Louise Attaque

French folk-rock quartet Louise Attaque rose among the standout newcomers of their era on the strength of an award-winning self-titled debut LP released in 1997. Singer/guitarist Gaëtan Roussel and bassist Robin Feix first crossed paths as schoolchildren through a shared fixation on popular music. While attending school in Paris, they assembled Caravage and recruited drummer Alexandre Margraff for gigs on the local nightclub circuit. A lengthy acoustic tour followed, after which the three returned to Paris and added violinist Arnaud Samuel, whose string parts signaled their move toward denser, folk-rooted melodic lines. Taking the name Louise Attaque, the quartet cut its first demo and resumed touring. A breakthrough slot at the Printemps de Bourges festival led to a contract with Atmosphériques, prompting a trip to Brussels to record the debut with producer Gordon Gano of American college-rock legends Violent Femmes. The self-titled album appeared in April 1997 and built a grassroots following that ultimately exceeded 2.5 million copies sold despite restrained marketing. A repeat appearance at Printemps de Bourges and a three-night stand at Paris’ La Cigale further expanded their audience. At the Victoires de la Musique awards in early 1999, Louise Attaque received Best Group of the Year honors, intensifying expectations for the 2000 follow-up, Comme on a Dit. Though the second album largely retained the debut’s blueprint, it delivered a sharper sonic edge and matched its commercial performance. Eschewing standard tour promotion, the band instead assembled a traveling festival bill that included Mickey 3D, Cornu, Les Wampas, and U.S. act 16 Horsepower. At year’s end the group entered hiatus; Roussel and Samuel then issued the acoustic album L’Atelier as the duo Tarmac, while Feix and Margraff recorded an electronic project under the name Ali Dragon. After spending much of 2004 tracking material at New York City’s Electric Ladyland, Louise Attaque released their third album, A Plus Tard Crocodile, in fall 2005, adding electronica and reggae touches absent from earlier work. In 2006 they issued the live album En Concert – Y’a t’il quelqu’un ici? Their first Best of compilation, Du monde tout autour, followed in 2011.