Yelle's "Safari Disco Madness" Aims Way Too High

I actually remember hearing “Safari Disco Madness” when I saw Yelle perform at Highline Ballroom.

On that night, about seven numbers in, she shouted: “You want to hear a new song?!” in her notoriously cute French accent. The crowd was delighted.

But what ensued was kind of awkward. Her electro pop band tore into some tight blips and tom tom pounds. We couldn’t dance to these new, vaguely tribal beats that departed from her debut Pop-Up, but those who weren’t 19 and on poppers could appreciate the composition.

Then, Yelle started to sing. That’s when things got awkward.

“Safari Disco Club” is the title track of her upcoming sophomore album (coming out March 14).  Ordinarily, she rap/chants, or sings relatively staccato melodies that anyone could sing, while skipping in fact. But “Safari” has the girly-voiced Yelle lingering on high notes. For awhile.

And that, my friend, was when I became totally disillusioned with Yelle.

Her voice is flat. And not just vibrato-free flat, but lifeless,  perpetually strained, and dependent on a limited, little girl register. Hearing the track in its produced form, there’s a little help from autotune and effects, but it’s still annoying. I recommend turning the bass on high to obscure the cutesy onslaught.

Hear “Safari Disco Club” and see if you agree with me.

Photo Credit:MTV Iggy/Nichole McCall