Kitsuné 6 is career suicide

The Kitsuné hype curve is reaching its peak. Among electro-punk/indietronica crossover hipsters, the French record label-cum-maison –de-mode is the hottest thing since the microwave went ping,

For a manager looking to sign one of the best of the up-and-coming UK dance acts, the promise of a slot on a Kitsuné Maison compilation is the deal clincher, the golden carrot. But, how soon before the Parisian label becomes King Midas in Reverse?

When the fifth Maison collection is released in February, the label is set to go overground big style. But is the substance already on the wane?

A few months from now, Kitsuné Maison 4 may be considered the high water mark of the Parisian imprint’s influence, if not its success. But even on that compilation, some tracks stand out while others scream “sit down and shut up’”. ‘Divebomb’, ‘I get around’, ‘Hit Pop’ - yes, yes, yes! But Hadouken’s ‘Tuning in’? Really?? Mike Skinner without the wit or roguish charm: a tune and a beat to forget.

Other recent releases provide further evidence that the Kitsuné A&R department isn’t always on top of its game. Take Bitchee Bitchee Ya Ya Ya, one of the latest additions to the label roster. Last month I saw BBYYY support Crystal Castles on a boat in Brussels. The Toronto noise duo was great; the Paris/London one (+funky drummer) was not. Now comes their debut single. The annoyingly named ‘Fuck Friend’ (do they mean ‘Fuck Buddy’?) hit the shelves last Monday. And what a disappointment it is: a watered down ‘Lady Marmalade’ with a ‘sound-of-2007’ sheen. Like listening to Northside after the Happy Mondays and wondering where your money went.

Actually, Madchester-era Factory is a fairly apt analogy for Kitsuné right now. Both being labels built on the success of a long-running band capable of bridging the divide between the underground dance world, the indie scene and the pop mainstream (Factory directly through New Order; Kitsuné indirectly through Daft Punk, via long-time DP cohort and label co-founder Gildas Loaëc); both privileging design at least as much as music (see the work of Peter Saville, Johnson Panas, 8vo, and Central Station Design on the one hand and of the Åbäke team - Patrick Lacey, Benjamin Reichen, Kajsa Stahl and Maki Suzuki – on the other); both making a mark in fashion (from Happy Mondays’ ‘loose fit’ style and philosophy [even if it was Inspiral Carpets who had the t-shirts] to Kitsuné Maison’s clothing lines); and both moving from a playful artiness towards something more consumer-centric. If Digitalism start booking studio time in Barbados: everyone beware!

For the moment though, Kitsuné’s distinctive collage sleeves are mostly still filled with great grooves: The Teenagers, Lost Valentinos, Big Face – luv it!

So Kitsuné Maison 5 will be the breakthrough – the cool album that goes mass market. Kitsuné 6, on the other hand, is career suicide – at least if your career depends on a certain frisson of newness and exclusivity. By the time it appears, this house of music, design and fashion could seem as shopworn as a Frankie Says Relax t-shirt in 1985.

Until then vive la difference! And enjoy it while it lasts.

The Phantom (Justin Toland)

Kitsuné vs Kompakt at Music Muziek Musique's Fight Night, Friday December 21 at Windows, Brussels 1000 (www.myspace.com/musicmuziekmusique)