et.nu — Berlin Paris

Berlin-Paris is the first single from Paris-based art pop duo known as et . nu. It marks the beginning of their sonic journey, which explains why it sounds like an opening sequence to a road movie. You can almost see their names flickering on the silver screen in coarse 16 mm grain: Lea / Julien / et . nu. The title of the movie: Berlin-Paris.

In the middle of the night, she packed as much as she could carry into her little hooptie and drove to see him. It took seven hours. Over the phone, he said that he loved her, but that he was scared; and that maybe it was still too early. She thought the same, but what she felt, deep inside, was that she needed to go. You hear all of this in the song. Electricity, tension, the winding bass line of a wandering mind, the heavy drone of the motor, the wind relentlessly beating on the windshield, and, of course, the rattling heartbeat doused with adrenaline, caffeine, and love. And that voice! Half spoken, half sung; alternating between English and French. Hypnotic. Suddenly, the arrangement hits an MDMA-like peak and, just like that, they’re on a beach in Northern France; sea gulls dancing over their heads. Divine!