Rinocerose
Installation Sonore
V2 Records

I identify each summer by the records I was listening to at the time: summer + records = memory. Last year it was the Sam Prekop. Airy and spyro-gyratic, it was as refreshing as a lawn sprinkler. And I love the smell of wet grass.

At the Mill Pond all those years ago, bikes dropped in the sand, I remember Brandy and Lean On Me on the radio at the lifeguard's stand. To this day, everytime I hear Bill Withers, I can still smell the suntan lotion.

Then that one summer in college, when all we listened to was Two-Tone? Concrete Jungle. Mirror in the Bathroom. Barefoot in the front yard dancing. Mayflies and june bugs and all. Summertime. Music sounds different when the days are longer. Warmer. Brighter.

But this year I was still waiting...

Why didn't anybody tell me? Here it is almost Halloween and the record that should have been blowing out while my curtains were blowing in I have to stumble upon like rollerskates in the stairway. Well the French have done it again. First it was Source Lab and Daft Punk. Then Ettienne De Crecy and that Kid Loco. And what a summer it was (97?) that I paid $10 for Stardust's Music Sounds Better With You one-sided 12" and played it incessantly. Always and over. There's nothing like French House music. French House is a happy House. It is rubberry, elasticky, Syrupy, smiley, Squishy and bouncy. It makes me want to wear wide pants and a Gilligan hat. And dance dance dance...

I hear something. Look here...comes charging.... Rinocerose.. and their Installation Sonore... they are "la guitaristic house organisation"! Yes, that's right. It has riffs and everything. 1,2,3 (!) guitares. Four if you count basse. No horns. But lots of flutes and delicious beats.

"Quel d'esastre? Mais non!!" It is, after all, still, so French. More Brigitte Bardot than Catherine Deneuve. More Tour de France than Cirque de Soleil. And more deep fun than you can imagine...

Back here the windows are open, and if you see someone out back dancing twirling head back and arms stretched laughing, that would be me. Luckily, I live in San Francisco where the summers can last until November. So throw your shoes over by the tree and let your hair down. We've got a lot of catching up to do.

(This album was released in France early last year, see our archive what Patrick wrote - editor's note)

Copyright © 2000 Alice Kenner