His music being so eclectic, it is hard to label him. However, the influence of Serge Gainsbourg can be traced in the way he uses the structures of Anglo-Saxon pop and funk, but blends them with the French tradition of complex lyrical wordplay and an emphasis on storytelling.
He his known for his unique hairstyle in the shape of an M, and praised for his amazing guitar playing abilities , and his grandiose live performances à la David Bowie (documented in the live album Le Tour de -M-).
He is Louis Chédid's son. Some of his texts (among which Bonobo) have been written by the writer Andrée Chédid, who happens to be his grandmother.
Souviens-toi
-M- Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Je suis un créateur antistatic
Et sur ma guitare en plastic
Les vibrations sont techno-tectonic
Alors j'm'allume une ultra-light à l'ultra violet
Ca m' rend ultra nerveux
Ca m'rend ultra-mauvais
Faut que je mette mon spleen à la machine
Mais le monde est rond et ne se ressemble pas
Souviens-toi de demain, il ne roulera qu'une fois
C'est pas pour hier que demain s'oubliera
J'ai la mémoire courte
Mais le futur ne s'oublie pas
Ca non !
J'ai une tendancieuse nostalgie du futur
Ca m'ronge ce songe et je plonge dans ce vieux murmure
Les fusées-muses me reconquètent
Et les mots fusent dans ma tête
Même si le ciel dans tout ça
Peut-être un jour il s'en ira
Avec toutes mes rêveries
Les nuages et mon lit
Mais le monde est rond et ne se ressemble pas
Souviens-toi de demain, il ne roulera qu'une fois
C'est pas pour hier que demain s'oubliera
J'ai la mémoire courte
Mais le futur ne s'oublie pas
Tu es nue Claire
Lumineuse comme l'éclair
Nue comme l'air
Nu-clé-aire
Mais le monde est rond et ne se ressemble pas
Souviens-toi de demain, il ne roulera qu'une fois
C'est pas pour hier que demain s'oubliera
J'ai la mémoire courte
Mais le futur ne s'oublie pas
The lyrics of -M-'s song Souviens-toi are filled with vivid imagery and complex themes, making it a song that is open to multiple interpretations. The first verse describes the singer's search for inspiration and his use of technology to create music with both guitar and electronic elements. He also describes his state of mind, which is frenzied and agitated due to his use of drugs like ultraviolet cigarettes. The second verse is more reflective and contemplative, as the singer muses about his nostalgic longing for the future, and his fear that everything he dreams of may someday disappear. He also addresses the importance of memory and the idea that the future is always present and inescapable.
One of the main themes of the song is the relationship between past, present, and future. The lyrics suggest that while the future may be unpredictable and constantly changing, it is still important to remember and cherish the past. The song also touches on other themes such as creativity, inspiration, and addiction.
Overall, the song is a complex and multi-layered exploration of the human experience, and it leaves much room for individual interpretation and reflection.
Line by Line Meaning
Je cherche l'inspiration électronic
I am searching for electronic inspiration
Je suis un créateur antistatic
I am a creator who rejects static creations
Et sur ma guitare en plastic
And on my plastic guitar
Les vibrations sont techno-tectonic
The vibrations are techno-tectonic
Alors j'm'allume une ultra-light à l'ultra violet
Then I light an ultra-light under ultraviolet light
Ca m' rend ultra nerveux
It makes me extremely nervous
Ca m'rend ultra-mauvais
It makes me extremely bad
Faut que je mette mon spleen à la machine
I need to put my melancholy into the machine
Faut que j'm'assouplisse à la soupline
I need to become more flexible with Soupline (a brand of laundry softener)
Mais le monde est rond et ne se ressemble pas
But the world is round and no two days are the same
Souviens-toi de demain, il ne roulera qu'une fois
Remember tomorrow, it will only come once
C'est pas pour hier que demain s'oubliera
Tomorrow will not be forgotten about for yesterday
J'ai la mémoire courte
I have a short memory
Mais le futur ne s'oublie pas
But the future does not forget
J'ai une tendancieuse nostalgie du futur
I have a nostalgic tendency towards the future
Ca m'ronge ce songe et je plonge dans ce vieux murmure
It eats away at my dreams and I fall into old whispers
Les fusées-muses me reconquètent
The muse rockets reconquer me
Et les mots fusent dans ma tête
And words shoot into my head
Même si le ciel dans tout ça
Even if the sky in all of this
Peut-être un jour il s'en ira
Perhaps one day it will go away
Avec toutes mes rêveries
With all of my dreams
Les nuages et mon lit
The clouds and my bed
Tu es nue Claire
You are naked, Claire
Lumineuse comme l'éclair
Radiant like lightning
Nue comme l'air
As naked as the air
Nu-clé-aire
Nuclear
Contributed by Keira O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@theburninator3202
Remember, My Child
Remember, my child : not long ago,
your divine parents held you in their arms.
