album by “The Break-up†as it keeps the synths within its funky guitar and bass rhythms. As with the rest of the LP, the music comes at an amazingly soothing quality with the help of deep bass streams behind cozy percussion and vocals, varying from soulful in “Elephant & Ivory†to the soprano-style energetic voice heard in “Must Be Love,†all perched on platforms of their heart-racing disco rhythms.
[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/so-sound-recordings/les-loups-the-break-up[/soundcloud]
Les Loups – The Break-Up
“We wanted to create positive and powerful Dance music to bring something new to our hometown…we wanted to start a disco revolution in a club scene where everybody plays either Electro Rave or Minimal House…we wanted to bring bongos, love themes and funky baselines back. And now is worldwide,†says Les Loups’ Philipp Landmann.
Initially set for release in early 2011, this debut is one they’ve certainly taken careful time to complete over the past couple years to make sure its final release has every second recognized. Followers of their SoundCloud as of March 11th are currently getting an exclusive stream of the entire album and, therefore, we can only provide a few of the newly mastered versions of the tracks to the public. If you have been a follower, click here for exclusive access. If not, hope is not lost. It’s already been made available to preview and buy on iTunes.
[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/so-sound-recordings/les-loups-elephant-ivory[/soundcloud]
Les Loups – Elephant & Ivory
For comparison purposes, We’ve uploaded the unmastered version of “Good Friends” for which I recommend you take a listen and compare to the mastered version of the track either on iTunes or Beatport. As you can hear, the bass lines hit with much more prominence and its groove doesn’t flow as smooth as does their newly mastered version. The same difference is seen within other tracks on the album in regards to contrast between instruments and the rhythmic flow throughout the songs – the bongos definitely helped in this case. As an end note, while having the album on repeat during the entire time writing this, I can say Club CÅ“ur will not disappoint, and as it translates “Heart Club,” it’ll certainly make you fall in a deeper love with French House and Disco just as it’s done to me.
Preview and purchase Les Loups’ Club CÅ“ur on iTunes.