French Trio Apollonia Show Us What's Up Their Sleeve

Apollonia seem to present France’s answer to the gaping hole in popular house music left by Swedish House Mafia. But that's not the case. Three french DJs, Dan Ghenacia, Dyed Soundorom and Shonky collaboratively produce and create the sound of Apollonia, but that is where the similarities to SHM end, and ‘Tour à Tour’ is proof of this.

The french trio's album is out now

 

Tour à Tour means to take turns or alternate – most obviously because the three gents each pick up the baton in turns to complete the relay race of each set. But it means more than just the logistics of their performance. The album is very fluid, the tracks melt into each other, the tribalistic house beats being the base of each different track. The boys play with the ritual feel of house music and make you want to dance to the treble-y disco vibes they layer on top.

The animalistic, hypnotic nature of house music is evident in the boys’ work, something that relaxes and hypes at the same time, the repetitiveness of the beat and sci-fi other worldliness taking the listener to a higher yet more grounded space in which to dance. Apollonia seem fully conscious of this, the three of them using instinct to mould their individual sounds together into something that prompts movement; a tapping foot, a lazily flailed arm or bobbing head on the dancefloor. The album is a journey of escapism.

Here’s their excellent three hour boiler room set for MixMag: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=ltVADtnqDJg  

The group themselves say that ‘the music [they] play holds no boundaries of time, respecting music old and new.’ The sound is familiar, at times like the house music played in chic and overpriced cocktail bars, but more likely a deep techno version of the genre expected in the side room of a warehouse club, you know, where the good music happens, the place the hoards are too wasted to find.

If you’re not a fan of electronic music, then maybe this is not the album for you. I love music with words, I love to sing a long, but there is no denying that this kind of dance music has a definite time and place. For me Apollonia suits many an atmosphere. I’ll be listening out for these guys in Leeds - I have not doubt that a full dancefloor bouncing and pumping to these guys would be fantastic!

Tour à Tour’ by Apollonia is out now and available from the
iTunes store. Apollonia
Soundcloud page. Words by Graeme Du Plessis

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