3 (Nouvelle Vague album)

Production

The band draws on a broader range of musical styles compared to their earlier albums; the covers here are inspired by blues and country music in addition to the familiar bossa nova and jazz. Several of the tracks on 3 are performed as duets, with Nouvelle Vague's female singers joined by the artists who sang on the original recordings. The tracks performed as duets are "Master and Servant" (featuring Martin Gore of Depeche Mode), "All My Colours" (with Ian McCulloch of Echo & the Bunnymen), "Our Lips Are Sealed" (with Terry Hall of The Specials), and "Parade" (with Barry Adamson of Magazine). David Byrne of Talking Heads and David Sylvian of Japan turned down invitations to appear on the album. The appearance of the original artists covering their own songs led one commentator to describe the record as "without a doubt the most meta covers album released this decade."

In another departure from the earlier albums, 3 also features two French-language songs, including a version of Plastic Bertrand's "Ça plane pour moi". Nouvelle Vague's Olivier Libaux explained, "Ca Plane Pour Moi was supposed to be the first French punk single. The thing is, it was sung by Plastic Bertrand - who was Belgian - and many French people think this song is a bit stupid. But it has been covered by bands like The Damned - so it seems that, abroad, this song is very respected. We chose the song because of this paradox."

Release

The album charted in several European countries, peaking at number 57 in France, number 38 in Germany, and number 20 in Portugal.

Critical reception

The album received mixed reviews, with several critics suggesting that the concept of Nouvelle Vague itself had grown stale. The Guardian noted that the band had "spun out their quirky cover-versions project into a career that has outlasted that of some of the bands they've covered. That's sobering news for anyone who initially found Nouvelle Vague entertaining but has now had enough of their kitsch bossa-nova takes on indie classics." The review concluded that, "it's time for Collin and Libaux to find a new concept." PopMatters's reviewer agreed: "The project made its point the first time around, and with the arrival of a third record, Nouvelle Vague’s approach has become as subversive and surprising as placing rabbit ears behind someone’s head in a class photo. More importantly, by devoting itself primarily to reformatting the songs into new genres, 3 often loses the soul of the original recordings—be it the giddy anxiety of “Blister in the Sun” or the inflammatory anger of “God Save the Queen”—without offering much in exchange." The Washington Post wrote that, "most of these covers aren't tugged far out of their element ... Nouvelle Vague's interpretations are stylish and pretty, but not especially novel." In contrast, BBC Music described the album as "a sublimely inventive concoction of clashing but surprisingly complementary moods and styles. Happily, NV3 shows little sign of Collin and Libaux running out of ideas or outstaying their welcome."

Critics focused their comments in particular on the tracks performed as duets. For The Guardian, "Barry Adamson and Nadeah Miranda are a modern Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra as they claw their way through Magazine's Parade." Commenting on the same song, AllMusic's critic stated, "Barry Adamson's sneering cool makes a noir version of Magazine's "Parade" the album's standout." In contrast, "the group's version of "Master and Servant" -- which features a Jew's harp and Martin Gore's booming baritone on the chorus -- feels overdone, and not even Terry Hall's cameo can save "Our Lips Are Sealed"'s transformation into a pastoral reverie from seeming a bit silly."