Nouvelle Vague are a French band who produce and perform innovative reinterpretations of seventies and eighties rock and pop songs in their own unique way. The band’s name means “new wave” in French and refers simultaneously to the French New Wave cinema movement of the 1960s, to the new wave music movement of the 1970s and 1980s, which provides many of the songs that the band covers, and to bossa nova (Portuguese for “new wave”), a musical style that the band frequently uses in its arrangements.
Bossa Nova = Nouvelle Vague = New Wave. This transliteration was the starting point for Marc Collin and the late Olivier Libaux’s unique project, which, by appropriating the punk and post-punk canon and running it through the Bossa Nova filter, reinvented the cover band genre, revealing new and brilliant talents along the way: Camille, Mélanie Pain, Phoebe Killdeer, Elodie Frege, Nadeah and Liset Alea.
The group’s first two albums, Nouvelle Vague (2004) and Bande A Part (2006), defined their unique sound with Bossa versions of New Wave Classics. Their third album, NV3 (2009), featured collaborations with Depeche Mode‘s Martin Gore, Ian McCulloch from Echo and the Bunnymen, Terry Hall from The Specials and Barry Adamson. Further acclaimed albums were released in 2010, 2016 and 2019 and the band have performed to rapturous audiences worldwide throughout their 19 year career.
Their 2024 worldwide tour celebrates 20 years since the release of their seminal first album alongside the launch of their next classic LP, timed specifically to coincide with their UK Tour.