This is it's immaterial

Sylvain Azam



The immaterial...

If we try to understand this word, "immaterial", metaphysical questions are running. Is the immaterial mean "non-material", lack of matter ? Is immaterial is an another kind of material, a immaterial ? Is the immaterial is to the material, what the shape is to the shapeless, or the information is to the training ? We leave these questions unresolved, we just mind the attraction to the dreams who create immaterial. A calling so deep who appears at the humanity dawn with the oral transmission of mythical stories, knowledges and practicals.


Dominique Figarella "La station"




It's Immaterial were a band formed in Liverpool in 1980. I's Immaterial were formed by three former members of Yachts - John Campbell, vocals, Martin Dempsey, guitar, and Henry Priestman, keyboards - in addition to Paul Barlow, drums. By 1984, the band had been reduced to a duo - Campbell and Jarvis Whitehead, guitar and keyboards, who joined in 1982.

Musically, It's Immaterial's albums are all over the place — new wave, country, blues, folk, and synth pop. Somehow the smorgasbord of styles works, because the band members aren't being eclectic just for the sake of it; they simply have a wide canvas, keeping the albums fresh from beginning to end.

I will recommend to you the album "Songs" who is an intelligent and extremely well-realised pop album that belies its simplistic origins, and also the album "Life's hard and then You die". For those of you who are genuinely moved by soaring harmonised vocals, ironic folk rendition, rolling Spanish guitars and tongue-in-cheek meanderings. A fascinating musical hybrid that touches variously on synth-pop, atmospheric art-rock, recitation and a unique brand of English country music.

Jack Goldstein "Untitled" 1981

Bubblegum & Sunshine Pop

In this moment, I read a book called "Bubblegum & Sunshine Pop", by Jean-Emmanuel Deluxe. It's a feast for all the real pop amateurs. If you don't know what is bubblegum music, it's melodiousness, happy and naive lyrics, it's candy, it's sugar, it's Hanna & Barbera and Scoubidoo by example, or songs like "I want candy" by The Strangeloves, "Sugar Sugar" by the Archies, "Yummy Yummy Yummy" by Ohio Express, "Banana Split" by Lio, "Toxic" by Britney Spears, it's Jacques Dutronc "le playboy", or Serge Gainsbourg "Comic Strip"... It's crac boum hue, chebaw pop wizz !!!
The sunshine pop it's elegiac vocals harmonies, sweet arrangements with a touch of rock. It's the californian surf music, "Pet Sounds'', the High Llamas, El Records, Tricatel and Bertrand Burgalat, it's "Runaway" by Del Shannon or his french version by Dave "Vanina", and so many things mentionned or not in this book (Jim O'Rourke, Stereolab....)
Why it's nice to read this book ? The J-E Deluxe's style primo, which is smart, rich in vocabulary and very passionate by his subject. Secondly, I discover a lot of bands and musicians that I have never heard about before as Ohio Express, 1910 Fruit Gum Company, Fun and Games Commission, Curt Boettcher, Gary Usher, Yellow Balloon, and some others that I knew a bit by compilations as Sagittarius, The Tokens, The Turtles, The Archies, The Monkees, The Shadows of Knights...

And it's talk about bends and artists I love since a long time as Mikado, Oui Oui, Bertrand Burgalat, April March, The High Llamas, Allegra, La Casa Azul, Louis Philippe, The Monochrome Set, the King of Luxembourg, the Witch Hazel Sound...

This a selection of bubblegums and sunshine pop videos who will fizz your ears...




"Simon Says" by 1910 fruit gum company was translated in french as "Jacques A Dit" by Claude François

I love Pierre Probst for ever

Pierre Probst is an illustrator of children's books. He's the creator of the lovely Caroline and her sympathic camp of littles animals, kittens, puppies, bear cub, lion cub and panther.

Caroline and her friends haves on each albums so odd adventures. The best albums are, I think, "Caroline in Canada", "Caroline and her friends throughout the ages", "Caroline and her friends in holiday camp". But you can read all of Pierre Probst you find in old publications.
I think it's very important in the life to smell an old publication of a Pierre Probst's book. A book who stayed a long time in a granary. It's incredible and moving. The atmosphere of Pierre Probst's books is so old frenchy, it's delicious.

For me, a great part of Pierre Probst's talent is in the manner he have to draw the eyes of the animals. It's very expressive and hilarious. They can be sometimes very excited, teased or very melancholic.

Born in Alsace in 1913, Pierre Probst devote himself quickly to Graphic Arts and start to work in publicity.
In Lyon, he turn to illustration for youth and in 1946, go in Hachette, in the Green Library (la Bibliothèque Verte). He participate to the creation of the famous collection Pink Albums with a lot of smalls pets : the kittens Pouf and Noiraud, the puppies Bobi, Pipo and Youpi, the bear cub Boum, Pitou the little panther and Kid the lion cub. These animals gonna join in 1953 a little girl called Caroline,

for an ininterrupted continuous of albums translates in 15 languages. In 1966, he create a new character : Fanfan, a little boy in love with the nature, surrounded, also, by a lot of littles animals.

In addition to his series for the youth, Pierre Probst had illustrated pedagogical and historical albums in the collection "The private life of the men" at Hachette publisher.

Pierre Probst died in april 2007 in Suresnes, near Paris.

Martin Arnold

The entire movie of the incredible crazy genius Martin Arnold. Enjoy it !!

About Marie Marie Cells

Marie Marie Cells is a french afro-pop-psyché-shoegaze band composed by Le Poulain (guitar + voice), La Mano Rosso (bass + backing vocals) and Charlotte Sampling (sampler + synths + glockenspiel + maracas + flute + backing vocals). They have recently plays some gigs in Berlin and in Paris...

Go to the myspace page of MARIE MARIE CELLS for more informations and details and musical stuff.




Le Poulain on his golf


La Mano Rosso in the Berliner metro


La Mano Rosso and Le Poulain in Wannsee lake, Berlin


Charlotte on his golf


Marie Marie Cells at Madame Claude, in Berlin






The reversal decor of Madame Claude


Delicious Nüss Nougat Croisson and Coffee on 5:00 in the morning. We return at community house with la Mano Rosso with our bikes.


Live at the Karaocake's flat (where Dragging An Ox Through Water, Lispector and the Konki Duet have play too)




Marie Marie Cells - No need

I'm afraid of the edition and the look of this video but the sound is good. There's Le Poulain, Charlotte Sampling and Kentuky Bird, it's a gig we have made in June 2008 at the Union Bar in Paris.

And I will live in the house in the forest

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DZR:P in Paris

Recently I have met the swedish band DZR:P, Simon and John are the nicest guys I have met for a while. I have filmed their live act at the Flèche d'Or, in Paris with my very cheap camera and so, the sound is very shitty and the frame too but you can have an idea of what it is on stage...

Go to the myspace page of DZR:P, TONA SERENAD, MÖLNBAR AV JOHN, MUSETTE, KLARINETTMUSIKEN... for more musical stuff, infos... about them.

They have written their songs in 40 min. and they need sleepless nights, empty stomachs (or only bananas and yoghourts), a lot of cigarettes and a lot of alcohol to compose and play.
The sickness of love is also very good for the creation.
The lyrics often come from tv shows...






here they play "oh milk duds", their greatest hit.


here the dzr:p are tuning the turntable