The name of the guy behind the stage name St Germain is Frenchman Ludovic Navarre. Surprisingly since the album Boulevard, released in July 1995, this new self titled St Germain set is just his third under that name. 2000's Tourist launched the brand into the United States and sold over4 million copies worldwide. Navarre has also contributed to other projects and under other aliases.
Perhaps piggy-backing on a growing interest in African music, St Germain leans heavily in the direction of the music of Mali, featuring instruments like the Kora, Balafon and n'goni, along with haunting and mesmerising vocals straight out of a desert landscape. The combination of Navarre's beats, piano, guitars, saxes and electronic loops with the sounds of Africa is a heady and compelling mix. While the African influence is the primary theme of St Germain, there are other interesting directions travelled. For instance bluesman Lightnin' Hopkins leaps out of the speakers on Real Blues while another bluesman, Robert Burnside, is sampled on How Dare You.
If you had the pleasure of being at this year's Womad festival in New Plymouth and enjoyed the African performers Bombino, Youssou N'Dour or father and son Kora maestros Toumani and Sidiki Diabate, you will find St Germain's eponymous album a stunning mix of the passionate African sounds mashed with the beats and subtle touches that Navarre is renowned for. Once inside your head you will find it very difficult to contemplate any musical alternatives for quite some time.
