French House
A French house style built on filtered disco samples and heavy electronic effects.
History
French house, also called French touch, appeared in Paris in the mid-1990s s1. Producers took short parts of old disco and funk records and passed them through filters and effects s1. A filter is a tool that cuts some frequencies, making a sound seem to move closer or further away s1. Daft Punk's 'Da Funk' (1995) was an early international hit on the Scottish label Soma s2. Stardust's 'Music Sounds Better With You' (1998) and Cassius's '1999' became worldwide successes s1. The music mixed disco, funk and house with a playful, homemade feel s1. Many of the records were released on small French labels such as Roulé and Ed Banger s1. French house shaped later electro house and much of the dance-pop that followed s1. The records were often made in home studios with samplers and drum machines. French house also influenced pop music and the sound of later electro house s1.
Sound
- Filtered, looped disco and funk samples
- A strong, repeating bass groove
- Warm, compressed and slightly dirty sound
- Vocoder or filtered vocals
- Playful, retro-disco mood
Key figures
- Daft Punk — Duo of Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo
- Cassius — Parisian duo behind '1999'
- Stardust — One-off group behind 'Music Sounds Better With You'
- Étienne de Crécy — French producer and label owner
Labels
- Roulé — Paris , 1995
- Soma Records — Glasgow , 1991
Defining tracks
Connections
Came from: Disco , Chicago House , Funk and Boogie
Led to: Electro House , Pop Deep House
Sources
- French house — Wikipedia
- The history of French house sound — XLR8R