L'éclair

Swiss sextet L'Eclair play an ever-evolving, undefinable brand of groove-heavy instrumentals which effortlessly fuse the band’s many influences, including Krautrock, Afrobeat, funk, and library music. The band’s first few recordings, such as 2019′s Sauropoda, captured the freewheeling, improvisatory spirit of their live shows, while 2021′s sprawling Confusions was a more ambitious, focused studio production.
Keyboard player Sébastien Bui and guitarist Stefan Lilov conceived L'Eclair in 2015 while they were living in London following their high school graduation. After moving back to their home city of Geneva, the band began to take shape as bassist Elie Ghersinu and drummer Yavor Lilov joined, with percussionist Quentin Pilet and keyboardist/cowbell player Alain Sandri completing the lineup. The group performed well-received concerts around Switzerland, opening for acts like White Fence and the Mauskovic Dance Band, and their debut album, Cruise Control, was released by Rock This Town in 2017. Recorded in a single day, the album began receiving local radio airplay, and the group’s gig schedule became much busier. L'Eclair recorded their second album, Polymood, in Haarlem, Netherlands, and it was released by Beyond Beyond Is Beyond in 2018. Third full-length Sauropoda, recorded spontaneously over two days, followed in 2019. Confusions appeared on Bongo Joe in 2021, expanding the group’s influences to incorporate dub, hip-hop, house, and Madchester. ~ Paul Simpson