Several of the group's albums were produced by Gordon Gano, lead singer of Violent Femmes, a band which Louise Attaque often cite as an influence and for whom their own band is named: "Louise" is a feminine name, taken from Louise Michel –a french anarchist militant in France in the nineteenth century– and "attaque" connotates violence, it literally means "attack" in French –in reference of the Violent Femmes.
History
Climb to the top (1990-2001)
Caravage (1990-1994)
Lead singer and guitarist Gaëtan Roussel and bassist Robin Feix met in high school in Montargis. They moved to Paris after graduation where they met drummer Alexandre Margraff and formed a rock band : Caravage (named after the famous Italian painter Caravaggio). After briefly hiring a lead guitarist, the band met violinist Arnaud Samuel while recording in a Parisian studio.
Louise Attaque's phenomenal success (1997-2001)
Louise Attaque was formed in 1994. The name means "Louise Attacks" in French and is in reference of Louise Michel, a 19th century anarchist, and of the American rock band The Violent Femmes (which means "violent women" in French). The Violent Femmes leader, Gordon Gano, has agreed to produce Louise Attaque's debut self-titled album.
Louise Attaque was released in april 1997, receiving a strong positive critical response. Despite low initial radio airplay, the reputation of the group spread rapidly, garnering particular praise for its innovative violin-based folk/rock compositions and witty lyrics. By the end of the year, Louise Attaque had already become a phenomenon, and with the help of a highly successful tour throughout France, the band had sold more than 400 000 units. Louise Attaque eventually went on to sale an impressive 2.5 million copies in France, a record for any French rock album (even outselling Noir Désir's highly popular 666667 Club album, released in 1996).
It took almost three years until Louise Attaque 's sophomore album Comme On A Dit was released (in january 2000), still produced by Gordon Gano. The album met expectations of fans and critics alike, a complex and daring effort that still evoked Louise Attaque 's now famous trademark. It was noted, however, that Comme On A Dit was darker than the debut album, and consequently less radio friendly. It still sold 700 000 copies in France. Yet in 2001, after touring for five months and appearing in various rock festivals, the band split up, explaining that they were temporarily out of inspiration and tired of the hype and pressure surrounding them.
From separation to reunion (2001-2005)
Tarmac & Ali Dragon
Louise Attaque actually broke in two different groups. Singer Gaëtan Roussel and violinist Arnaud Samuel formed Tarmac, while bassist Robin Feix and drummer Alexandre Margraff formed Ali Dragon. Tarmac is the name of a building products company, whose name is often used to refer to asphalt (bitume in French). The group aims to explore the starker sounds of acoustic instruments, while Ali Dragon has turned towards underground experimental music featuring jam sessions (mostly electro and hip-hop).
À Plus Tard Crocodile
The four members of the group reunited in 2003 to pen a few songs, though at this point they didn't know whether they would release their material. After recording for a few weeks in the Electric Ladyland studios in New York, Louise Attaque finally decided to release a (highly anticipated) third album. À Plus Tard Crocodile was released in september 2005. The title is in reference of the rock and roll song See You Later Alligator (funnily enough, "à plus tard crocodile" is a calque of the American catchphrase, which gives an unidiomatic expression in French).
À Plus Tard Crocodile was said to be quite a departure from Louise Attaque 's previous work, a lighter and more varied album. Still, the group met with critical and chart success once again.
La Brune
Louise Attaque Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hier soir j'ai navigué dans la brume
On est allé sur les quais s'enlacer
Ce matin c'est
Donne-toi la peine de me regarder
Fais donc l'effort, l'effort de te retourner
J'ai tant de peine, tant de peine à te regarder
M'éloigner de vous, je voudrais
Hier soir, j'ai décroché la lune
Hier soir, j'ai gravi cent une dunes
J'ai même poussé jusqu'à l'odeur
D'un homme qui te revient en sueur
Et ce matin c'est
Ôte donc la tête de l'oreiller
Fais-donc chauffer le jus, s'il te plaît
Mais regarde café, t'as fait déborder
Mais m'éloigner de vous, je voudrais
M'éloigner, m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
M'éloigner, m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Ce soir je crache sur la brune
Ce soir je crache dans la brume
Ce soir je crache sur la lune
Ce soir je crache dans les dunes
Donne-toi la peine de me regarder
Fais donc l'effort, l'effort de te retourner
J'ai tant de peine, tant de peine à te regarder
Mais m'éloigner, m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Donne-toi la peine de me regarder
Fais donc l'effort, l'effort de te retourner
J'ai tant de peine, tant de peine à te regarder
Mais m'éloigner, m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Donne-toi la peine de me regarder
Fais donc l'effort, l'effort de te retourner
J'ai tant de peine, tant de peine à te regarder
Mais m'éloigner, m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
The lyrics of "La Brune" by Louise Attaque tell the story of a protagonist who has fallen in love with a woman, referred to as "la brune" (the brunette), whom they met and spent the night with. The verses describe their adventurous night together, where they roamed the streets, danced and embraced. The chorus, on the other hand, depicts how the singer struggles to get close to the woman in the morning and instead wishes to distance themselves from her.
