Art Basel kicked off the fair on the evening of December 3rd with French group Yelle playing live on the beach. Yelle is a French group, whose front-woman Julie Budet, is flirty yet awkward, which makes her a natural performer. Yelle’s electro is fun to dance to and its electro song “À Cause des Garçons” has supposedly contributed to a teen dance craze in France, because its video showcases a troupe of dancers called the Tecktoniks, which completely cater to the “Nu Rave” scene.
Since Art Basel started its Miami version in 2002, it has brought bands like the New York Dolls, Peaches, and Iggy Pop—an unruly crowd of punks. In fact, this year Art Basel kept its punk rock vibe during its summer event in Switzerland, by having Patti Smith play at its inauguration. So, when the festival announced Yelle as the performers for the Art Loves Music concert it was quite a surprise. Some people said the event was cutting down its Miami budget, while event organizers said that many artists they booked kept canceling on them.
Regardless, here is my take on Yelle…
The show started at 10PM and it was free, open to the public, and lasted an hour. The venue as always was great because the stage is set right on the beach, so you have waves crashing and the ocean breeze flowing, while you listen the show. Yelle aimed to please and they played full force. Their set was especially fun right after they played the Tepr remix of “À Cause des Garçons.” They also played “Je te vex voir,” “Ce Jeu” and my favorite “Amour du Sol,” which is totally romantic. My only complaint of the show was the crowd… what a bunch of downers. Although it is difficult to have a LOUD live show on the beach, because the wind carries the sound, the crowd was overall “too cool” to dance.
Video of Yelle’s Performance…
Art Basel 2008 Miami edition ran from the 3rd to the 7th of December, and brought happy surprises like:
