Some madness was involved in the making of Sébastien Tellier’s latest opus My God Is Blue. So much so that its entire marketing seems built around it. Just how many records implore you to join a religious sect led by a randy Gallic troubadour? And indeed you can hear the madness amongst its 12 tracks. To surmise, it was to be part Use Your Illusion part The Wall and, in true fashion, what Tellier's delivered is something unlike either. For My God Is Blue is a record of joyous little contradictions, sung as it is in multiple languages. Produced by Ed Banger hip-hop alumni Mr Flash, it has none of the abrasiveness which the label has become known for, nor will you find any meticulously crafted club ‘bangers’. It turns out to be an awfully shrewd move; with Bousquet’s bombastic bravura lending itself well to Tellier’s teary mysticism. ‘Russian Attractions’ is a perfect case in point, with an introductory synth line that recalls Destiny's Child’s ‘Survivor’, it still manages to nestle itself comfortably between a set made almost entirely of whimsical balladry. It would look, on paper at least, to be an unfathomable failure - but somehow it works.
Perhaps most preposterous of all (or "mad," shall we say), was the claim by the man himself that this was his ‘mature’ coming-of-age album. Don’t be fooled; Tellier's still very much up to his old tricks here. The spirit animating the whole set is one of farce; with Tellier counseling its absurdity through a pandemonium of arm-waving choruses, unscripted solos, and wry serenity. However, such cartoonishness is nonetheless dealt with very very seriously. Even when Tellier's head is in the clouds and his mouth's full of pie. Being the chameleonic contrarian that he is, Tellier is also a gifted and imaginative musician whose powers lie in precision and command of space. With My God Is Blue those powers have never felt more refined. Without being indecisive or unclear of his musical persona, Tellier manages to satisfy in both pensive pieces and active workouts; successfully bridling the classical with the modern.
‘Cochon Ville’ is a celestial synth-pop number and one of the few examples of an actual groove on the set; in a year which has seen the passing of so many of disco’s seminal originators, it’s good to know the genre is mutating in good hands. Yet for all of his musical channel surfing, the eccentric Parisian still enjoys a solid album concept; 2004’s Politics was about just that, while his last was 2008’s sensual odyssey Sexuality. This is a most satisfying conclusion to the triptych; for all the talk of madness, it would seem more than ever that with God Tellier knows exactly what he’s doing. ‘Come stand up and feel fine’ - you may just have to succumb.
