With tastefully chosen album and track titles like Lisztomania and Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, French rock band Phoenix draw allusions to classic pop stars. In the meantime the quartet from Versailles have just become that. Here is a Fireside Chat with guitarist Branco.
Phoenix are a tightly knit group of friends from Versailles, France. Vocalist Thomas Mars, bassist Deck d'Arcy, and guitarist Chris Mazzalai started as a garage band based out of Mars' house in the suburbs of Paris. In 1995, Laurent Brancowitz, Mazzalai's older brother, permanently joined the band with his trademark red and white Fender Bullet guitar after the end of the short-lived surf rock band Darlin' he formed with Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo (who went on to form 'house’-hold brand Daft Punk).
Two years later the band took on the name Phoenix and pressed 500 copies of a single on their own label, Ghettoblaster. They still hold a very close friendship with the members of Daft Punk and their Versailles neighbours Air.
Phoenix’s debut "United" amalgamated the history of pop music into a sophisticated sound that was entirely their own, nothing provincial about it. Their 2000 track "Too Young" was in the soundtrack for the movie Lost In Translation (which was directed by Thomas's later wife, Sofia Coppola).
Ever since it's been refreshing to see, how much time Phoenix take to carefully craft their records. Their willingness to work and wait until the parts of a song grow beyond their mere sum has resulted in an impressive run of albums.
Red Bull Music Academy Radio caught up with guitarist Branco aka Laurent Brancowitz to chat about music as a democratic art form, aging as a pop star and what it takes to create beauty...
Playlist:
Phoenix - Lisztomania - V2
Phoenix - Too Young - Virgin
Phoenix - Run Run Run - Source
Phoenix - Long Distance Call - Virgin
Phoenix - If I Ever Feel Better - Virgin
Phoenix - Girlfriend - V2
Phoenix - If It's Not With You - Source
Phoenix - North - Virgin
Phoenix - Love Like A Sunset Pt 1 - V2
Phoenix - Love Like A Sunset Pt 2 - V2
Phoenix - Embuscade - Virgin
Phoenix - (You Can't Blame It On) Anybody - Source
Phoenix - Honeymoon - Virgin
Phoenix - Holdin' On Together - Source
Phoenix - Countdown - V2
More Red Bull Culture:
Up Close And Personal With The Foo Fighters
Fireside Chat With Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart of The Kills
Comments
Add a comment