Motifs

1	High, Low, In 3:33
2	Calendar 3:09
3	Aquarium 4:32
4	Ennemis Siamois 3:33
5	Etoile Pâle 3:59
6	Touriste d'Une Vie 3:56
7	Baguée 3:08
8	Motus 3:17
9	Reflet 3:41
10	Prête À Porter 4:17
11	Baron de Chaise 2:29
12	Discordance 3:49
13	Aléas 3:41
14	Je Ne Sais Qui Fumer 5:53

Barnes & Noble

Francophone faves Paris Combo return with the latest installment of their winning formula-if such a wide arrangement of rambunctious styles can really be called a formula. With one foot in Gypsy jazz and French cabaret music and the other wildly tap dancing through big band, cocktail music, Latin styles, and more, Paris Combo reflect their polyglot hometown. Vocalist Belle du Berry contributes a new slate of wry lyrics, commenting on everything from love to television to tourism, while guitarist Potzi brings an acoustic shuffle and frenetic picking that will please fans of Django Reinhardt. The rest is filled in by band members hailing from Australia, Madagascar, and, of course, France. Fans of such retro-pop outfits as Pink Martini will find fast frères in Paris Combo. Mark Schwartz

All Music Guide

It wouldn't be exactly accurate to call Paris Combo a throwback to the 1930s, despite singer Belle du Berry's jazzy, period-perfect crooning style and the fact that guitarist Potzi coifs himself in explicit homage to Django Reinhardt. But it wouldn't be exactly inaccurate, either, and there's nothing wrong with that. David Lews' trumpet snakes and sizzles, almost always with a mute, through the songs' decorously swinging melodies while du Berry drops her lyrics in an expressive but rather dry voice and drummer François Jeannin and bassist Mano Razanajato keep the grooves powerful but light. The irony is that, although Potzi is the one who most dresses the part of a retro jazz cat, he's actually the band's utility man, laying down Django-style chord solos one minute and swinging out in a more modern style the next, while pulling various tones and attacks out of his bag of tricks from time to time. But the band is smart enough to always keep the sonic focus on the sweet, dry voice of du Berry, whose clever lyrics and flawless accuracy make every song a low-key delight. Recommended. Rick Anderson