Lemaitre – “Stepping Stone” (Feat. Mark Johns) (Stereogum Premiere)
Oslo natives Ulrik Denizou Lund and Ketil Jansen formed their disco-infused electronic duo Lemaitre back in 2010, after the two met at a party. In the years since, they’ve churned out a bunch of EPs and accrued a steadily-growing amount of pop clout on the way. After garnering fans online and in the world of dance music alike, they earned an opening slot on tour with Porter Robinson, as well as a feature for “1:18,” a song from their EP The Friendly Sound, in a 2014 commercial for the iPhone 5c. Following a move to Los Angeles, the duo have continued putting out singles and EPs — the newest of which, 1749, will be out later this month.
We’ve already heard the EP’s lead single, “Closer,” which combined a sprightly piano line and brash horn-driven hook with the floaty vocals of Swedish singer Jennie A. Today, we have the next song, “Stepping Stone,” the best track on 1749. Back when they started out, Lund and Jansen sought to emulate Daft Punk, Justice, and fellow Norwegians Röyksopp, and you can still hear those influences here: It has an aggressively catchy groove, the kind that wrestles its way into rearranging the rhythm of your heartbeat for a few minutes. It’s built on a series of hard-edged disco-y synths, all lead by singer Mark Johns (not a dude). It would fit well in some movie’s late-night drive scene lit by neon, but it’s also a song that conjures a whole bunch of effervescent colors that can be a reprieve in these grey post-holiday winter days. Hear it below.
Catch Lemaitre on tour:
01/15 New York, NY Webster Hall
01/28 Santa Barbara, CA SoHo Music Club **with support from starRo
01/29 San Francisco, CA Social Hall **with support from starRo
02/12 Stockholm, Sweden @ Debaser Strand
02/13 Oslo, Norway @ Centrum Scene
02/14 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Lille Vega
02/16 Berlin, Germany @ Musik & Frieden
02/17 Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Sugar Factory
02/19 Paris, France @ Les Etoiles
02/20 London, UK @ The Laundry
04/15 Indio, CA @ Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
04/22 Indio, CA @ Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
1749 is out 1/29 via Astralwerks in the US and Universal in the UK, with a full-length to follow later this year.