FUGU/ST. ETIENNE split 7"

When I started this blog, nearly two months ago, I intended to post some very bizarre finds from my vinyl collection. However, I find that there's also tons of stuff I selfishly want to have pop up in my daily random iTunes library. I could mine my indie rock singles for years and probably have enough ammo for a hundred more blogs. There are a few 45s that are quite lovely, however, and rise to the top of the pecking order. I'll get back to the bizarre next week.

Fugu has had the good fortune of having some very big names fall madly in love with their orchestrated pop. Fugu is, just one person, the fabulous and French, Mehdi Zannad. He started creating the Emitt Rhodes-Brian Wilson-esque gems sometime in the mid 90s. With singles on eclectic international labels like Escalator and Sugarfrost, Fugu started to make a name for them(him)self. Mysteriously, he named the songs with titles like F21 and F27. Maybe perhaps rivalling Mark Robinson or Factory Records with their obsession to assign everything a number.

To date, however, Fugu is still fairly unknown. Fugu 1 came out on Minty Fresh in the US back in 2001 and barely made a blip. Their second and latest elpee, As Found, is fucking brilliant, and has yet to find an international audience or a release in the US (or even outside of France for that matter). Back to the big names though, bands like Stereolab and St. Etienne loved Fugu so much, they co-released singles together. Talk about a dream come true!

Included today are tracks from the 1999 split single on the ultrasmall, Amberley Records, out of the UK. St. Etienne mix a Fugu song, Fugu return the favor. Pretty rare and nice stuff. Don't let this be your introduction to Fugu, however. Let that be "You Pick Me Up" from As Found. Cute how I did that, right?

Fugu F32 (St. Etienne Mix)
Saint Etienne SATURDAY (Fugu mix)