Search - Massilia Sound System :: 3968 Cr13

It might be hard to visualize a white French band doing justice to dancehall music, but due to hard work and a steady output of material, the Marseilles quintet Massilia Sound System can hold their head high. In fact, the band's previous album, Marseilles London Experience, was a collaboration with the mighty Mad Professor and the phenomenal Robotics band. Massilia Sound System's 10th album, 3968 CR13, finds these self-proclaimed "troubbamuffins" again fusing dancehall with elements of French café music, in addition to rock and Middle Eastern melodies. The 19 songs are sung in French, but the lyrical flow is rhythmically solid and vocally dynamic even if you have no idea what they are saying. The backing tracks are tasteful as well, as the beats never get too hyperactive and the background textures never become too one dimensional. As this is the band's first album to see stateside distribution, this is an opportunity to hear something out of the ordinary, if a bit obscure. ?-Tad Hendrickson