WhoDIB? : Les Grandes Vacances

Ready for some French Electro? You know it. From Man & Man comes the track Les Grandes Vacances, a swinging, bubbly pop track. Bandit and The Sterehoes, both tried their hand at remixing, and, since thr original track is French, the only suitable remixers would come from France, no?

Bandit, as he does with all of his productions, applies simple yet effective synths to create an impressive sound of almost biblical proportions. All very well, but this technique almost completely erases the original pop quality of the track. Oh well. With beats like these, who needs pop?

The Sterehoes, on the other hand, have a much more polished remix, from the synths down to the drums. But just because it's polished, doesn't mean it has to be clean, does it?It may take a minute and a half for the vocals to kick in, but when they do, they somehow manage to complement the romping and the womping. And when the vocals are dominant, they're just deliciously, well, French.

WhoDIB? Bandit or The Sterehoes?

Man & Man - Les Grandes Vacances (Bandit Remix)
Man & Man - Les Grandes Vacances (The Sterehoes Remix)

The Sterehoes.

The Sterehoes

Very interesting. I have trouble pidgeon-holing 'The Sterehoes'. Their music is hard to classify, it ranges from abrasive and harsh, to a pacific, almost pop sound. They seem to be influenced by artists ranging from Daft Punk to SebastiAn. Quite a contrast.

Of their more mellow songs, 'Wake Up' almost sounds like something Designer Drugs would create, albeit with a more American Alternative flavour. 'Urgent Drugs' has that tap-your-feet Daft Punk disco feel going on, while 'Red Yellow Blue' calls to mind faux-European Indie/Eurovision (?).

The others, are, well, somewhat cacophonous in comparison. 'We Keep It Real' sounds like something I would expect from someone called 'The Sterehoes', hostile and hard hitting. Grinding, crunchy bass, and off-key squeals remind one of SebastiAn, while auto-tuned female vocals are very Boys Noiz-esque. The Sterehoes' remix of Minitel Rose's 'Continue' displays aspects of Mustard Pimp/The Toxic Avenger. In other words, heavy handed snares and crashes, chopped up, warped vocals, escalating growls and thick slabs of bass. Ouch.

But the good type of ouch.

The Sterehoes - Wake Up
The Sterehoes - Urgent Drugs
The Sterehoes - Red Yellow Blue
The Sterehoes - We Keep It Real
Minitel Rose - Continue (The Sterehoes Remix)

Don't be a music snob, the music is a whole lot better than the artist name suggests. An act to watch.