Meadow Lane Park

by Le SuperHomard

Overview

After releasing the very promising MapleKey EP in 2016, the French band Le SuperHomard were positioned as the next great band in the tradition of Stereolab, Broadcast, and the High Llamas. 2019's Meadow Lane Park makes good on that promise and should please anyone who ever loved the kind of retro-looking, futuristic-sounding pop those bands made in their prime. With songs written, played, and produced by Christophe Vaillant, then sung by Julie Big in breathlessly soft tones, the album is a gentle musical hug that plays on nostalgic strings, but also adds something special -- and perhaps left over from his days playing power pop in the Strawberry Smell -- to the template. Despite their rounded edges and pillowy production, the songs on the album have hooks sharp enough to draw blood. Up-tempo tracks like "Paper Girl" or the title track have a snappy strut that's almost gleeful, the bouncy mid-tempo songs have a sweet, ambling appeal -- especially the lovely "Springtime," which feels like the soundtrack for snow melting and buds appearing on trees -- and the ballads have a pocket Bacharach feel about them that's quite alluring. The combination of the strings, vintage synths, burbling bass lines, and Big's aching vocal on "Door After Door" and "Refuel" show that the band really have a grip on how to construct a ballad for maximum sonic and emotional impact. Vaillant's skills as an arranger are evident throughout as he fills the mixes with just the right synth sound, stately piano run, clunky drum machine, or swooping organ line. It's about as lush as one could imagine, but also has a nice homemade feel, which isn't surprising considering he made the record after hours at the record shop where he works. Meadow Lane Park is unlikely to make anyone forget High Llamas or the Cardigans -- another fine band they are reminiscent of -- but any song here would sound drop-dead perfect next to them on a play list or mixtape. That's heady praise, but Le SuperHomard earn it. ~ Tim Sendra

Product Details

Release Date:	03/01/2019
Label:	Elefant
UPC:	8428846112381
Rank:	94303

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Le SuperHomard   Primary Artist
Remi Saboul   Bells,Guitar,Mellotron,Guitar Effects
David Fincher   Violin
Sylvain Rabourdin   Violin
Christophe Vaillant   Guitar,Keyboards,Percussion,Synthesizer,Vocals (Background)
Olivier Vaillant   Bass,Drums,Percussion
Benoit Pithon   Guitar,Synthesizer,Piano (Grand)
Julie Big   Vocals

Technical Credits

Remi Saboul   Composer
Benjamin Joubert   Mastering
Christophe Vaillant   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Group Member,Drum Programming,String Arrangements
Benoit Pithon   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Group Member,Drum Programming
Pandora Burgess   Composer
Julie Big   Group Member
Laurent Elfassy   Group Member
Yoanna Claquin   Composer
Thomas Rivello   Group Member