The second verse hints at infidelity, as the singer talks about following the scent of another man on "la brune" and hints at the possibility of it being her lover. The last verse shows how the singer's feelings changed overnight, as they are now filled with hate and disgust towards "la brune" and their night together. The chorus repeats the desire to distance oneself from the situation.
Overall, "La Brune" seems to be a commentary on the aftermath of a one-night stand, where the singer struggles with their emotions and tries to distance themselves from the other person involved.
Line by Line Meaning
Hier soir, j'ai flashé sur la brune
Yesterday, I fell in love with the brunette
Hier soir j'ai navigué dans la brume
Yesterday, I sailed through the mist
On est allé sur les quais s'enlacer
We went to the quays and embraced
Ce matin c'est
This morning,
Donne-toi la peine de me regarder
Make the effort to look at me
Fais donc l'effort, l'effort de te retourner
Make the effort, effort to turn around
J'ai tant de peine, tant de peine à te regarder
It's so painful, so painful for me to look at you
Mais m'éloigner, m'éloigner. M'éloigner de vous, je voudrais
But to move away, move away. I would like to move away from you
Hier soir, j'ai décroché la lune
Yesterday, I caught the moon
Hier soir, j'ai gravi cent une dunes
Yesterday, I climbed a hundred and one dunes
J'ai même poussé jusqu'à l'odeur D'un homme qui te revient en sueur
I even pushed as far as the smell Of a man who's come back to you in sweat
Et ce matin c'est
And this morning,
Ôte donc la tête de l'oreiller
So take your head off the pillow
Fais-donc chauffer le jus, s'il te plaît
So please heat up the juice
Mais regarde café, t'as fait déborder
But look at the coffee, it's overflowing
M'éloigner de vous, je voudrais
I would like to move away from you
M'éloigner, m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
To move away, move away, move away from you
Ce soir je crache sur la brune
Tonight, I spit on the brunette
Ce soir je crache dans la brume
Tonight, I spit in the mist
Ce soir je crache sur la lune
Tonight, I spit on the moon
Ce soir je crache dans les dunes
Tonight, I spit in the dunes
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
I would like to move away from you
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
I would like to move away from you
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
I would like to move away from you
Je voudrais m'éloigner, m'éloigner de vous
I would like to move away from you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Robin Feix, Alexandre Margraff, Gaetan Roussel, Arnaud Samuel
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Laura Louna 🌓🌛
Louise attaque <3 Depuis tellement longtemps jécoute je m'en lasse pas !
dorozalski elodie
superbe chanson j'adore !!!!
Rasta Rafi
Voilà un riff de guitare qui tue !!! Bravo Louise Attaque !
The Funkloft
This band is bloody awesome!
Pala Padadouwa
Thanks for them!
They are yessssssssss🔥🔥🔥🔥😇
Thibault Clavel
La regarder en 720p fait une ENORME difference !!! Excellente chanson, merci pour le partage
Rozarka LEBOVIC
peut importe le style musical quand le talent est la sa peut que faire du bien ! louis attaque on veut du neuf !! <3
Pralinette Amandine
Trop bien cette musique :3♥ Louise Attaque... ♥♥
BickyBik
Moi j'avais directement crâmé l'histoire (si je peux m'exprimer ainsi... ;D) Et oui ça prend vraiment tout son sens... La Brune...
Anarchips
Oh ça me rappelle tellement de souvenirs