Arena Open Air live
La Femme: A casual, Francophile summer disco
The French synth-pop-psych band La Femme wowed around 2500 fans on Monday evening at the open-air site of the Vienna Arena. Between self-confident experimentation and accessible indie pop, there wasn't a piece of paper that didn't fit, and the band delivered an exalted stage show that not only woke up dance fans.
If you're looking for the best open-air sound for the fast-approaching summer, you'll find it this Monday evening in the Vienna Arena. The French collective La Femme has been the band of the moment in electronic indie circles for some time now and now fills large halls and impressive open-air venues. The exclusive Austrian gig was originally planned for the large hall of the Arena, but due to the immense demand it quickly became an open-air event. And in a suitably coordinated setting. The pleasant crowd of around 2,500 attendees ensures that people don't step on each other's toes and still have a collective experience. And - not so usual for arena open airs - the weather also holds out and the evening sun leads into a pleasant spring night, which proves to be the perfect cloak for the light-footed sounds of the French.
No room for boundaries
La Femme began making music in 2010 under the auspices of keyboardist Marlon Magnée and guitarist Sacha Got, two former art students with similar musical visions, and have continued to bring new musicians on board in order to put these broad ideas into practice. While their debut album "Psycho Tropical Berlin" (2013) was still largely experimental, over the years La Femme increasingly found their way into a poppier direction, without forgetting to try things out and test new things. They know no boundaries. For example, "Teatro Lúcido" was recorded entirely in Spanish in 2022, "Paris-Hawaï" (2023) showed the band's psychedelic-pop style again and the next album is already being finalized, as Magnée revealed to us in the "Krone" interview before the concert. "The album should be out in fall 2024. This time it will be in English and show another facet of the band."
They also prove that musical walls are there to be torn down during their lively show in front of a Francophile audience in the arena. The aesthetics range from cowboy hats and Elvis chops to Parisian 60s schoolgirl chic, musically the keyboards are strangled and modulated ad nauseam and the stage acting encourages stage diving and constant interaction with the fans. Catchy songs such as "Ciao Paris", "Aloha Baby" or the hit "Sur la planche" sound from the speakers, some of which are played at twice the speed of the album, while others are spread out with expansive instrumental stretches. The new mixes with the old, the psychedelic with the catchy, the weirdly European with an American-style dotted order in the versatile arrangements.
Overcoming fear
Keyboarder and singer Magnée is sympathetic to the increasing and currently never-ending hype. "We have better lighting on stage, can travel in tour buses instead of stuttering around in vans and have significantly upgraded the whole live aspect." In any case, there are just as few limits in the creative band leader's mind as there are in his music. "I imagine a huge female statue at the back of the stage with laser effects shooting out of her eyes - that's how I'd like to visualize the songs. People will still dream and be allowed to dream, and adding a suitable visual layer to the songs is very important to me." Magnée thinks broadly and comprehensively. "During the pandemic, we were really worried about whether we would get back on track. I didn't have a plan B either. Maybe I would have done cover artwork for other artists, even though I'm not a graphic designer. I'm glad we came out of the pandemic so strong."
At the live performance in Vienna, La Femme impressed with a well-balanced mixture of unrestrained explosiveness and dreamy soundscapes. "We write sad and happy songs, but a somewhat romantic, perhaps dreamy mood always runs through us. We are big dreamers ourselves and these songs are born out of these characteristics." La Femme are nowhere near as big as their successful compatriots Jean-Michel Jarre, Air or Daft Punk, but the inspiration for their own sound is found beyond the country's borders anyway. "I've always been very impressed by the Velvet Underground, Kraftwerk and the Sex Pistols. You can find all these elements in our music because they flow out of us naturally." He is not deterred by the popularity of French electronic sounds. "We do what we think is right. Maybe one day we'll sound completely different. A lot of people also claim that the French have bad taste in music - maybe they're right?"
Creativity from the opposition
Magnée's understatement should, of course, be taken ironically. La Femme also gave a concert in the Vienna Arena exactly ten years ago - but at the time it went very unnoticed in the small hall. Magnée remembers this on the pompous open-air stage and shares the anecdote with the fans. It is also interesting to note that the catchy, flowing songs are basically born out of a serious opposition. "Sacha and I have fundamentally different ideas and discuss them very often," says Magnée, "but we also know when it's good and when a song sounds best for the people out there. The fact that La Femme are currently on the cusp between the mainstream and the indie world appeals to the blond musician. "A certain unpredictability is nice in order to stay relevant and not lose excitement. It's extremely important to me to create timeless music that isn't stuck in a particular decade." The performance in the arena certainly proves that this band was born for summer live parties. A reunion is definitely recommended.
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