Description

French postmodernists Air raid every aspect of retro pop music, from the sublime to the ridiculous, in fashioning their sonic bricolage. Everything from Krautrock-inspired electronics to 1960s lounge music is incorporated into the work of Nicolas Godin and J.B. Dunckel. Their full-length debut, 1998's MOON SAFARI, earned massive critical plaudits and put the duo at the forefront of modern, electronic-oriented pop.

Biography

Purveyors of delightfully retro electronic space pop, former architect Nicolas Godin (bass/guitar/vocoder/percussion) and mathematician Jean-Benoit Dunckel (keyboards/clavinet) both originate from Versailles, France. They initially met at college, where Godin joined Dunckel in indie rock band Orange, alongside future producer Alex Gopher. After a period spent concentrating on their respective studies, Dunckel and Godin reunited as Air and began forging a new electronic direction, signing to the Paris-based Virgin Records offshoot Source. They released several singles, including the Modulor Mix EP in November 1995 and the Casanova 70 EP in August 1996. These early tracks, since disowned by Godin and Dunckel, were collected on the Premiers Symptomes compilation, and helped to bring the duo to the attention of European DJs. They also embarked on remix work for Depeche Mode and Neneh Cherry.
Godin and Dunckel then decamped to an abandoned eighteenth-century chateau outside Paris to record the new material that appeared on their debut, Moon Safari. Produced on an eight-track console, the 10 songs on the album were a striking mixture of dance music loops and pop melodies, moving from lush instrumentals to effortless electro-pop with vocals by Godin and Paris-based American singer Beth Hirsch. The album's retro feel was heightened by Dunckel and Godin's use of mini-Moog and vocoder, and the romantic themes of space travel and stargazing. The first single, "Sexy Boy", reached the UK Top 20 in spring 1998. The follow-up, "Kelly Watch The Stars", was a homage to Charlie's Angels actress Jaclyn Smith. Moon Safari won the UK's Muzik magazine's award for Best Album in October 1998.
Godin and Dunckel were subsequently commissioned to compose the original score for Sophie Coppola's acclaimed film adaptation of Jeffrey Euginedes' The Virgin Suicides. Their follow-up studio album, 10,000 Hz Legend, was recorded in Paris and Los Angeles. Released in May 2001, the album's restless experimentalism drew a mixed response from critics still enamoured by the lush textures of Moon Safari. Godin and Dunckel have continued to push the boundaries of their retro-futuristic electronic pop on subsequent releases, including their collaboration with cult Italian author Alessandro Baricco on City Reading: Tre Storie Western, and their third studio album, Talkie Walkie.
DISCOGRAPHY: Moon Safari (Source/Astralwerks 1998)****, The Virgin Suicides film soundtrack (Source/Astralwerks 2000)***, 10,000 Hz Legend (Source/Astralwerks 2001)****, with Alessandro Baricco City Reading: Tre Storie Western soundtrack (Source/Astralwerks 2003)***, Talkie Walkie (Source/Astralwerks 2004)***.
COMPILATIONS: Premiers Symptomes (Source/Astralwerks 1997)***, Everybody Hertz (Astralwerks 2002)***.

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