Ears Wide Open: Carré

Kevin Bronson on March 27th, 2020

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Carré means “square” if you take the French-to-English translation literally — not that you should when considering the first single by a trio of Los Angeles-based Frenchmen calling themselves Carré.

The dark, driving “This Is Not a Band” plumbs Euro techno, caustic industrial and angular punk to make a three-minute announcement of arrival. The concept behind the trio is better revealed by the title of the 7-inch on which the single will appear: “It’s not something that you do It’s something that happens to you.”

Carré (which, for the record, also translates as playing tight or on point) is the work of two musicians who are principally drummers and one who is principally a guitarist. “The making of our band started with this whole idea of having two drummers perform together. It felt like a statement,” says Jules de Gasperis, who over the past few years has drummed for several L.A. bands and has produced a couple of others. “We always wanted to keep people moving and tend to focus on the beats first when we write.”

De Gasperis is joined by percussionist Julien Boyé, who likewise has manned the kit for several other artists, and multi-instrumentalist Keveen Baudouin, who’s been a member of bands in the L.A. psych-rock orbit.

It’s clear they’re cutting loose as Carré. Says the band: “There’s something about not getting attached to the form, when you step back and disengage yourself from the form, you become in touch with something more pure and spiritual, while remaining in the square.”

The music video is directed by Patrick Fogarty.

||| Stream: “This Is Not a Band”