Roulé
French house label founded by Thomas Bangalter.
Roulé Music · via Wikipedia: Roulé · Fair use
Roulé (pronounced [ʁule], French for "rolled") was a French record label started in 1995 by Thomas Bangalter, who was then a member of Daft Punk. The label had a side imprint called Scratché ([skʁatʃe], meaning "scratched"), which put out just one record, produced by the duo Buffalo Bunch (Paul de Homem-Christo and Romain Séo). Roulé was dissolved in 2018.
Bangalter’s first release on the label was the EP *Trax On Da Rocks* in 1995. Its track "What To Do" later appeared in the 2018 film *Climax*. In 1997, after meeting Bangalter at a nightclub, Alan Braxe released "Vertigo" on Roulé, featuring a Bangalter remix called the "Virgo Edit." The following year, Roy Davis Jr. put out "Rock Shock," which included another Bangalter remix, the "Start-Stop Mix."
Following "Vertigo," Braxe performed at Paris’s Rex Club with Bangalter on keyboards and Braxe’s friend Benjamin Diamond on vocals. For that show, they built the first version of "Music Sounds Better with You" by looping a sample from Chaka Khan’s 1981 track "Fate" on an E-mu SP-1200. After polishing, the track was released in 1998 and spent two weeks at number one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. That same year, Bangalter issued *Trax On Da Rocks Vol. 2*, which charted at number 83 for two weeks on the Official Singles Chart Top 100. In 1999, Romanthony’s "Hold On" came out on Roulé; it had originally been released on his own Black Male Records in 1994, and the Roulé version added two different remixes.
In 2012, *Trax On Da Rocks* and other releases were reissued, briefly reviving the label. In December 2018, Bangalter liquidated Roulé. After Daft Punk disbanded, he started a new label, Alberts & Gothmaan (an anagram of his name), for his solo work.
Roulé is remembered as an influential French house label whose releases "stand among house music’s most infectious" and "captivate an audience for the rest of time." Despite being founded in 1995 and releasing several EPs, the label put out only one full-length album: the soundtrack to the film *Irréversible* (2002). Bangalter once said in an interview: "Roulé’s never really been a 'label.' It’s been more of an outlet where there’s a record every year or so. I’ve never made plans for it, and I never will. It’s just something that is there.
Quick Facts
- Defunct
- 2018
- Founder
- Thomas Bangalter
- Distributor
- Funkytown Distribution
- Genre
- House · nu-disco · techno
- Country
- France
- Location
- Paris
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Roulé was launched in 1995 by Thomas Bangalter, then a member of Daft Punk. Its first release was Bangalter's own EP 'Trax On Da Rocks', which included the track 'What To Do', later used in the 2018 film Climax. In 1997, Alan Braxe released 'Vertigo' on the label after meeting Bangalter in a night club; the single included a remix by Bangalter called the 'Virgo Edit'. The following year, Roy Davis Jr. released 'Rock Shock', which featured another Bangalter remix, the 'Start-Stop Mix'.
In 1998, after a performance at the Rex Club in Paris, Braxe, Bangalter, and Benjamin Diamond composed 'Music Sounds Better with You' using a looped sample from Chaka Khan's 'Fate' sampled on an E-mu SP-1200. The track was released under the name Stardust and spent two weeks at number 1 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. That same year, Bangalter released 'Trax On Da Rocks Vol. 2', which peaked at 83 on the Official Singles Chart Top 100. In 1999, Romanthony released 'Hold On', which had previously appeared on his own label Black Male Records in 1994; the Roulé version included two different remixes.
After a period of inactivity, the label was revived briefly in 2012 when 'Trax On Da Rocks' and other releases were reissued. In December 2018, Bangalter liquidated Roulé. Following Daft Punk's split, Bangalter created a new label named Alberts & Gothmaan for his solo work.
Reader's Guide
Roulé is regarded as an influential French house label whose releases 'stand among house music’s most infectious'. Despite its relatively small output—only one full-length album, the Irréversible soundtrack—the label produced several iconic tracks that helped define the late-1990s French house sound. Bangalter himself described Roulé as 'never really been a label' but rather an occasional outlet for records. The label also operated a side imprint, Scratché, which released a single record by the Buffalo Bunch. Roulé's legacy endures through its carefully curated catalog and the enduring popularity of 'Music Sounds Better with You'.
Did You Know?
- Roulé's side label Scratché released only one record, by the Buffalo Bunch.
- 'Music Sounds Better with You' used a looped sample from Chaka Khan's 1981 song 'Fate'.
- Roulé was liquidated by Thomas Bangalter in December 2018.
- The label's only full-length album was the Irréversible soundtrack from 2002.
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