On June 20th Simo Cell returns with four tracks of party smashing daft funk and ed banging house jackers. Across ‘FL Louis’ the next gen Gallic God looks back in order to go forward, influenced by French Touch and Bloghouse, using those as a springboard to deliver his singular new take. Switching up his style in the process, the EP marks another distinct chapter in a dust-free career, characterised by a knack for keeping it fresh and interesting, whilst still sounding decidedly Simo.
“Though I’m strongly tied to the UK scene, I’m Not a Bass Artist, and I’ve recently felt a need to reconnect with my teenage musical roots. Classic French dance music shaped my childhood, as it did for many millennials, and I’ve been weaving more of it into my DJ sets. In the studio, I’ve been exploring minimalism, building tracks with just a few elements for a stripped-down feel. It’s rooted in the rough, abrasive textures of French artists’ contribution to the Bloghouse era, and the robotic, funky ideas of the first wave of French Touch, but blending it with modern rhythms. I see it as what those scenes could sound like in 2025. This project is my way of carrying the legacy forward, and hopefully I do it justice.” Simo Cell
For this new phase, Simo introduces the world to a new friend; a guttural, croaking mechanoid creature know as FL Louis, who delivers what can very loosely be described as vocals (think Cookie Monster armed with a vocoder, strep throat, and a bottle of poppers). On their first meeting, Simo recounts, “I never force a direction – the music shapes itself, and over time, a distinct aesthetic emerged, with electro funk voices evoking a trippy, psychedelic creature. From these sounds emerged FL Louis – an android, formant-heavy voice that’s more than just a sound – it’s a character, and a real puppet, embodying the voice of this music. FL Louis’ journey will unfold through video clips, inspired by the raw creativity of 2000s era music videos, and reaching further back too, to Charles the Dog and Flat Eric. After all, the late ‘90s and early 2000s weren’t just about music – they were also a golden era of iconic visuals, creatures, and mascots.”
Following the acclaimed 2023 concept album ‘Cuspide Des Sirènes’, ‘FL Louis’ places Simo squarely back in the club, with certified dancefloor bangers already road-tested and smashed by friends Ben UFO, Mad Miran, Verraco and DJ Python. Banging the walls with reckless abandon, in a moshpit with zero space for posing, where selfie takers catch an elbow to the bouche, the EP evokes simpler, more carefree times, of booze-soaked pub raves and indoor smoking, when social media was less malign, and phones spent more time in pockets.
The unhinged undulating robocroak and thwacking toms of ‘Circuits’ kicks off – adding a soupçon of Jerzey drums and Relief-era Chicago to the French cuisine – followed in equally charged fashion with the bouncy, high voltage, almost-grime-like machine funk and squashed squelchy voice of ‘Rushin’. A sideways take on the housier, groovier end of the spectrum is ‘Paris Funk Express’, where g-funk meets Mitsubishis, still featuring Simo’s cyborg critter, this time hyping the crowd with unintelligible munchkin madness. Ending proceedings on a slightly different note is the neck-breaking boom bap slap and sharp 909 riffs of ‘Oh No’ – Simo’s direct response to the classic Homework track ‘Oh Yeah’, revamping it in a trap meets ghetto tech style.
Simo Cell – FL Louis
Vinyl / download / stream
June 20th
TEMƎT Music
Track list:
Circuits
Rushin’
Paris Funk Express
Oh No!
Live & DJ dates:
May 9th – Cryst4l Visi0ns, Atlanta (DJ)
May 10th – Podlasie, Chicago (DJ)
May 16th – Lulo, Nashville (DJ)
May 17th – Nowadays, New York (live)
May 22th – Askip, Nantes (DJ)
May 29th – Nuits Sonores, Lyon (live with Abdullah Miniawy)
May 30th – Panke Gallery, Berlin (DJ)
Jun 6th – Privamera Festival (live)
June 20th – Solstice Festival, Kuusamo (B2B CCL) (DJ)
June 27th – Les siestes électroniques, Toulouse (live)
Jul 11th – Atelier Bitch, Nantes (DJ)
Jul 12th – Cassius Club @ Francofolies, La Rochelle (DJ)
Jul 26th – Polifonic Festival, Valle D’itria (DJ)
Jul 31st – Dekmantel (live with Abdullah Miniawy)
Stay tuned at Futuristic Tracks of the Week selection and Listen to Simo Cell’s new music first
photo credit: Hotel Reine
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