Alizée Central

This is my first post in a while… Sorry. Not much happening right now.

I did want to make this post though. I’m sure most of you are aware by now that Amy Winehouse has passed away this afternoon.

I was a fan of her music, and for the record, I was pulling for her. Things had been looking grim after the issues she was having that caused her to cancel her concert dates in Serbia. It was obvious that she was not on the road to getting better. She obviously had a lot of demons she was dealing with, and they appear to have won.

I should say, at this early time that it is not conclusive what killed her, and I am only speculating that drugs caused her death, but once the autopsy is complete, I’m sure it will be obvious that if it wasn’t an overdose that killed her, it was disease caused by many years of drug abuse… and that is very sad.

Amy Weinhouse was a very talented musician who was never able to live to show the potential that she had. Unfortunately she will be remembered as a flash in the pan, who’s life was consumed by drugs, drama, and alcohol.

R.I.P. Amy Winehouse

September 14, 1983 - July 23, 2011

The tragedy that struck Japan last week has affected millions of people. If you can afford to help, please click on one of the following banner links to help those in need.

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

Institubes: 2003-2011

In a press release issued just hours ago, saying that the label is closing it’s doors. Institubes is the the independent label that helped release “Une enfant du siècle” and was the home base for acts like Teki Latex, Rob, Chateau Marmont, Para One, Tacteel, and numerous other French acts. 

According to the press release the current business model was no longer working out…

“We’re closing shop because the operation is losing too much money, this much is clear. Most of what we could have done to prevent or delay this outcome reside in two words: lifestyle and branding. Investing in t-shirts and co-branding, scoring “collaborations” or sponsorship deals with deep-pocketed companies. I have but a regret: we actually did it sometimes. We should have said no more often….. The fact that ours is a struggling industry, where 90% of your time is spent “staying afloat”, obscures an important fact: we are still playing by the rules that got us fucked in the first place. The way we do business is defective: our values are defective, our contracts are defective, our post-Napster economy itself is defective. I just read an article by a label owner who states that “anything we can do to stay afloat should be condoned”. I don’t think so, no. Staying afloat by any means necessary is a meaningless pursuit.”

The message goes on to say that many of the artists have started their own independent labels, and will be moving forward.

You can read the entire release at the Institubes Tumblr blog: http://institubes.tumblr.com/

Good luck to all involved, and we all hope for your success in the future!

Some things came up in real life that dragged me away from the blog for the last month. My apologies.

Things are back on track now, and there’s lots of things to talk about.

Stay tuned, and stay updated at Alizee Central!

As expected Alizée is in Les Enfoires 2011, and has been an active part of the production. I will recap more in the coming days, as most of the coverage will come from over the weekend… but here’s photos to hold you over until then…

There has been a rumour floating around the internet for a couple of weeks now, of a new EP release from Alizée. I hadn’t posted about this before because the information has been very sparse, but I didn’t want to be totally out in the cold if and when something pops up… So I’m here with a heads up.

What I’m hearing is that there should be an EP release in the next few weeks. There is no info on whether or not these are unreleased tracks from Une enfant du siècle, unreleased songs from the Psych era, or if they are totally new songs she has written and recorded in the last year. One would assume though, the EP is being released to create new buzz, and I would guess, to attempt to make a more mainstream impact after the lack-lustre sales of Une enfant du siècle.

The word is that it will be released at http://alizeestore.com , and could possibly be an independent release under the banner of Wisteria Song, without any help from Jive.

That’s all I have for now, but I will post any updates as soon as I get them.

Here are some new alizee store photos to hold you over until next time!

Alizee sent out a message saying her store is re-opening today. It has been re-designed, and features a much cleaner new look. There are also a couple of new items in the store, including a cat themed scarf and a new t-shirt design.

http://alizeestore.com

It’s 6:30am here in Paris, it’s foggy and cold. I hope the weather improves for 2011! I’m just going to bed now after a fun New Year’s Eve night, and just wanted to make some small changes.

As you can see, part 2 of the site change has happened. “Alizée 2010” is now simply “Alizée Central”. It’s 2011, and there’s no need to live in the past. I would have changed the name at midnight, but there was a club in Paris that was too much to pass up!

I hope you all had a great 2010, and here’s to a prosperous and happy 2011!

Oh, and for those who missed it, Alizée also sent out her best New Year Wishes yesterday evening…

I’m off to sleep. See you soon!

We’re anxiously awaiting the re-opening of the Alizée store. It was supposed to happen over a week ago, but Alizée herself stopped by with an explanation:

We’re late, sorry!

