Biography
Centered around siblings Philippe and Hervé Lomprez, the enduring French cold wave outfit Trisomie 21—commonly shortened to T21—has remained active since the early 1980s, moving between brooding experimental post-punk and a more dance-oriented synth-pop approach. Formed in 1981, the group adopted its name directly from the medical designation for the extra chromosome responsible for Down syndrome. At the outset the Lomprez brothers were augmented by keyboardist and manager Jean-Michel Matuszak together with bassist Pascal Tison, drawing sonic inspiration from somber post-punk outfits such as Joy Division and the Cure as well as the boundary-pushing work of the Residents and Yello. Stechak, a Belgian imprint, issued the band’s first mini-album, Le Repos des Enfants Heureux, in 1983. For the 1984 full-length Passions Divisées, Laurent Dagnicourt took over on bass. Retaining the keyboard-centric experimentation while foregrounding the rhythm section, that record introduced the haunting “La Fête Triste,” which later became one of the group’s signature pieces.
After two well-received Belgian shows, T21 joined the Brussels industrial/goth label Play It Again Sam, sharply raising its profile. PIAS’s short-lived Scarface subsidiary put out the 1985 EP Wait & Dance, which preceded the 1986 album Chapter IV: Le Je-Ne-Sais-Quoi et le Presque Rien and its standout track “The Last Song.” A re-recorded and remixed edition of the album surfaced in 1987, the same year Million Lights appeared on the main PIAS roster once Scarface ceased operations. Recorded solely by the Lomprez brothers without a bassist, the latter set leaned far more heavily electronic than prior efforts. Works arrived in 1988, marking guitarist Bruno Objoie’s first appearance; he also contributed to the atmospheric Plays the Pictures (1989) and the live set Raw Material (1990).
Distant Voices, issued in 1992, incorporated Tuxedomoon violinist Blaine Reininger and backing vocalist Lena Kane as the band explored jazz, pop, and cinematic textures, yielding some of its most unconventional yet accessible material. Label conflicts nevertheless postponed the next studio album for several years. After three compilation CDs, the ambient-leaning Gohohako (1987) closed T21’s association with PIAS.
Following a period of inactivity, the group resurfaced in 2003 when asked to remix Indochine’s “Le Grand Secret.” Le Maquis released the comeback album Happy Mystery Child in 2004, after which a succession of remix collections appeared featuring producers from the techno, electro, and EBM communities. In 2007 Alfa Matrix issued the live recording Rendez-Vous en France, with certain editions bundling a disc of early rarities and demos. Black Label, T21’s final Le Maquis release in 2009, ranked among its denser, more propulsive outings.
Assuming their tour had concluded, the Lomprez brothers nevertheless reconvened in the studio during 2017, with original bassist Tison participating on several sessions. Their own Chromo Music Production label issued Elegance Never Dies before year’s end, prompting European dates in support. Concurrently, the U.S. imprint Dark Entries unveiled Chapter I-IV, a vinyl box compiling expanded versions of the band’s first four albums, which were also made available separately. In 2018 the group further released Originally, a three-CD anthology of early material.
After two well-received Belgian shows, T21 joined the Brussels industrial/goth label Play It Again Sam, sharply raising its profile. PIAS’s short-lived Scarface subsidiary put out the 1985 EP Wait & Dance, which preceded the 1986 album Chapter IV: Le Je-Ne-Sais-Quoi et le Presque Rien and its standout track “The Last Song.” A re-recorded and remixed edition of the album surfaced in 1987, the same year Million Lights appeared on the main PIAS roster once Scarface ceased operations. Recorded solely by the Lomprez brothers without a bassist, the latter set leaned far more heavily electronic than prior efforts. Works arrived in 1988, marking guitarist Bruno Objoie’s first appearance; he also contributed to the atmospheric Plays the Pictures (1989) and the live set Raw Material (1990).
Distant Voices, issued in 1992, incorporated Tuxedomoon violinist Blaine Reininger and backing vocalist Lena Kane as the band explored jazz, pop, and cinematic textures, yielding some of its most unconventional yet accessible material. Label conflicts nevertheless postponed the next studio album for several years. After three compilation CDs, the ambient-leaning Gohohako (1987) closed T21’s association with PIAS.
Following a period of inactivity, the group resurfaced in 2003 when asked to remix Indochine’s “Le Grand Secret.” Le Maquis released the comeback album Happy Mystery Child in 2004, after which a succession of remix collections appeared featuring producers from the techno, electro, and EBM communities. In 2007 Alfa Matrix issued the live recording Rendez-Vous en France, with certain editions bundling a disc of early rarities and demos. Black Label, T21’s final Le Maquis release in 2009, ranked among its denser, more propulsive outings.
Assuming their tour had concluded, the Lomprez brothers nevertheless reconvened in the studio during 2017, with original bassist Tison participating on several sessions. Their own Chromo Music Production label issued Elegance Never Dies before year’s end, prompting European dates in support. Concurrently, the U.S. imprint Dark Entries unveiled Chapter I-IV, a vinyl box compiling expanded versions of the band’s first four albums, which were also made available separately. In 2018 the group further released Originally, a three-CD anthology of early material.
Albums
