On Écoute: Stuck in the Sound

Cartoon astronauts and ’90s heroes

Let’s begin with an origin story. Formed in Paris in 2002, indie rock band Stuck in the Sound is made up of four nostalgia-prone men in their 30s (ish): José Reis Fontao, Emmanuel Barichasse, François Ernie and Arno Bordas. It was the grungy ’90s when this quartet were in their music-hungry teens, so it’s little surprise that they cite Nirvana, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Pixies and Sonic Youth among their greatest influences.

As for their own name? It stems from a basement, of all places. Holed up au sous-sol to record, they found themselves, quite literally, stuck creating their own sound: an energetic medley of guitars, bass, drums and English-only vocals. They’ve become indie icons in their native France, but the group’s global fame is down to their trilogy of viral animated music videos.

The famously weird-and-wonderful MV for ‘Let’s Go’ (2012), featuring a stoic purple astronaut on an ill-fated mission, has garnered a jaw-dropping 65 million views on YouTube. It’s followed by the fluidly animated ‘Brother’ (2012) – another gorgeous sequence set in space – and ‘Alright’ (2019). We can hardly think of a more epic journey: from a Parisian basement to the stars.

If you like this, you might like…

ARAVAN PALACE: Fabulous French electro-swing band with several striking car toon videos. Caravan Palace. Wagram

SIAMÉS: Argentinian group known for their highly stylised animated music videos. Bounce into the Music. Kenai Records

C2C (COUPS2CROSS): Formed in Nantes in the late ’90s, C2C is a high-profile turntable band. Tetr4. On and On Records

Read more articles in the On Écoute series:
Oliva Ruiz
Indochine

From France Today Magazine