Etron Fou Leloublan Biography
French art-rock unit Etron Fou Leloublan -- roughly translated, "Mad Sh*t, the White Wolf" -- was formed in 1974 by vocalist Eulalie Ruynat, bassist/vocalist Ferdinand Richard, saxophonist Chris Chanet, and drummer Guigou Chenevier. A product of the Rock in Opposition coalition -- a loose collective of British and Western European artists, spearheaded by Henry Cow, that openly challenged the commercial, creative, and sociopolitical aims of mass-market popular music -- Etron Fou Leloublan boasted a frenzied, densely rhythmic approach ably captured by their 1976 debut LP, Batelages. Saxophonist Francis Grand replaced Chanet for the 1978 follow-up, Les Trois Fou's Perdégagnent (Au Pays Des...); a brief 1979 tour of the U.S. yielded the live disc En Public au Etats-Unis d'Amerique. Bernard Mathieu assumed saxophone duties and singer/multi-instrumentalist Jo Thirion replaced Ruynat for 1982's Fred Frith-produced Les Poumons Gonfles, with yet another saxophonist -- Bruno Meillier -- signing on for 1984's Les Sillons de la Terre. That same year, a longtime Etron Fou Leloublan rule that the members could not participate in musical projects outside the group's ranks was lifted, and both Richard and Chenevier recorded solo efforts; the former teamed with Sophie Jausserand for A l'Abri des Micro-Climats, while the latter partnered with the celebrated cellist Tom Cora for En Avant. Chenevier concurrently formed a second group, Encore Plus Grande, while Richard moonlighted with Alfred Harth in Gestalt et Jive. Having apparently had their fill of revolving saxophonists, Richard, Chenevier and Thirion recorded 1985's Face aux Eléments Déchainés as a three-piece; the LP was the final Etron Fou Leloublan recording, with 1991's three-disc 43 Songs collecting the entirety of the group's studio output. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
Popular Biographies:
Whiplash Biography: Perhaps best remembered for consisting of three guys named Tony: Tony Portaro (vocals, guitar), Tony Bono (bass), and Tony Scaglione, as well as the fact that the latter temporarily replaced drummer...
Deathrow Biography: A prototypical example of '80s Teutonic thrash, Deathrow followed in the footsteps of countrymen like Destruction, Sodom, and Iron Angel, only with far more modest commercial results....
Small brown bike Biography: Growing up together in Marshall, MI, the members of Small Brown Bike have been friends, bandmates, and minor bike mechanics the majority of their lives. When brothers Mike and Ben Reed (vocals/guitar...
Spill canvas Biography: Meet Nick Thomas--the 19 year-old singer, songwriter and mastermind of the Spill Canvas. Born and raised in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Thomas has been turning his rural experiences into pop-rock...
Roxanne Biography: Roxanne is not so much one artist but a general tag given to several female rappers and singers who made independently released reactions to U.T.F.O.'s hit single "Roxanne, Roxanne." The song...
Climax blues band Biography: Led by Colin Cooper, the former frontman of the R&B unit the Hipster Image, the Stafford, England-based Climax Chicago Blues Band was one of the leading lights of the late-1960s blues boom. A sextet...
Rza Biography: The Wu-Tang Clan's chief producer, RZA (aka the Abbott, Prince Rakeem, the Rzarector, and Bobby Steels) was born Robert Diggs; he first surfaced during the early '90s as a member of the rap unit All...
Maeror tri Biography: The German-based guitar trio Maeror Tri was active between 1988 and 1996. Well known in the industrial cassette underground, the group was about to break into the growing experimental electronica...