MARC O
LE DISSYMÈTRE
[DISSYMMETRY MAN]
new single
out 21.04.22
video
youtu.be/IyYs00tk3c8
“an incendiary blast of glam-punk infused rock n’ roll 21st century style, with an accompanying video using sweeping camera angles to capture all the rich style and glamour of a dynamic performance that encapsulates Bowie, Bolan and Iggy all in one frame. Full of big riffs, thunderous driving rhythms, classic girl-group style backing vocals and anthemic chorus lines, it’s majestic to the core”
LOUDER THAN WAR
FOR FANS OF
SERGE GAINSBOURG / IGGY POP / JARVIS COCKER
included on
L’HOMME DE L’OMBRE
[MAN OF THE SHADOWS]
debut solo album
out now
(Plastic Sound Records)
“Ten well realised, vintage aesthetic fantasies ****”
MOJO
“Singular debut set that lurches from glam-punk to Air-meets-Gainsbourg purr, infectiously Pulp-ish electro-rock and gauche, Bowie-esque panther strut. Formidable! 8/10”
UNCUT
“Never less than fascinating, this is an important and hugely enjoyable work ****”
RECORD COLLECTOR
“Propelled by his core rhythm section and lyricist collaborator, they address some weighty subjects with passion ****”
SHINDIG!
“Blends aggressive and powerful textures and melancholic soundscapes to break down language barriers and deliver a powerful, evocative and stunning album”
LOUDER THAN WAR
“An album with a timeless sound, as if Gainsbourg were taking a pastis with The Kinks at a Bauhaus concert”
BEST (French monthly)
‘Le Dissymètre’ (Dissymmetry Man) is a new single taken from ‘L’Homme De L’Ombre’ (Man Of The Shadows), the recently released debut album by London based French musician and producer Marc O. Sung in his native language, the uptempo song fuses rock n’ roll, glam, punk and nouvelle chanson, while its colourful video features Marc performing with his band, members of which include legendary bassist Sami Yaffa (New York Dolls, Joan Jett, Hanoi Rocks) and drummer Christophe Deschamps (Jacques Dutronc, France Gall).
The lyric for ‘Le Dissymètre’ sees the album’s titular character found guilty of homicide and hospitalised to undergo psychiatric treatment under the care of Professor Hermann Rorschach, he of the famous test. It is just one part of an overall album concept that sees Marc’s musical sensibility combined with the wise, witty writing of his brother, the author and philosopher Bruno Pons Levy. Giving each other freedom from interference in their areas of expertise, the result is not so much a songwriting duo but rather a powerful third creation.
‘L’Homme De L’Ombre’ has a back story that reflects Marc’s dedication to his art and was only completed after lifesaving cancer surgery midway through its recording. Following a long road to recovery, plus a re-awakening of confidence to finish a record that had now acquired a new depth of meaning, he returned to the studio in early 2021 to complete a record that he had started in 2016. “It has been a long time in the making and it feels that this record has already had many lives,” he ponders.
In combining the attitude and bravado of Iggy Pop, the sensuality and sophistication of Serge Gainsbourg and Lou Reed’s penchant for the avant-garde and cultural challenge, Marc O has overcome adversity and created a body of work that incorporates an underlying sense of surrealist beauty into its dramatic, visceral fusion of rock and French music. Blurring between the real and virtual worlds, the subconscious, gender dynamics, inequality and the abuse of power, the nature of paradox, the ambivalence of human nature, nationalism and multiculturalism, the album is packed with memorable songs peopled with figures such as Hermann Rorschach, Erwin Schrödinger, Raymond Aron and Julian Assange.
It begins with ‘L’Homme Du Monde’ (Man Of The World), which comments on globalised economic systems, while the closing title song is a dark and epic tale of narcissism and the notion of the death of the author. In between, listeners may learn something new about the world, human nature and perhaps even themselves, but are guaranteed to be delighted by the musician and writer who have created this most personal of journeys.
L’HOMME DE L’OMBRE
TRACKLISTING
1 L’Homme Du Monde (Man Of The World)
2 Le Fondu Des Bas-Fonds D’Écran (Fading Into The Shallow Screen)
3 Le Dissymètre (Dissymmetry Man)
4 Le Test De La Femme À Barbe (Test Of The Bearded Woman)
5 Les Démodes (The Old Fashioned)
6 Rendons Le Leurre (Give Them Back Their Lure)
7 Le Triangle Au Carré (The Triangle Squared)
8 Métalogue (Metalogue)
9 Le Casanovice
10 L’Homme De L’Ombre (Man Of The Shadows)
MARC O – single cover artwork and stills taken from video for ‘Le Dissymètre’