Phoenix, the French band have been making music for quite a while now ... well, just about ten years give or take a month or 4. They have enjoyed a huge following of fans since the beginning - simply trillions of them, not only from France but worldwide.
Listening to music over the years I stumbled upon Phoenix during my very early adventures through myspace - it was about 4 years ago and I have been a member of the fan trillion-hood since.
I never understood why Phoenix weren't taken seriously by the UK music industry & press. They weren't particularly noticed and I don't think the British public were ever exposed to their wonderful alternative pop on daytime airwaves or prime radio listening hours. If they had radio play, probably at 2 o'clock in the morning when grannies with insomnia were drinking warm cocoa! Because of course radio bods know only too well that grannies are up at that time drinking cocoa and might like to listen to French bands!!! Erm...?
Anyway, it seems a miracle has occurred! UK radio has recently been flying the French flag for pop! Hooray! They've finally realised that Phoenix are actually quite good and have been playing tracks from their latest album 'Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix' (which incidentally was released spring '09). I even had the surprise of my life when I heard Phoenix on the radio in Bucharest(still not to be confused with the Romanian 70’s folk /rock band). Seems that to be a popular band in Europe you’re named after a mythological bird!
Why has this miracle happened on the airwaves after such a long drawn out period of ‘not getting’ the fact some people like to hear more of this band? TV advertising campaigns of course! Who had ever heard of Jose Gonzales before Sony Bravia and their clever bouncing balls?
In the UK, Swedish artists are cool, Icelandic artists are very cool, if you're a band from Norway, chances are you are cool and if you're an artist that's blessed because Baltimore or Seattle in the US of A is where you come from, then you'll be honoured by wearing the sash with 'the in thing', emblazoned in large print (for the sake of the elderly again, so that they can see the wording).
Phoenix and their 'Frenchness' (I know it's not a correct word but just humour me), took awhile to get in to the industry’s psyche and still it's questionable as to whether they would be considered hip, cool or 'the in thing' by the British music industry, probably because unlike Baltimore, or parts of Scandinavia, Versailles is... in France!
Who cares where good music comes from? Most of the music loving population would agree that it doesn't actually matter. Unfortunately the 'industry' is slow on these matters. I'm thrilled that Phoenix has been noticed in Britain and if it's mainly due to advertising campaigns thrusting products such as washing machines, cleaning products, or fast cars in my face whilst watching TV, then so be it. Furthermore, it's nice to know that Mr & Mrs. J. Public like what he or she hears; make their own educated decisions, their own judgement on personal musical (and normally quite sophisticated & varied) taste and subsequently find, then go straight to the source of good music and become a consumer - rather than being kept in the dark ages, which the industry would prefer us to stay. A win win situation all around and a lesson for the music industry bods?
Hmmmm, one thinks not!!!
http://www.wearephoenix.com/
2 comments:
Phoenix was noticed in Romania, also. You can here them on Radio Guerrilla. My favorite? hmm...Run, run, run.
Yeah, I heard them on Guerilla too:) 'Fences' from Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - great.'It's Never Been Like That' album & the track Consolation Prizes are winners for me too.
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