French production duo Nouvelle Vague made their name in the aughts by transforming classic punk songs into bossa nova–inflected chansons fit to be played in the 6th Arrondissement, but you don’t last as long as they have based on gimmicks alone. Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux’s work consists fundamental reimaginings of what amount to standards, sturdy compositions in their own right that hardly need the frisson of recognition to work.
They’ve been on hiatus for a few years, but now they’re back with a quickie EP called Ath0l Brose, the entirety of which we’re premiering today, as well as a new video for the title track, originally by the Cocteau Twins. The EP, which features Collin and Libaux working with a live band, also contains a Dream Koala remix of the group’s take on “Love Will Tear Us Apart” that’s stripped of its gentle sashay and driven by a gnawing sense of fear more akin to the original.
Additionally, in November, Nouvelle Vague will be releasing their first new album since 2010’s Couleurs sur Paris. I Could Be Happy was also recorded with the full band, who reworked classic Nouvelle Vague material, and it includes the first non-cover in the Nouvelle Vague discography.
Stay tuned for that one, but give a listen to Athol Brose—and watch the video for the title track—below.
Athol Brose is out September 2 via Kwaidan/!K7, and both labels will release I Could Be Happy on November 4.
