Etienne De Crecy

Though virtually unknown outside of the continental DJ circuit, Etienne De Crecy has been an influential figure in the French electronic music for almost ten years. He was there as a behind-the-scenes man in the early days of Air and Daft Punk, and also took some critical attention for his collaboration with Cassius's Philippe Zdar, on Motorbass. With Tempovision, he shows an affinity for the sounds celebrated by his peers - '80s funk, disco, new wave and house - but it comes with none of the tacky retro fetishes that have come to be synonymous with those and other big names in the Paris scene. De Crecy is serious about what he calls digital soul, and with the help of vocalist Belita Woods, he gives it an expression that is sexy, uplifting and beautifully synthetic. His sounds ooze out on tracks like "Out of My Hands" and "Am I Wrong" and go deep and gorgeous on "When Jack Met Jill" and the title track. "3 Day Weekend" is much more raw, with its clipped-up Afrobeat guitars and kicking breaks, but like the rest of Tempovision, the upbeat lies in De Crecy's melodic electronics rather than the groove. Sweet signs of the next French wave.