From the murky depths of New York’s cultural ferment, LES CHAUDS LAPINS rise stately into view. In their hands, small devices — banjo ukuleles, that curious half breed which combines the impetuous snap of early jazz with the light charm of the ukulele. On their lips, cryptic incantations from an alternate reality — for it is the heart of the French music hall which pulses within collaborators Kurt Hoffman and Meg Reichardt.
Les Chauds Lapins present French songs of the '20s – '40s, an epoch when American jazz and swing was being absorbed into the witty, passionate, highly melodic tradition of French popular music. Their repetoire includes numbers popularized by the likes of Mistinguett, Lucienne Boyer, Edith Piaf, and in particular features suave, swing-tinged gems from the enchanted catalog of songs by the great, late Charles Trenet.
MEG REICHARDT is a Brooklyn based musician and songwriter with a passion for great old songs. Heading down the rabbit hole with Les Chauds Lapins has opened up her mind to a new world of flippant, fantastical French chanson. She can also be heard performing with Americana act The Roulette Sisters in and around the New York area. The Roulettes have two albums out,"Introducing." 2010 and "Nerve Medicine" 2005 on Soapbox Records.
KURT HOFFMAN Collecting old French 78s and learning some Charles Trenet songs began as a diverting way to pick up some French vocabulary. However, there was apparently some Gallic genie in that pile of old records. It has possessed him, causing French chanson to replace much of what had hitherto constituted Kurt’s life on earth.
Prior to his current infatuation with the banjo uke, Kurt was active as a composer, saxophonist and clarinet player. He co-led the legendary nine-piece instrumentals band, The Ordinaires, for close to a decade. Later projects included his early swing fantasy, the Band of Weeds, and various film and video scoring projects. As a sideman, he has recorded and toured extensively with They Might Be Giants, and has recorded with the Jon Spenser Blues Explosion, Boss Hog, Frank Black, Firewater, and Drink Me.
Les Chauds Lapins means literally, ‘the hot rabbits.’ Figuratively it means someone who is always turned on sexually. Usually, it refers to the guys who are always hitting on girls. This music will cause you to recklesslytry your luck.
For more information contact: info@leschaudslapins.com