We’re putting together a new Alizée Store and it’s taking a little longer than we thought. We’ll be back soon with new stuff designed by Alizée for the first time…

Petit contretemps, désolés…

Nous préparons le nouvel Alizée Store, mais nous avons besoin d’un peu plus de temps que prévu. Rendez-vous très bientôt. Et cette fois-ci Alizée a pris les choses en main…

So there you have it. As you can see in the picture, Alizée is working hard, typing away at her computer trying to bring the store back on line with new items ;)

It’s Christmas eve here in Paris, and the way the weather has been lately, it even looks like it! It’s snowing lightly right this very minute, and the feeling of Christmas is certainly in the air!

I hope all of you have a happy holiday season, and that you were able to get where you were going! (Especially if you are living in or going to Western Europe).

2010 has been a fun year for Alizée fans, and now we are looking to see what 2011 holds for us. Remember, Les Enfoirés 2011 is coming up shortly! Only a monthe away.

So, Merry Christmas Alizée, and Merry Christmas to Alizée fans worldwide. I hope you all have a great holiday, and a safe and prosperous 2011!

The new Christmas single, “Such a special time (It’s Xmas tonight)”, has been released. Just for the record, Alizée has more input into the song this year, than last.

From the Vimeo release page:

“Thanks to Alice Lewis, Alizée, Bobmo, Da Brasilians, Tahiti Boy, Chab, Cocosuma, Hugh Coltman, Romain Corvez, Chicken Cottage, Fred Deces, DVNO, Sylvain Fetis, Flairs, Bertrand Fresel, Das Glow, Annabelle Hettmann, Hollysiz, Stephane Ichaï, Jackson, Antoine Jamaica, Guillaume Jaoul, Mike Ladd, Jerome Laperruque, Teki Latex, Loane, Raphael et Julien de Marmont, Mellow, Microbes Studios, Paul Morisot, Johane Myran, Para One, Ornette, Samy Osta, Fred Pallem, Adrien Pallot, Juliette Paquereau, Didier Perrin, DJ Pone, Thomas de Pourquery, Santa, Johanna Seban, Raphaël Seguinier, Surkin, Tacteel, Jean Thevenin, Mina Tindle, Remito Valdes, Thibault Vinçon, Saul Williams”

It’s a great upbeat song to get the Christmas holiday into swing, and it’s nice to see them do it for a second year in a row. I hope this becomes an annual tradition!

Also, they have released the mp3 for free again this year. You can download it from their official link at soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/3rd-side-records/such-a-special-time-its-xmas-tonight

Here is the video.

Yesterday was 14 décembre. Alizée reminded us by making a post on her Facebook linking us to a fan-made video of her song, 14 décembre. I found it odd that she linked to the fan video, which was the song with the Polaroids she shot for the the release of Une Enfant du siècle streaming by. I guess it just goes to show that Alizée searches youtube for fan vids. It goes to show that she is seeing your work if you have uploaded something. It makes you wonder… What does she think of the less tasteful videos? Has she ever had anything, or tried to have anything taken down? At the very least it shows that she is a good sport about it!

Ok, ok… so I’m an idiot. I just reported a few minutes ago about the new photo, and wondering if there will be a new Christmas song this year…

Well, I have to learn to keep reading when I find something interesting. I saw the post with the photo of her and Tahiti Boy and wondered aloud if there would be a new Christmas song this year. WELL… If I would have read a little further… there IS indeed going to be a new Christmas song this year, as confirmed by Alizée herself! Be easy on me. It’s getting late and I’m going to bed soon. (23:30h… that’s late, right? Ok, maybe getting old!)

So, now that were all in the loop, we know we have the new Christmas single to look forward to!

Alizée popped up on Facebook and said hi to us with a new photo of her and Tahiti Boy (David Sztanke). As you recall Tahiti Boy is a member of the Palmtree Family, and it was around this time last year that she worked with that group on their release of “It’s Christmas, and it won’t be the last”. I wonder if there’s something in the works this year, or was this just a meeting of friends? Christmas is coming…. But I’m probably looking too much into it.

On a side note, Alizée seems to have a slightly new hairstyle. A little shorter maybe? Bangs swept a little more to the side? I think I like it.

Here’s the photo posted on Facebook today. A little gift for the holidays.

click photo for full size…

I was going to post this yesterday, but Tumblr decided to have a day off…

Alizée has made a couple of posts in the last few days reminding us that her store is going off line for 2 weeks. Dec. 7 is closing day. What will come back in it’s place? It has me wondering. I’m attempting to find the logic in closing during the Christmas buying season, only to come back 4 or 5 days before Christmas. Maybe she’s just out of stock? Maybe she’s changing web hosts? Or, maybe there will be a Christmas present for us in the form of new merchandise? Who knows.

Anyhow, if you’re looking for that last minute Alizée gift hit up her website:

http://www.alizeestore.com/

It closes later today. You have literally hours left!

And just a side note, maybe they should update the Alizée-Officiel website too? The front splash page still has a link to pre-order Une Enfant du Siécle…