This is hard for an Italian to admit, but, even though French wines and cheeses are obviously inferior to ours (he he), I have to concede that French musical influences are way, way, way more "usable" in an indie context than Italian ones. Led by French singer Quay Quinn-Settel, Slowdance is one of the newest bands belonging to the rather copious battalion of francophile and francophone artists produced by the NYC scene in the past decade (La Laque, CoCoRosie, Die Romantik, and Elodie O are some of the other notable ones). Their new single "Boyfriend" (out as a 7" on White Iris Records), end even more so side B "Airports," revisit the simple, charming melodies of 60s French pop and baptize them in a dream pop musical backdrop. This "French-girl-dream" formula is rather pleasing and conspires images of desperately needed motorcycle trips through Provence’s spectacular countryside. That is a good sign. But since you obvioulsy can’t afford that, you should probably go see Slowdance live at the next opportunity, which is on June 15 at Cameo, and dream about it. – PDG
