Just like regular music, only free.

I felt a sort of bemused trepidation when the editor of TADA Music, and my dear old friend, Tim, asked me to write a review of one of Japan’s (perhaps only) French folk/Electronic duos. I haven’t done this sort of thing in years, not since I toiled at my university paper, The Silhouette, at a breakneck pace of about 5-7 articles a week.

Still, the idea of seeing one’s name in print holds a perennial and near-universal appeal, so I dusted off that disused part of the brain that is supposed to come up with well-chosen turns of phrase, razor-sharp insight, and general wit for just such a purpose. Oh, and it’s also supposed to help me encapsulate a band’s sound and concept into something in and around 1000 words, in a manner that entices the reader to further explore the group’s work.

No problem.

Let’s start, as one usually does, with the beginning.

Their story is a simple one. Mondialito were formed in 2002, when Toshiya Fueoka, the musical core of the group, started learning to craft songs at the tender age of 15. He then spent some years playing with friends to hone his skills.

Five years later, he discovered a vocalist, Junko (vocals), who shared a similar taste in music, and Mondialito was officially formed.

An early breakthrough was when their lovely tune “Rainy Green Grass” appeared that same year on a compilation album featuring Scandanavian artists like Tore Johansson. “Rainy Green Grass” can be heard at their MySpace page, and I think it is a great introduction to their sound.

After the release of their mini-album “Note of Dawn” (one track of which was a collaboration with Johan of Club8), they began to perform in Tokyo, and it wasn’t long before their all-French, full-length album, “Avant La Pluie”, was released.

After getting some play in Korea, their self-titled album came out in 2005, which guest-starred the French artist Celine on a couple of tracks.

“Cher mon amoureux” is the name of their 4th, and most recent, album.

As to their process, Fueoka is similarly very straightforward about it.

“My music is first. Then, if Junko feels something, she starts to write lyrics.”

He claims that his influences are varied, ranging from no less than “nature and humanity”, to various artists from France, northern Europe, and the US, specifically including Hope Sandival, formerly of Mazzy Star (for those who remember “Fade Into You”), now of Hope Sandival and the Warm Inventions.

While their performances have typically centred around Tokyo, especially in the first couple of years they were together, they have also toured in Hong Kong, Korea, and Taiwan as well. They are, as yet, not very well known in French-speaking countries (although one can apparently purchase their albums in Junko’s friend’s CD shop in Paris). Their plan is to expand their fan base in these areas, and, of course, in any other parts of the world where their sound catches on. I think they might have a rougher time of it in English-speaking countries, particularly due to the maddening narrow-mindedness that seems to dictate that songs on the airwaves must contain exclusively English lyrics.

Mondialito’s unique sound offers much depth in its sheer simplicity, beyond the fact that the words are in a different language. Officially classed as acoustic/electronic/down-tempo, they are not for people looking for something to rock out to on a Saturday night. Instead, sublime, airy, and soothing are words that immediately spring. In tone, they strike a chord somewhere between the melancholy one feels sitting in a café on a rainy day, and that rainy day’s quiet optimism of renewal.

The sound is noticeably mature, and confident. Much of this is conveyed by Junko’s dreamy vocals, which are strengthened by the fact she clearly can speak the foreign languages she is using in her music. Fueoka provides the background which complements and never interferes with Junko’s singing. Overall, a very pleasing sound to wake up to on a Sunday morning, or on a nice drive along country roads (hey, I’m from Canada – most roads are country roads over here).

I would recommend starting an exploration of their work with the aforementioned “Rainy Green Grass”, and also another song called “Lavande”, both of which can be found on their MySpace site.

Their official site:
www.mondialito.net