Caravan Palace

Caravan Palace is a French electro swing group from Paris, active since 2005. The band’s core sound brings together swing, manouche jazz and electronic music, with elements of house, dub and hip-hop.

Formation and style

The project begins with three musicians: Hugues Payen de La Garanderie on violin, Arnaud Vial on guitar and Carlos on double bass. They work from a shared interest in swing and Django Reinhardt-style jazz, and first develop the group after being asked to create a soundtrack for silent porn films from the early 20th century. That commission leads them to build an original repertoire rather than simply reinterpret existing swing standards.

As the project grows, they bring in additional players through MySpace: a clarinettist, a trombonist who also handles percussion and beat-synthing, a guitarist who also acts as DJ, and vocalist Zoé Colotis. The line-up also includes Chapi on clarinet and Toustou on trombone and percussion. Their music is described as combining lively swing rhythms with electronic production, and they are associated with a “Zazou” look inspired by Parisian paleopunks from the 1940s.

Early activity and reception

Loïc Barrouk, manager of the Café de la Danse, supports the project, helping them record with session musicians and secure gigs. Before releasing a record, the group builds an online following and spends time touring extensively. A notable early performance takes place at the 2007 Django Reinhardt Jazz Festival in Samois, where they play to an audience that is unfamiliar with them and attract attention from listeners connected to the traditional manouche jazz scene.

Members, labels and releases

Caravan Palace’s listed members are Paul-Marie Barbier, Zoé Colotis, Charles Delaporte, Victor Raimondeau, Antoine Toustou, Arnaud Vial, Camille Chapellière and Hugues Payen de La Garanderie. The group is associated with the labels Lone Diggers and Dramophone.

Its genres are electro house, electro swing and fidget house. It is a French electro swing band based in Paris.