Rough Guide to the Music of France

The Rough Guide To The Music Of France embraces a bewildering array of styles. This excellent introduction typically fulfils the stereotypes of spidering accordions and husky, ear-licking vocals, but there are also representatives from every corner of the country, sometimes sung in languages or dialects that you've never heard before. These diverse folk forms from within France are mingled with relatively recent cultural imports from North Africa and beyond. The selection's authoritatively compiled by radio producer and journalist Guillaume Veillet, from Grenoble. Les Ogres De Barback manage to take traditional elements and upset them with a dynamic punk spirit, while Lo'Jo do the same by creating a catchy-chorus pop sensibility. The Massilia Sound System fuses hip-hop scratching with Occitan (southern) folk traditions and La Talvera retain a determinedly grainy, authentic feel. Meanwhile, Les Primitifs Du Futur feature a fruitful meeting between cartoonist R. Crumb and two North African guests, and Bagad Men Ha Tan and Doudou N'Diaye Rose combine Breton small piping with Senegalese drumming. If that's not enough already, there's also Corsican choral polyphony, some hurdy gurdy introspection, gypsy jazz guitars and vintage material from the more obvious Edith Piaf and Ferre. --Martin Longley