Fancy

Hailing from Paris' Montreuil suburbs, Fancy is a glittery confection of everything wild and catchy in rock music from the '50s onward. They borrow a bit from disco, funk, hair metal, and rockabilly, and cite Elvis Presley, Mozart, and David Lee Roth as inspirations, but above all, they keep the flamboyant flame of '70s glam rock burning bright. Consisting of androgynous, Afro'd singer Jesse Chaton, guitarist Mom (aka Mohamed Yamani), and bassist Rae Mone (aka Ramon Pavez), the trio's outrageous look and sound began in the late '90s, when Chaton and Rae Mone attended school and played music together. In 2002, they added Mom to the lineup and officially became Fancy. Their high-voltage shows supporting acts like Peaches and TV on the Radio, as well as their appearance at 2003's Transmusicales Festival in Rennes, earned Fancy buzz. That year, they made their recorded debut with the Sweet and Slade-inspired "Seventeen," which appeared on a sampler from the legendary French rock magazine Les Inrockuptibles. Though the word of mouth about Fancy grew because of their flashy style, their very boldness scared away many overly cautious music labels. The trio continued working on their sound, appearing on samplers from Vice Records and Ed Banger, and releasing the Seventeen and What's Your Name Again? singles in 2006. That year, the band played the Eurockéennes Festival, which also had Daft Punk on the bill; the robotic dance duo and their manager Pedro caught Fancy's gig, and liked them so much that Fancy ended up playing a few dates with Daft Punk. The band signed with the eclectic French label Exclaim and released their debut album, Kings of the World in 2007. Chaton also had a hand in writing one of the year's biggest singles, Justice's "D.A.N.C.E.." The following year, Fancy toured the U.K. and U.S. with Justice as a part of their MySpace-sponsored tour.