The Ooh laLA Festival – Flax Foundation

The Ooh laLA Festival is bringing a bit of la France to L.A. this fall and no passport is required. The first edition of the three-day French music showcase will take over the Music Box at the Henry Fonda Theatre, September 23-25. This cultural import is the brainchild of French music industry veterans and will be presented/executive produced by Southern California concert promoter Goldenvoice.

Spanning three nights, the festival will bridge two continents, highlighting the current French music scene in the U.S. with a series of performances running the gamut from hard-hitting electro to more traditional fare. September 23 and 24 will be devoted exclusively to emerging talent from the indie pop/rock and folk scenes, including performances from dance-pop provocateur Sébastien Tellier, whose latest album, Sexuality, was produced by Daft Punk’s Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo; piano aficionado Gonzales, the multi-faceted virtuoso, who is equal parts powerful crooner and hip-hop singer, as well as Grammy-nominated arranger/producer for Feist,; and Cocoon, a male/female folk duet from the Auvergne mountains, whose music echoes American folk greats such as Elliott Smith and Sufjan Stevens.

Night number two will belong to the radical, loungey reinterpretations of Nouvelle Vague, as the collective led by producer Marc Collin presents “Hollywood Mon Amour,” a tribute to 1980s film soundtracks. The band will put their spin on such classics as “Eye of the Tiger”, “Flashdance…What A Feeling” and James Bond’s “A View To A Kill.” The Dø, a Finnish girl/French boy duo with panoramic cultures and 2008 sensation in France, will kick off the evening alongside the singer-songwriter SoKo.

The fest will close out, Friday, September 25, with a serious collection of intercontinental, premiere party–starters manning the decks. This celebration of the French Touch electronic scene, fittingly dubbed “Electronic French Party,” will showcase the hugely expanding French electro scene made popular recently by the likes of Daft Punk and Justice. The night will feature ‘Champagne connexion’ Yuksek fellows Brodinski and The Shoes who will show why their city of Reims is on the verge of becoming the new capital of French electro. Brodinski will bring his bass heavy house and glitchy techno while The Shoes, known for their remixes around the globe (Late of The Pier, Santigold, Ladyhawke), will deliver a live set of electro computer rock. The Parisian duet Jamaica (formerly known as Poney Poney), produced by Xavier de Rosnay from Justice, will deliver a rousing set of electro power-pop with a health dose of heavy ‘80s guitars.

This event is in partnership with the Consulate General of France in Los Angeles and the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the US. The other main sponsors are CulturesFrance and FLAX, and  additional international partners include La Sacem, the French equivalent of ASCAP; the French Music Export Office, Le Bureau Export; and Trendsetting KCRW (89.9. FM and KCRW.com) will be a presenting partner of the festival while TV5 Monde (US) and French opinion-leading cultural weekly Les Inrockuptibles will also be heavily involved.