Vanessa & The O's
La Ballade d'O
© 2007 Rushmore Recordings (5050954129611)
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A fantastic album of european cool with breathy vocals from french sensation Vanessa Contenay-Quinones in english/french over music evoking Velvet Underground, Serge Gainsbourg or Stereolab, chiming guitars and soaring melodies create a gorgeous new sound
tracks
- 1 Bagatelle
- 2 Plus Rien
- 3 Charlie Charlie
- 4 J'Attends Lou
- 5 Til Next Tuesday
- 6 Brouhaha
- 7 NY Hotel
- 8 Stand
- 9 Cruels et Tendres
- 10 Gorgeous Death
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notes
VANESSA & THE O'S is Vanessa Contenay-Quinones {Espiritu], Andreas Mattson [Popsicle], Niclas Frisk [Atomic Swing] and James Iha [Smashing Pumpkins], four solo artists who got together in a Manhattan hotel one recent summer to try out a few ideas and see where it took them. By 2006 the resulting music was described by Rough Trade London as “ A fantastic album of european cool with breathy vocals in english and french over music that sounds like The Concretes, Stereolab or a more modern take on the Velvet Underground, you will instantly fall in love with this album as we have" and by influential Paris rock journal Les Inrockuptibles as "..an amazing album of ultrapop, between Bardot and The Velvets" .
Vanessa's Nico-esque voice drifts effortlessly between French and English over chiming guitars with dreamy soaring melodies. Her delicious leaning to 60's French pop classics is just one ingredient in this unique guitar pop debut; it has all the hallmarks of an instant classic. Having spent 2004/2005 writing and recording songs on a mac portable in hotel rooms and apartments in Paris, Stockholm, London and New York, the guys brought in Hives producer Pelle Gunnerfeldt on bass and mixdown, Bjorn Ytlling [Peter Bjorn & John] on keyboards and Per Nordmark on drums to finalise what would become debut album 'La Ballade d’O'. Major labels seemed a less than exciting option in the current climate and the band decided to make the album available through their own label Rushmore Recordings. By the summer of 2007 the album had been released in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Japan, France, Portugal, Thailand and worldwide digitally and is slated for a September '08 release in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Holland Belgium and Luxembourg..Vanessa & The O's beautiful debut 'La Ballade D'O' is here!
Footnotes;- Vanessa and Lou Reed released a version of Velvets classic Sunday Morning in 2004 and in 2006 she also appeared as guest vocalist on Scott Walker's album 'The Drift'.
**March 2007: The O's were invited to contribute a track to the Ennio Morricone tribute album 'We All Love Ennio Morricone' alongside Springsteen, Morricone and Metallica.
reviews
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un charmant disque qui réinvente les sixties
author: ben poppLa Ballade d'O a de la mémoire. Il est évocateur de Brigitte Bardot, évidemment si on pense au chant nonchalant de Vanessa, du Velvet (notamment sur Plus rien), de Marquee moon si on se réfère au riff de guitare et à la construction de « Brouhaha », des Beatles via le lick d'intro de NY hotel, du Lou sur les « do do do » sur ce même titre, et chaque chanson explore le passé et des pans entiers de la bonne musique populaire du siècle dernier. Mais ce disque est aussi définitivement placé sous le signe du charme, celui du timbre sexy de la chanteuse Vanessa Contenay-Quinones au physique avantageux et au minois charmeur si bien qu'on en oublierait presque le vrai talent d'écriture présent sur les 10 plages de la « Ballade d'O » et l'interprétation garantie sans matières grasses. Un peu comme si ce disque avait permis de retrouver le saint graal du songwriting des sixties. « Bagatelle » est un beau hit. Vanessa and the O's signent également le plus beau titre qui bégaye avec ce Charlie Charlie qui joue aux jeux interdits et dont, forcément, on sera jaloux. « On aurait vécu ensemble », nous dit Vanessa au détour de cette chanson. C'est tout le mal que je vous souhaite, vivre avec ce disque parfait dans son genre.
