We got a new toy this week at PPM when we got wind of Larsovitch; a mononymous French performer with a new EP out on Bandcamp as well as physical goods on other labels a fortnight ago. Though late to the game, Larsovitch managed to tick nearly all of my boxes.

• First of all, he’s French, and I’ve been a Francophile for 39 years.
• Secondly, he likes to make music with vintage gear and no computers. While I am not opposed to computers, when used with care and intention, I will agree that they did not make music any better than it was before their ubiquity.
• Thirdly, while French, he’s more comfortable singing in Greek and Russian.

This guy almost had my full attention before I pressed “play.” And then I pressed “play!”

Larsovitch: Normal’No – FR/IT/FR – DL/CD/CASS [2025]

1. Légions Perdues 3:19
2. Bonne Nuit 3:18
3. Obossrannyi Gueroï (Свидетельство о Смерти cover) 3:29
4. Kryos Areas 4:00
5. Normal’No 4:42
6. Xenomorfos 3:46

“Légions Perdues” had a clean, minimal sound. As if it had been recorded on as many as four but no more than eight tracks. The tremulous synth leads were closer to electric organ patches until the motorik drum machines kicked in. Driving the tune at a relentless pace. Then Larsovitch opened his mouth to sing this first song in French. And it was as if my favorite French singer, Etienne Daho, had leaned further and deeper into Post-Punk far more heavily than he ever did in real time. The Simmons Drum fills in the climax were followed by an abrupt wave of white noise. Making this first track a glorious balm for my ears.

Though we had been prepped for synths up front, the opening “Bonne Nuit”undercut expectation delightfully with the lead taken by the plangent guitar and insistent drum machine. Sure, there was a synth bass pulsing away in there, but it was hanging back. Allowing the guitar to have an effulgent moment in the sun. Here Larsovitch really hit a target that vocally, had that same underplayed melancholy with his sonorous voice which was why I’ve been an Etienne Daho fan for almost 40 years.

With “Obossrannyi Gueroï” he was covering Russian Pop in the native tongue. With an almost winsome and cheerful minimalism in the arrangement. The lead lines came pretty close to the voice of an ocarina. Then “Kryos Aeras” dove deeper into the heart of Post-Punk with the drum machines volleying from channel to channel before the relentless rhythms and tension ticking hi-hats leapt from the starting blocks to jolt the song into starting at full sprint. Larsovitch singing the Greek language balefully, and with a French accent had as much hybrid vigor as I’ve ever heard in a song. Roundly strummed rhythm guitar was as clean and pure sounding as we could ever hope to hear from a six string. The whole track was relentlessly dark with a strong minor key middle eight instrumental section. With the clean hard minimalism assayed throughout, I was shocked at the appearance of a string synth after the middle eight had played out but it was the right move to make here as it added an appealing complexity to the song that thrilled right up to its cold ending.

The title track began as a series of tritones cheerfully scrambling forth at high speed. The amazing facet of this song was that the rhythm began to slowly mutate throughout its running time so that even by the middle of the song it had become something entirely different from how it began. Then it changed even more dramatically as the tempos slowed down to paradoxically increase the pressure of the song. Leading into the drop where Larsovitch unleashed a distant scream before the finality of the electric hum of synths brought the curtain down.

Then the white knuckle thrills of “Xenomorfos” finally remained to wield the bluntest of lyrical axes [in Greek, no less] to excoriate the rise of brutal nationalism and xenophobia in the current geopolitical zeitgeist. It is an electric scream of moral force that shakes the very ground with its righteous rage. This is the song we’ve been waiting for.

The arc of this EP definitely ended on a note of spirited and harsh defiance but what else would we demand of an EP entitled “Normal’No?” There’s nothing normal about the now so please, sign me up for more missives from the likes of Larsovitch. As for me I’ll be awaiting the next bracing release from Larsovitch with open ears. This could be my EP of the year. The DL is yours for €5.00 with physical product on CD as well as cassette from two other labels. The CD is in reclaimed jewel boxes that already have the patina of years and I think I like it! I’m all about using the music and putting it in the fabric of everyday life. Not trying in vain to hold it in some unnatural perfection bubble for anal-retentive Discogs users to fret over. The CD is €10.00 from Stanze Fredde Records of Italy. Finally, the cassette is €10.00 from France’s Conicle Records. The choice is yours. Do what thou wilt. DJs hit those buttons!

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