Clara Clara saw the light of day in a basement in the small town of Dijon, … Read Full Bio ↴Clara Clara saw the light of day in a basement in the small town of Dijon, France, gathered around a saucepan drumkit, a “shitty” Höner guitar and a My First Sony Microphone. Yet it immediately became the very core of the local spazz rock scene (we’re talking at least 8 people here, all of them shell- shocked by a short stay in town of Dutch experimental band The Ex).

Basically made up of Charles and François Virot (the latter being famous enough under his own name) and Amélie Lambert (a school book of whom cued the band with its name), Clara Clara strangely started as a drums and bass and flute trio, before realizing that the formula could be enhanced… And it was promptly done with the addition of “a fat overdrive and an octaver pedal to copy that bass player guy in Lightning Bolt“ (an influence, just as American cute noise band Deerhoof), a synthesizer and real poppy songs, courtesy of François (who’s quite a specialist when it comes to pop songs).

The band consequently set off on the long and winding road and hastily recorded a few CD-Rs and an actual album for French label SK Records (“AA”) to sell after concerts. “We’re making music first and foremost because we’re friends, then because we’re on the same vibe musically and because we want to experience great things, and eventually because we don’t want that to stop”, says Amélie, and we couldn’t agree more. The thing is, the band can’t avoid being riveting. Fed up with their first songs because they’d played them way too many times, they reinvented through complexity (“but we’re not a math rock band”), the extensive use of a midi pad controlled electronic keyboard, an overdose of beats (techno beats, African beats, you name it) and a massive appurtenance of melodies. Their most recent album "Comfortable Problems" was released on Clapping Music the 10th of March 2010.

The band has an intense sound using the keyboard (Amelie Lambert) as the melodic digital force, chaotic/psychotic drums and frenetic electric bass (Charles Virot) relying heavily on distortion. Clara Clara plays hypnotic jams with occasional moments of sing-along type phrasing. The sound is explosive, erupting with rhythms and very loud distortion. The crowd moved in a trance like motion of ecstasy until the last song, leaving a sweaty musty residue in the garage cocoon, to get some oxygen.

DISCOGRAPHY:

"Comfortable Problems" cd, lp, mp3
8 songs - 35 minutes
clapping music (2010)

"AA" cd, lp
11 songs - 45 minutes
sk records EUR, frenetic records USA (2007)

"je t aime" cdr
4 songs / 25 minutes
limited 300 copies - self produced (2006)

"self titled" cdr
8 songs, 30 minutes
limited 800 copies - zerojardins rds (2005)

"demo"
8 songs, 35 minutes
limited 300 copies - self produced (2004)