Les Rythmes Digitales

More akin to French nu-disco compatriots like Daft Punk than his Wall of Sound label-mates, Jacques Lu Cont’s Les Rhythmes Digitales project bridges the gap between the quintessentially early-’80s phenomenon of synth-pop and more contemporary styles like acid-house and trip-hop. Lu Cont is actually of British origin, however; he was born Stuart Price to a Reading couple vacationing in Paris. Both were classical pianists, but Stuart was turned on to the twin towers of electro -- Kraftwerk and Afrika Bambaataa -- at an early age. He also became interested in noted French proto-electronica figures like Pierre Henry and Jean-Jacques Perrey, and began experimenting with synthesizers as a teenager. Mark Jones from Britain’s Wall of Sound Recordings gained a demo-tape from a third party, invited Price to begin recording for the label, and even concocted his Gallic alias (years before Daft Punk and Air made French citizenship a hot property).
The first Les Rhythmes Digitales single was 1996’s electro-shocked "Kontakte," followed closely by the debut album Liberation. Price looked to another of his influences for his second Wall of Sound single; "Jacques Your Body (Make Me Sweat)" was a streamlined acid-disco epic, the title a clever pun on Chicago house kingpin Steve "Silk" Hurley’s hit from ten years earlier. Price began a DJ residency spinning ’80s hits, and even provided a few remixes, for decade classics like Heaven 17’s "(We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang" and Robert Palmer’s "Addicted to Love" as well as label-mates Dirty Beatniks. Les Rhythmes Digitales became a noted live act as well, playing 1998’s Reading Festival (a hometown gig for Price) and headlining a Wall of Sound label tour through Britain and Europe. A new single, "(Hey You) What’s That Sound?," anticipated his second album, and featured none other than Boy George in its accompanying video. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide