The foursome recorded around 45 sombre and tormented songs while gaving a number of concerts in the area around Nantes. Later, with the singer Katerine, Dominique Ané recorded a number of songs in a more upbeat and livelier style.
Beginning of a career
At the beginning of the 1990s Dominique Ané recorded songs that were both minimalist and rock in style. He wanted to break with the traditional chanson, which he considered to be more literary than musical[1]. His first CD, released by the Nantes label, Lithium, met with critical acclaim by the alternative magazine, Les Inrockuptibles, and by Bernard Lenoir, the 'John Peel' of France. Furthermore, his song, Le Courage des oiseaux, (the Courage of the Birds), was an underground hit.
From 1992 onwards, he started to produce more and more live shows, either with a backing band or solo. His commercial success grew in 1995 with Le twenty-two bar, a single off the album, La Mémoire Neuve, but this success left a bitter taste in Dominique's mouth because he considered the song to be particularly badly written[1].
In 2000, he composed the score for Antoine Desrosières' black comedy film Banqueroute.
Le Détour and beyond (2002-)
Dominique's discovery of Alain Bashung's dark 2002 album, L'Imprudence shocked him to the point that it put his music into question and he decided to explore different ways of working. He decided to compile what he considered to be the first part of a musical time capsule, a longbox entitled Le Détour. He asked his fans to write about their relationship with his music, and some of their letters were published in the booklet accompanying Le Détour.
For his subsequent album, he wanted to experiment and, consequently, for the first time, he gave control over the album to a third party, the team who produced L'Imprudence. The end result would be Tout sera comme avant (Everything will be like it was before), which was released in 2004. Unfortunately, many fans had difficulty obtaining a copy. At the same time, Dominique gave many live performances variously using a big band, minimalistic backing, or all alone (where he would experiment with oversampling).
In March 2006, L'Horizon came out, a new work that he produced alongside Dominique Brusson, with whom he had made the early album, Remué. It was the first time that Dominique A returned to work with a producer. He was backed by his old collaborators, Sacha Toorop and Olivier Mellano, as well as the musicians with whom he produced Tout sera comme avant. Dominique A had recently quit his record label, Labels, due to his desire for more creative freedom; consequently, it is no surprise that he describes L'Horizon as his most experimental work to date.
Collaboration and influence
Dominique A collaborates regularly with other artists and on other projects. He has been one of the shaping forces of Françoiz Breut's career, writing many of her songs since her début in 1997. He has also composed several songs for Jeanne Balibar's second album, Slalom Dale and wrote Où est la ville ? for Jane Birkin's 2006 album, Fictions. He also sang Veruca Salt et Frank Black in trio with Keren Ann and Vincent Delerm on the latter's second album, Kensington Square.
Dominique A has inspired and influenced many artists. Among them were Yann Tiersen and the Norwegian electro band, Oslo Telescopic, who named one of their albums The Dominique O Project. Lyrically, Dominique's movement away from the constraints of chanson moved many other French-speaking artists, including Miossec, Holden and Arman Méliès.
La valse boîte
Dominique A Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
C'est pour son bien qu'on lui soutire son or
Les commerciaux attaquent à grands coups de démarques
cttention aux vendeurs qui cassent la baraque
Les supermarchés sont démerdards
Quand tu veux du jambon, ils te filent du lard
Ils écrasent les prix, piétinent leurs marges
T'en sors tout abattu sans le moindre dollar... ge
Les rabais pleuvent dès que les soldes arrêtent
Quand les promotions nous prennent la tête
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Le cacao est bas et le fromage râpé
Y a des odeurs bizarres au rayon d'la marée
Le choix il est gigantesque et la viande il est varié
On sait plus quoi choisir, faut tout acheter
C'est la valse des étiquettes
Boum sur le café ! Boum sur la cacahouète !
La conjoncture ne vaut pas tripette
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Heureusement bien sûr il y a le Trésor
Qui veille sur nos sous bien après notre mort
La Bourse est volatile, la Corbeille est percée
C'est bien dommage pour nous
Les crabes sont dans le panier
C'est la valse des étiquettes
Des comptes en banque et des kilos de dettes
Quand les gens des Impôts nous font la quête
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Les garanties mutuelles
Font pas dans la dentelle
Jusqu'à nos bas de laine elles tirent les ficelles
L'éthique est au plus bas, la tendance est en hausse
Et le monde entier se vautre dans le négoce
C'est la valse des étiquettes
Un seul qui vend cent mille qui achètent
Le temps c'est de l'argent, l'argent c'est des pépettes
Valsons, valsons avec les éthiques
C'est la valse des étiquettes
Un seul qui vend, des millions qu'achètent
Le temps c'est de l'argent, l'argent c'est des pépettes
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
The song "La valse boite" by Dominique A criticizes consumerism and the manipulative tactics used by businesses. The lyrics suggest that the consumer is never wrong and that they are being taken advantage of for their own good. The commercial world aggressively promotes sales and discounts, cautioning against salespeople who deceive or trick buyers. The supermarkets are portrayed as cunning and deceptive, offering lower-quality products and crushing prices to maximize their profit margins.
