Sébastien Tellier: “Sexual Sportswear”
I know I’ve forsaken electro in favor of folk and indie as of late, but the hot fire returns with a bang today. Maybe now we can be friends again?
It’s been a minute now since we’ve heard any new studio material from Sebastien Tellier, the mastermind behind “La Ritournelle”, one of the most awe-inspiring tracks of last year ever, but I’m pleased to announce the wait is over. On October 16th Mr. Tellier will release his brand new single in the form of “Sexual Sportswear”, an 8-minute epoch that swaps the orchestral in favor of the electronic and sports production from Daft Punk’s very own Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. The French house legend is manning the boards on Tellier’s entire upcoming LP, titled Sexuality and out January 2008, and “Sexual Sportswear” is a delicious first taste.
It’s no “La Ritournelle”, but it’s unwavering sexiness wholly justifies its exceedingly awesome title. Like “Ritournelle”, “Sexual Sportswear” is a sprawling odyssey, but where the former continuously evolves with a new twist around every turn, “Sportswear” seems a bit directionless at times. An epic, ominous intro rides swirling atmospheric synths into the body of the track, which takes off on a churning synth progression that it proceeds to ride for the remainder of the track. It’s no secret that French house has become the style to emulate this year, with everyone from Kanye to will.i.am trying to get in on the action, and it’s clear that Tellier’s taken note as well (though the accompanying literature calls this “electro-classical”). There’s no doubt he’s got plenty of Ed Banger records in his collection, but “Sportswear” suggests he may be looking off labelmate Kavinsky’s paper as well (”Testarossa Autodrive”, anyone?). That said, it’d be hard not to be influenced by the French house explosion when it’s going down in your own backyard, so we can’t be too hard on the man. Instead, let’s applaud him for the new direction he’s taken and hope that Sexuality’s got some more streamlined chart-toppers up its proverbial sleeve.
But wait, there’s more. The single comes backed by a remix from the inimitable SebastiAn, who’s also been M.I.A. in the remix scene for a few months now. And well… that kid done did it again. I mean oh JESUS, just when you thought the remix maestro might be slowing down, he drops so much fire on the track they should call him Vesuvius (sorry… it had to happen). All of his staples are back - the emphatic bass surges, the razor-sharp strings bursts, the choppy production; they’re all here. SebastiAn’s always been in the business of stealing thunder from the original compositions he reworks, but this is some next-level shit. So yeah, buy the single for the A-side, but make damn sure you stay for the remix.
STREAM: “Sexual Sportswear” - Sebastien Tellier
MP3: “Sexual Sportswear” (SebastiAn Remix) - Tellier ((highly recommended))