Today you are here, marvelously present.
Your gaze still shines with the reflection of heaven.
Talk to me, my child, about that blessed place,
because for you the veil is still thin.
Remember, my child, the forests, the cities.
Can we down here imagine them?
And the night sky, is it rosy or gray?
Is the sun waiting for snow or rain?
Describe to me, my child, the color of the meadows
and the birdsongs of a forgotten world.
Remember, my child: at the dawn of time,
we were friends playing in the wind.
Then one day in joy we chose to accept
the Lord’s grand plan of life.
That night, my child, we promised through love,
and through faith, to be reunited.
@CalledtoShare
Great to see such beautiful work by these missionaries! Do you have any family members that were soldiers in Normandy?
@williamfindspeople4341
Yes many. If you work really hard on your family history, you will find someone who was there; 70 million soldiers fought together. At Normandy on D-day 153,000 troops landed. 73000 American (23,250 on Utah Beach, 34,250 on Omaha Beach, and 15,500 airborne troops), 83,115 British and Canadian (61,715 of them British) with 24,970 on Gold Beach, 21,400 on Juno Beach, 28,845 on Sword Beach, and 7,500 airborne troops. Allied casualties 10,000 and 4,414 confirmed dead.
@gaymichaelis7581
Well, not exactly… My dad served in the second world war, and was one of the first men to set foot on the continent of Africa, south of France! And therefore south of Spain also! Anyway, this is so beautiful this tribute to the soldiers that landed and died in Normandy! But I think it is fair to say we could also say this is a tribute to all the men that died after the second world war was declared! All the US soldiers and soldiers from other countries also! Thank you so very much to the missionaries here who sang and helped make this video at Normandy! I only understood words here and there, as you sang, I have taken French for 3 1/2 years in the past… But it was lovely to hear your song in French/en Francois!!! Merci beaucoup/thank you very much!
@stephentickal6486
Incroyable ! Merci de partager vos talents! J'y ai fait ma mission il y a 21 ans. Maintenant, j'ai ma belle épouse qui parle français et aussi mes cinq enfants qui apprennent cette belle langue. Mon grand-père était avec les Marines pendant cette guerre mondiale. Quel incroyable hommage aux sacrifices de tant de personnes. Si vous ajoutiez les mots français avec une traduction anglaise pour ceux qui ne parlent pas couramment le français, je pense que cela fera franchir à un autre niveau ce qui est déjà incroyable.
@theburninator3202
Remember, My Child
Remember, my child : not long ago,
your divine parents held you in their arms.
Today you are here, marvelously present.
Your gaze still shines with the reflection of heaven.
Talk to me, my child, about that blessed place,
because for you the veil is still thin.
Remember, my child, the forests, the cities.
Can we down here imagine them?
And the night sky, is it rosy or gray?
Is the sun waiting for snow or rain?
Describe to me, my child, the color of the meadows
and the birdsongs of a forgotten world.
Remember, my child: at the dawn of time,
we were friends playing in the wind.
Then one day in joy we chose to accept
the Lord’s grand plan of life.
That night, my child, we promised through love,
and through faith, to be reunited.
@kevinwhitcomb8986
Thank you! USAF veteran not of WWII here. I'm so grateful for your beautiful tribute to our brave men who faced death to stop tyranny.
@darlenepedersen4145
And look what tragedies are going on by Russia!!!!!The people walking and where to, little children and others with nowhere to eat and sleep. War is always disturbing where the opposition does not value the life of those who are senselessly disrupted and worse killed.
@me5768
My Father came ashore at Omaha beach 2nd wave Thank you for such a wonderful tribute
@Kevin-rz6lm
My father was second wave also on Fox Green Sector of Omaha. 62nd Armored Field Artillery spent the morning running out to pull wounded from the first wave up the beach from the rising tide to safety behind the seawall. The rest of the day LCT's were making repeated attempts to bring M-7 Priests (Self-propelled 105mm howitzers) and all of the supporting equipment on shore under fire. I'll spare everyone the details. Needless to say, mental scars for anyone who was lucky enough to survive. -- Kevin, USAFA Class of 1978.
@raymondrace4837
Thank you for the tender and touching Tribute to those of the allied armed forces... May the Lord continue to bless you in your missionary service...