Autour de Lucie: Faux Movement : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

It's a good thing Autour De Lucie hired drummer Sebastien Buffet, because without his heavy rhythmic anchor, the Paris trio's music might have floated away forever. Buffet, who alternates between jazz business on "Lent" and a harsher industrial thud on "Je Suis Un Balancier," catches singer Valerie Lueillot's airy French-language murmuring before it goes too far. Thanks to Buffet and Tricky's old producer, Ian Caple, the band's third album has a trip-hoppy Portishead quality, with the electric rock-guitar chords of "Vide" and the buzzing factory noises of "La Condition Pour Aimer" staking claims for alternative radio play. But pumped-up special effects aside, Autour De Lucie's primary weapon remains Lueillot, a rising talent who's just a step or two away from the perfect band to match her voice.

(STEVE KNOPPER)