Juniore announce new album with latest single ‘Méditerranée’
Four long years on from their last full-length album release in 2020, French indie rockers Juniore have finally announced a new album, entitled Trois, Deux, Un. The album is due to be released later this year via Le Phonographe but, in the meantime, the band have treated audiences to a blistering new single, ‘Méditerranée’, to whet the appetite of rock and pop obsessives both in France and beyond.
The first thing that audiences will notice when it comes to ‘Méditerranée’ is that the Parisian outfit have stuck with their own distinctive sound, storied by heavy basslines and an effortlessly cool vocal performance by Anna Jean. This is the sound that has endeared Juniore towards audiences from their early days and, admittedly, it remains incredibly captivating – if slightly lacking in artistic development or variety.
Of course, this distinctive sound arises largely from Juniore’s vast range of influences, many of which date back to the vibrant pop scene of Paris during the 1960s. The period was a revolutionary time for pop across the globe, yet Paris seemed to foster a particularly interesting music scene at the time, best exemplified by the yé-yé girl scene, which was dominated by figures like France Gall, Françoise Hardy and Brigitte Bardot, to name a few.
Despite its distinctly retro qualities, the music of Juniore – particularly on this new track – manages to incorporate modern influences too, creating a sound which is imbued with something of a timeless quality and universal appeal. The pop optimism and jaunty piano featured on ‘Méditerranée’ are particularly effective in creating an earworm that never becomes too overbearing.
According to the band themselves, the song is “really only about describing the topless ladies at the beach in the south of France, their freedom and carefreeness”, and it certainly succeeds in capturing that atmosphere. The track is soaked in sunshine and the summer months, which makes a change from Juniore’s typically dark and moody sound heard on earlier recordings like ‘Panique’ or ‘Tout (Sinon Rien)’.
Whether or not the rest of Trois, Deux, Un will continue this newfound joy and optimism within Juniore’s songwriting remains to be seen. Either way, the newly unveiled single adds a lot of promise and a certain degree of pressure to the upcoming album. Expectedly, though, the Parisian band will deal with that promise and pressure with all the sleek stylishness that their music has become synonymous with.
Trois, Deux, Un is due to be released September 13th via Le Phonographe.
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