Guitarist Nicolas Basque met singer/keyboardist Adèle Trottier-Rivard at a Plants and Animals recording session. They started dating and formed Bibi Club in 2019.

The duo debuted that year with an EP, followed up with a full-length in 2022, and, on May 10th, released a new album, "Feu de garde."

It opens with the downbeat "La Terre." Trottier-Rivard sings this in French, and her unfussy vocal counters Basque's wobbling, preoccupied guitars. The vocal melodies catch like a nursery rhyme. All the while, the bass stretches ahead like a sidewalk decorated in hopscotch squares of multicolored chalk.

The French pop-inspired Stereolab comes to mind. Bibi Club say they make living room party music. Up- or downtempo, it sounds great.

The cool grass of Trottier-Rivard's delivery pairs wonderfully with Basque's suggestive guitar sounds and rhythms. His guitar tone often echoes The Cure. Bibi Club knit songs with inspired, layered arrangements of easy melodies, and notes hang like ribbons in the breeze. Guitars, bass, and drums—each gives a focused performance.

On "Parc de Beauvoir," a pulse-quickened guitar rings out. The soft, seemingly superficial lyrics—"Did you see the flowers on the brick wall? Did you see how people dress? We walk around, we talk together"—belie the tension gradually building layer by layer.

"Le feu" is one of my favorites. The bass offers Trottier-Rivard space, and her breathy French does not even flinch when the rhythm section skips by. The guitar's beautiful summer tones chime over the snappy drums.

Songs like this, "L'île aux bleuets," and "Rue du Repos" sound like a nice little string of luck.

The French pop "Rue du Repos" streams up-tempo rhythms and jangly jazz-inflected chords tinted in echo and reverb. The solid bass shifts its weight with ease to Trottier-Rivard's mellow vocal. The song is a sparrow's dust bath.

"Feu de garde" is available on Secret City Records.