The Paris Music Scene

If you are in Paris and want to check out the hottest music trends, there is no need to score tickets to a hot concert or seek out the coolest live music venue. Find instead, the chic hôtel, lounge, café, or bar whose DJs spin trendy tunes. Not in Paris? Not a problem. Just buy some compact disc compilations, and you’ll be all set.  I am not a great music connoisseur. I am usually unable to tell you who sings the hottest new song on the radio, or even what the hottest new song may be. I at least know that Daft Punk is huge in France, as they are an internationally successful band and they are French. But other than that, I can’t tell you much about individuals or songs that are on the cutting edge in the French capital. It is hard to miss however, a certain genre of albums that have had wild success over the past few years, and have seemed to exponentially grow in the past year alone: those Paris café or lounge compilations.  These are CDs put out by the hottest and trendiest restaurants that also confusingly serve as hôtels, lounges, cafés, or bars. Just to name a few, the list includes such posh venues as Buddha Bar (where Jack Nicholson is said to have worked the door one night for fun), Hôtel Costes (known to be the favorite of Madonna) and Man Ray (co-owners include Johnny Depp, John Malkovitch, and Sean Penn).  These places are not only or not necessarily known for their cuisine, but for their ambiance—and music is what creates an important part of that ambiance. DJs create that music, which is then packaged into compilations, ready to purchase at a Virgin Megastore or FNAC near you.  The ambiance music trend began a few years ago, and DJs from the famed Buddha Bar and Hôtel Costes appear to be the pioneers in creating the compilation CDs. The first trendy thing that the designer bars did was to hire DJs to mix tunes—live—several nights a week, resulting in a jet-set crowd clamoring to get in the door. The popularity of this move was soon evident, and owners and managers realized they could sell the music in order to please the clientele who were asking for the mixes, and as a way of branding their restaurant. This sparked the current barrage of CD compilations. Every trendy bar and exclusive hôtel is entering the CD music market to capture some cash and build its brand name, hoping to brew some individuality and loyal customers as well. When Buddha Bar opened in 1996, it brought new glitz to one of Paris’ most chi-chi arrondissements (the 8th) and immediately jetted onto the A-list as one of Europe’s top nightspots. Buddha Bar’s ambiance and attraction became popular in large part due to Parisian DJ Claude Challe. His first two Buddha Bar CDs opened up the lounge compilation market, and he is regarded by many as the most famous bar DJ in the world. His style experiments with New Age and mystical sounds while tapping into the latest lounge music. The Hôtel Costes series, DJ’d by Stephane Pompougnac, “perfected the sway ‘n’ chill formula,” creating “Euroswank heaven,” according to Entertainment Weekly. Thus, a cottage industry of compilation albums was born, as every swanky Parisian hangout hired DJs who mixed world, electronic, and lounge grooves, creating the ultimately chic atmosphere, and later, a soundtrack.  These compilations are so prolific that entire music store sections have been devoted to them. In the French Virgin Megastores you can go to the Pop section, Jazz section, or Lounge Compilations section. In the latter, the sumptuously designed CD packages march row upon row. The Hôtel Costes collection is up to 5. Both Buddha Bar and Barfly offer 4 CDs. Café del Mar, while not a Parisian institution, is the front runner in terms of being prolific: the trendy hotspot has recently released its 9th compilation, and the CDs are wildly popular in Paris. Amongst other Parisian night spots who have their own CDs are La Mezzanine de l’Alcazar, Man Ray, Maxim’s, the Plaza, Café Latina, Barrio Latino, and others. As well, there are compilations of lounge music, venue-neutral, such as discs entitled Champs Élysées Café or Paris Nights.   The CDs are the perfect ambiance for dinner parties or a late night soirée with friends, but visiting one of these hot spots in Paris isn’t out of your league either, the clientele can be quite diverse and includes models, mavens, tourists, social-climbing backpackers, and average Joe Shmoes. It’s the music that brings the masses together. Bonjour Paris is pleased to have Lisa Raykovicz as a contributor.