Vanessa & the O's-Super Pop Francais!
author: Fnac onlineVanessa & The O's - Le renouveau de la pop francais! 10/10 (un internaute paris/Londres]
A Fantastic debut album of european cool pop!
author: Rimbeaud [Amazon]This is a fantastic debut album of songbased cool european ultra pop, a real find and one of those unexpected gems you hope to come across in a record store in Paris on a wander [which I did, lucky me]. The french version of the album was on a listening post and i was sucked right in from the first song 'Bagatelle' by the sound of Vanessa's yearning and sensual voice [was Nico ever truly this sensual?] through to the gorgeous Velvets-ish Plus Rien, the alarmingly moving and beautifully dark 'Stand' [wow where did that emanate from - if only the new Scott Walker album had a song as good as this on it I might have been able to get through it!] to the pure french 60's movie soundtrack pop of the wonderful 'Charlie Charlie' which despite displaying 60's retro pop influences Vanessa manages to pull off as something fresh and modern, she does that effortlessly throughout this marvellous LP in fact. Some will say Nico, Velvets, Gainsbourg, Hardy maybe even Stereolab or The Concretes or Ivy [not a problem for me that's all good stuff!] but the truth is that if those influences are there [and they are at times]Vanessa has cherished them, digested them and now here with her child-woman observing lyrics, almost nieve delivery, playfulness but also a sense of faraway sadness and yearning she molds those influences and the sound of The O's into something irresistable, fresh and unique, something you can go back to again and again..unique, yes that's right because there is no box this can be easily filed into and maybe that's why it's an obscure 'find' in a record store in paris, new york or london, quite simply there is nothing else like this out there and there isn't likely to be anytinme soon...I only hope they can keep this standard up for the next album, if they do then we truly have a new and important 'artist' to follow in the true sense of the word, others will copy but talent this rare will always out...surely? This new Japanese release has the added bonus of 4 tracks that did not appear on the French release of earlier this year. Absolutely worth investing in to get I Must be Dreaming [Lou Reed-ish rocking pop], the extremely haunting Rider of Steel and the chirpy anglo saxon guitar pop of Something Is Calling. Great stuff! Hey I didn't even mention that former Smashing Pumpkin James Iha is in the band!
- author: Fnac online
10/10 Le renouveau de la pop francais et Disque Du Mois Rock & Folk Juillet!!! Un internaute, Paris/Londres Vanessa and the o's. On ne jurera bientot que par eux ici c'est certain ! Une musique sublime , une voix envoutante , le mariage ideal de l'anglais et du français.Un melange entre Bardot Vartan Hardy et Deneuve avec des gros morceaux de Gainsbourg dedans. Vanessa , la femme enfant , une personnalite hors du commun et tellement attachante
A lush offering adorned with chiming guitars
author: Paul/75 Reviews or LessVanessa and the O's - La Ballade d'O (Rushmore Former Espiritu vocalist Vanessa Quinones happened to meet former Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha and a new musical partnership was formed. The resulting album La Ballade d'O is a lush offering adorned with chiming guitars and bright arrangements strung together by the sultry vocals of Quinones (more charismatic than Nico ever was and sexier than Laetitia Sadier ever tries to be). If the first Velvet Underground album had been recorded in the present day and was narrated primarily in a French tongue, this is ostensibly how it would sound. - paul
Can somebody tell me why Vanessa & The O's are not huge???
author: Trintingnante Last FMWhat an awesome find, a real hidden gem from track 1 Bagatelle right through to the final track Gorgeous Death, I didn't find any fillers hidden amongst these 10 wonderfully melodic atmospheric yearning pop songs and that's really saying something in these times where it's usually safer to buy unbundled than risk wading through mediocre filler songs and 'bonus tracks'. It is not overstepping the mark to say that this album is indeed a modern classic and I just need somebody to explain to me why sure fire pop hits like Bagatelle and Cruel et Tendres are not all over the radio..has the world gone mad???
