Aidan Curran posted on December 07, 2007 03:54
While Dublin's indie and metal teenagers mooch and sulk around Temple Bar and its Music Centre (aka The Button Factory), their Parisian dance-music counterparts are outside the Centre Pompidou and being far more active. The plaza outside the famous art gallery is a hot-spot for Tecktonik, the breakdance-meets-techno dance style that's the talk of the Paris club scene.
The Tecktonik style started as long ago as 2000, in a Paris nightclub called Metropolis. But it's only this year that it began to have an impact on the public consciousness - the annual Paris Techno Parade this September marks the start of serious media attention on the movement. TV news programmes have begun to report on the craze - which probably means that it's about to become seriously uncool.
Tecktonik dancers have their own distinctive look - heavily-gelled futuristic haircuts matched with skinny-fit jeans and T-shirts. The robotic dance moves add to the cutting-edge visual impression of the style; advertising agencies in France and beyond are finding Tecktonik irresistible.
Now more and more clubs are putting on Tecktonik nights, a business which is not as straightforward as it sounds. Many such nights are being stopped with injunctions - not by the police or local authorities, as with raves, but by the Metropolis nightclub, who are the owners of Tecktonik.
Yes, Tecktonik is a registered trademark, the first dance to be copyrighted. No other club can advertise a Tecktonik night, as this would legally infringe on the Metropolis' trademark. Some clubs are bypassing this by holding 'Danse Electro' nights instead.
A range of Tecktonik merchandise is available, bearing the symbol of an eagle (left). This symbol, though, has only served to add even more controversy - many people feel that the Tecktonik eagle resembles that used in Nazi imagery.
You can check out some Tecktonik moves in the video for 'A Cause Des Garçons" by Yelle, a current hit in French nightclubs:
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