The chorus, "C'est la valse des étiquettes, Les rabais pleuvent dès que les soldes arrêtent, Quand les promotions nous prennent la tête, Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes!" (It's the waltz of the price tags, Discounts rain as soon as the sales end, When promotions overwhelm us, Let's dance, dance with the price tags!), highlights the constant fluctuations in prices caused by promotional strategies. Consumers are urged to adapt and participate in this never-ending cycle of buying and discount hunting.
Further lyrics describe the overwhelming variety of choices in supermarkets, with strange smells in the seafood section and a wide selection of meat. The singer expresses confusion and a sense of being lost, unsure of what to choose and feeling compelled to buy everything.
The second verse emphasizes the flaws within economic systems. The mention of the "Trésor" (Treasury) evokes financial institutions that control and manage people's money even after their death. The volatile stock market and leaky "Corbeille" (Basket) are symbolic of instabilities and vulnerabilities in the financial world. The metaphor of crabs in the basket suggests that people are constantly fighting for their share and can easily be taken advantage of in this competitive economic environment.
In the third verse, the lyrics criticize mutual guarantees and insurance companies for their manipulative practices. They pull the strings of people's savings and rely on unethical tactics. The "world wallowing in commerce" portrays a society wholly consumed by profit-seeking behaviors, with ethics being neglected and greed taking precedence.
The final chorus stresses that time is equivalent to money, and money is all about profit. It underscores the imbalance of power between sellers and buyers, with one selling to millions who are driven by their desire to accumulate wealth. The lyrics imply that the pursuit of profit has replaced ethical values, and the world has become a place where everything is reduced to monetary worth.
Overall, "La valse boite" is a critical commentary on consumerism, greed, and the manipulative tactics employed in the economic sphere. It highlights the impact of commercial strategies on individuals, urging listeners to be aware of these dynamics and their effects on society.
Line by Line Meaning
Le consommateur n'a jamais tort
The consumer is never wrong
C'est pour son bien qu'on lui soutire son or
It's for his own good that we extract his gold
Les commerciaux attaquent à grands coups de démarques
Salespeople attack with big markdowns
Attention aux vendeurs qui cassent la baraque
Beware of salesmen who ruin everything
Les supermarchés sont démerdards
Supermarkets are crafty
Quand tu veux du jambon, ils te filent du lard
When you want ham, they give you bacon
Ils écrasent les prix, piétinent leurs marges
They crush prices, trample on their margins
T'en sors tout abattu sans le moindre dollar... ge
You come out completely beaten without a single dollar... ge
C'est la valse des étiquettes
It's the waltz of labels
Les rabais pleuvent dès que les soldes arrêtent
Discounts rain as soon as the sales end
Quand les promotions nous prennent la tête
When promotions drive us crazy
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Let's waltz, waltz with the labels!
Le cacao est bas et le fromage râpé
Cocoa is cheap and grated cheese
Y a des odeurs bizarres au rayon d'la marée
There are strange smells in the seafood section
Le choix il est gigantesque et la viande il est varié
The selection is enormous and the meat is varied
On sait plus quoi choisir, faut tout acheter
We don't know what to choose anymore, we have to buy everything
Boum sur le café ! Boum sur la cacahouète !
Boom on coffee! Boom on peanuts!
La conjoncture ne vaut pas tripette
The economic situation is worth nothing
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Let's waltz, waltz with the labels!
Heureusement bien sûr il y a le Trésor
Fortunately, of course, there is the Treasury
Qui veille sur nos sous bien après notre mort
Who watches over our money long after our death
La Bourse est volatile, la Corbeille est percée
The Stock Exchange is volatile, the Basket is punctured
C'est bien dommage pour nous
It's a shame for us
Les crabes sont dans le panier
The crabs are in the basket
Des comptes en banque et des kilos de dettes
Bank accounts and tons of debt
Quand les gens des Impôts nous font la quête
When the tax people come after us
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Let's waltz, waltz with the labels!
Les garanties mutuelles
Mutual guarantees
Font pas dans la dentelle
They don't mess around
Jusqu'à nos bas de laine elles tirent les ficelles
They pull the strings up to our piggy banks
L'éthique est au plus bas, la tendance est en hausse
Ethics are at an all-time low, the trend is rising
Et le monde entier se vautre dans le négoce
And the whole world wallows in commerce
Un seul qui vend cent mille qui achètent
One who sells, a hundred thousand who buy
Le temps c'est de l'argent, l'argent c'est des pépettes
Time is money, money is peanuts
Valsons, valsons avec les éthiques
Let's waltz, waltz with ethics
Un seul qui vend, des millions qu'achètent
One who sells, millions who buy
Le temps c'est de l'argent, l'argent c'est des pépettes
Time is money, money is peanuts
Valsons, valsons avec les étiquettes !
Let's waltz, waltz with the labels!
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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