1973

French indie folk trio 1973 consists of three school friends: Nicolas Frank (vocals and guitars), Thibault Barbillon (bass, keyboards, guitars) and Jérôme Plasseraud (guitars and keyboards). With their first album Bye Bye Cellphone, they have created a loving homage to the sound of classic Brit pop and Californian folk-pop, with strong echoes of The Beatles and The Beach Boys.

Their hook-laden tunes shimmer with six and 12-string guitars and plangent harmonies which weave in and out of a glinting lattice of Mellotrons, harmoniums, banjos, pianos, dulcimers, polyphonic synths and Casiotones. They rise in wistful choruses, with lyrics often speaking to reminiscing, escaping or being set free.