trumping both Emmanuelle and Keren-Ann is Vanessa Contenay-Quinones
author: Aidan Curran/Lou Reed FanClub [Paris]Lou Reed Fan Club (Paris Branch) Thursday, July 12, 2007 I'll be your mirror: three Paris-based female singers and their love for Lou. Watch the best of them - Vanessa And The O's singing 'Bagatelle'.>> There seems to be a trend among female singers in Paris at the moment: sounding like Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground. In the last twelve months there have been three noteworthy albums drawing on the Velvets' distinctive droning guitar sound and the spoken-word vocal style of Reed's solo records. We've already mentioned Ultra Orange and Emmanuelle - the group fronted by Emmanuelle Seigner (right), the French actress and wife of Roman Polanski. The band's eponymous album was released earlier this year, led off by VU-esque single 'Sing Sing'. Keren-Ann (left) is not French - she was born in Israel and raised in the Netherlands. However, she moved to France at age 11 and her early albums were in French - which is why she's filed among the French singers in Paris record shops. Her self-titled fifth album was recorded in Paris and New York - indeed, its opening two tracks, the singles 'It Ain't No Crime' and 'Lay Your Head Down' sound heavily influenced by Reed's 'New York' album. As for Keren-Ann's record, it's a fine album of intimate folk-flavoured songs that also draw heavily on Leonard Cohen. However, trumping both Emmanuelle and Keren-Ann is one Vanessa Contenay-Quinones (right). Her band Vanessa And The O's (featuring James Iha of the Smashing Pumpkins on guitar) released a fabulous album last year called 'The Story Of O'. It's a veritable VU tribute album; not only does Vanessa sound like a more tuneful Nico, but she also drops numerous Reed references into her songs. There's even a track called 'J'Attends Lou' ('I'm Waiting For Lou'). If grabbing the attention of the great man was her objective then it's certainly worked - Vanessa has recently been recording tracks with Reed in New York. From 'The Story of O', here's a very glamorous-looking Vanessa posing around London in the video for the unbearably catchy 'Bagatelle', the best French single of 2006:
un album aux parfums délicieusement sixties évoquant ici Nico, là Françoise Hard
author: Le Figaro, Paris FranceCette adorable Vanessa-là sort en 2006 un album aux parfums délicieusement sixties évoquant ici Nico, là Françoise Hardy et Bardot. Le charme opère tandis que sa voix fragile et sexy décline en anglais comme en français des comptines réellement marquantes. (Nicolas Ungemuth)PALMARES/MUSIQUE 2006/POP>>LE FIGARO FR:
5 stars of course !!!
author: YannWell ... just seeing i've forgotten to let a note to my recent review but you've guessed it was a 5 stars one of course !!! XXXXX
pure french pop there !
author: http://www.vanessaandtheos-community.comOne year now that this album is released in France , one year it doesn't leave me !! when you think 10 titles is too short just think how many 15 titles albums you bought with 14 ones are just bullshits ! Here are 10 pearls that compose a pure jewel !! Perfect meeting beetween "the velvet underground" , Gainsbourg , Francoise Hardy , and Sylvie Vartan. Oh yeah , if Mr gainsbourg was alived sure he would have looked to this girl like a 21st century Bardot !! Pure moments there with titles as strong as "Stand" , "Till next tuesday" , "Cruels et tendres" or "J'attends Lou" remaining of Vanessa's meeting with Lou Reed during re-recording of "Sunday Morning" with "the man from the moon" where Vanessa surprised him as he said that she was the first since Nico to sing it with her proper tonality. But Mr Reed was not the last to detect the talent of the girl ... even Scott Walker invited her to be the only guest on his famous experimental album "the drift" to be the voice of Clara ! Is this story terminated ? of course not cause the maestro "Ennio Morricone" himself invited her this year to be a part of the magic tribute "we all love Ennio Morricone" with such people as Metallica , Bruce Springsteen , Andrea Boccelli , Roger Waters , where the girl proposed us an amazing version of Francoise Hardy's song "je changerais d'avis" with the o's sound ... magical moment !! I just will say to finish this review that not only this album is just THE best french album of this past year but it will never leave you , be sure of that ! and i wish you such pleasure as i had to see the band on stage ... pure rock'n roll moment !! So , just don't hesitate one second and buy this pure music pleasure that is "La ballade d'O" ... You'll thank me after ... ! ;-))
Beautiful...simply beautiful! This is POP...and i'm not sure it can get any bett
