*** Autour de Lucie

IMMOBILE

(Nettwerk)

Over the past year France has gotten more favorable attention from the American music press than that country has seen in a long, long time. Retro-swingers have been rediscovering the sex muzak of Serge Gainsbourg and the sultry stylings of Françoise Hardy; electronica buffs have been getting their ya-yas out over the disco funk of Daft Punk, the Moogish ambiance of Air, and even the kitschy mixology of a DJ by the name of Dimitri from Paris. But not a lot of good old words-and-guitar pop has surfaced from France on these shores, which may have something to do with the fact that, unlike Sweden's Cardigans, French folks prefer to sing in their native tongue.

And so it is with Autour de Lucie, a female-fronted Parisian trio (on last year's Lilith Tour second stage they were a foursome with drummer) who appear to have been basking along with NYC's Ivy in the moody glow of sophisticated pop sissies like Burt Bacharach, John Barry, and perhaps Yo La Tengo. The result's a sort of indie pop for grown-ups -- the Cardigans minus the kitsch -- subtly dominated by the dusky voice of Valérie Leuliot (she's also credited with guitare acoustique) and buoyed by the graceful glide of Jean-Pierre Ensuque's guitare electrique. Without subtitles I've got no idea what the songs on Immobile are actually about. But sometimes a mood and a melody are more than enough to go on.

-- Matt Ashare