Pendentif Are Très Magnifique In Leeds
Published
French pop band Pendentif describe themselves as being part of a new wave of French music, influenced by English speaking bands like Metronomy and Real Estate but singing in their native language.
Prior to their gig at the Mine venue in Leeds University Union on 6th November, I gave Pendentif’s debut album, Mafia Douce, a listen – or rather, many listens. The music is incredibly catchy and feel good. Despite not fully understanding the album’s lyrics, I found myself constantly singing along.
Going to gigs always holds the risk of a sort of disillusionment and disappointment in the live quality, particularly in regards to pop as a genre. Pendentif, however, filled the small, intimate venue with high quality music, creating an incredibly atmospheric vibe. The stage lighting is reminiscent of the band’s arty and enigmatic music videos, in particular the video for the lead single, "Embrace Moi". It genuinely has the feel of being in the murky midnight blue vibe of the video, with its splashings of vibrant pop colour.
All in all, this sums up the crazy energy of Pendentif, particularly of lead singer, Julia Jean-Baptiste, who replaced the band’s original singer earlier this year. Her charisma is as enjoyable to observe as it is fun to listen to the band’s brilliant repertoire of songs. It is downright astonishing that someone can dance with such passion as she does and still be so vocally coherent.
Talking to the audience in a mixture of French and English, Julia keeps everyone on their feet, commanding us all to dance “with our guts” for the encore rendition of tirelessly fun "Embrace Moi". What is clear is that Pendentif have genuine passion for their music and appreciation for their fans. But if the band is not engaging, enthusiastic and enchanting enough, it is when people are invited up on to the stage to dance amongst the band that the gig really gets going.
Side note: as someone who actually works in the venue, I knew full well that it is definitely not allowed for people to get up on stage, but it sure took a while for security to break up this magnificent turn of events.
Pendentif whole heatedly symbolize the typical French happy-go-lucky outlook and could bring a smile onto the faces of even the most stiff-upper-lipped members of the audience. And while I’d quibble that Pendentif are particularly a pop band, though in terms of the French music scene this may be most appropriate, the gig really demonstrated fresh, interesting and unusual talent.
Words by Ellie Brown