author: The Black & White MagazineMy passion for music really boils down this - the simple yet impossible search for perfect-pop. It's like finding a sliver of gold in a haystack, but when you finally stumble across it, the last few months of searching for the next transcendent moment of musical bliss...becomes all worth while. The truth is, good music is extremely hard to find. The market is oversaturated with talentless and uninspired 'artists'. But pure proof that great music is still being made in relative obscurity can be heard in La Ballade d'O, the debut album by Vanessa and the O's. Vanessa follows in the wonderful French tradition of artists like Air and Phoenix, while not resembling either in style. There is this certain 'it' factor that few bands ever have, and Vanessa and the O's own whatever 'it' is for the entirety of these 10 songs. Largely self-produced, this album oozes with sultry and empassioned vocals, cool and reluctant guitar tones, and soft yet dancable rhythms. The songs waver between mid-tempo and pop-ballad pace, and the enticed yearning of Vanessa's vocals is articulate and universal. Switching back and forth from french to english, even in the same songs, the pop-laced melodies require no translation. This album speaks directly to you. Although I admit, I've never wanted to learn french more since this last week, as I've had this album on constant rotation. Of the highlights (there are no throw-aways here), "Charlie, Charlie", "Stand", and "Bagatelle" are sure mentions. The truth is, all these songs encompass what I want to hear in soft-pop, and to top it off, it's covered in the mystery and romance of French. The orchestral "Gorgeous Death" shows off the band's cabaret-pop influneces, and makes a comepletely perfect exit for this stellar debut. Others have said that Vanessa and the O's pays homeage to The Velvet Undergroud, and the evidence in their sound says that's true. But Vanessa Quinones puts more emphasis on 'song' than 'sound', and though it might be early in her career, she might be well on her way to becoming the cross bewteen French female version of 60's-era Scott Walker (orchestral) and Harry Nilsson (timeless/classic singer-songwriter soft-pop), with splashes of Stereolab (groove driven) and Air (culturally seductive) liberally mixed in. That sounds unusal, but this is an unusally great band. Needless to say, I LOVE this album, and haven't even mentioned that James Iha of The Smashing Pumpkins happens to be in the band! Beautiful...simply beautiful! This is POP...and i'm not sure it can get any better.
Beautiful...simply beautiful! This is POP...and i'm not sure it can get any bett
author: The Black & White MagazineMy passion for music really boils down this - the simple yet impossible search for perfect-pop. It's like finding a sliver of gold in a haystack, but when you finally stumble across it, the last few months of searching for the next transcendent moment of musical bliss...becomes all worth while. The truth is, good music is extremely hard to find. The market is oversaturated with talentless and uninspired 'artists'. But pure proof that great music is still being made in relative obscurity can be heard in La Ballade d'O, the debut album by Vanessa and the O's. Vanessa follows in the wonderful French tradition of artists like Air and Phoenix, while not resembling either in style. There is this certain 'it' factor that few bands ever have, and Vanessa and the O's own whatever 'it' is for the entirety of these 10 songs. Largely self-produced, this album oozes with sultry and empassioned vocals, cool and reluctant guitar tones, and soft yet dancable rhythms. The songs waver between mid-tempo and pop-ballad pace, and the enticed yearning of Vanessa's vocals is articulate and universal. Switching back and forth from french to english, even in the same songs, the pop-laced melodies require no translation. This album speaks directly to you. Although I admit, I've never wanted to learn french more since this last week, as I've had this album on constant rotation. Of the highlights (there are no throw-aways here), "Charlie, Charlie", "Stand", and "Bagatelle" are sure mentions. The truth is, all these songs encompass what I want to hear in soft-pop, and to top it off, it's covered in the mystery and romance of French. The orchestral "Gorgeous Death" shows off the band's cabaret-pop influneces, and makes a comepletely perfect exit for this stellar debut. Others have said that Vanessa and the O's pays homeage to The Velvet Undergroud, and the evidence in their sound says that's true. But Vanessa Quinones puts more emphasis on 'song' than 'sound', and though it might be early in her career, she might be well on her way to becoming the cross bewteen French female version of 60's-era Scott Walker (orchestral) and Harry Nilsson (timeless/classic singer-songwriter soft-pop), with splashes of Stereolab (groove driven) and Air (culturally seductive) liberally mixed in. That sounds unusal, but this is an unusally great band. Needless to say, I LOVE this album, and haven't even mentioned that James Iha of The Smashing Pumpkins happens to be in the band! Beautiful...simply beautiful! This is POP...and i'm not sure it can get any better.