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Encore Un Dernier Baiser Ringtone Download
Flammes Ringtone Download
La Verite Ringtone Download
Quel Enfer! Ringtone Download
Religion Ringtone Download

Niagara Songs

About Niagara

Niagara, who emerged from the thriving pop’n'rock scene in Rennes in the early 80s, went on to become one of the best-selling duos of the decade. However, after years of chart hits and successful international tours, the duo finally went their separate ways. Muriel and Daniel have both launched solo projects, but these have failed to live up to the success of the Niagara years.

In the early 80s Rennes, a lively student town in Brittany, was the scene of a veritable music revolution. Renowned as a hotbed of musical talent, the town found itself at the epicentre of an earthquake when alternative French rock collided with the fall-out of the punk movement. In 1978 the town also witnessed the birth of the seminal French music festival, the “Trans Musicales” (a festival which is still very influential in launching up-and-coming artists and new music today). Rennes was the perfect place for a new generation of young French musicians to thrive. And many of these new artists - such as Marc Seberg, Marquis de Sade, Octobre Rouge and Etienne Daho - went on to become major names on the national music scene.

The Ombre Jaune Years

Muriel Laporte, who was born in Rennes in 1963, was the daughter of a local solicitor. Muriel was a passionate music fan from an early age and once she had finished her studies at the local lycée she went on to devote all her rap time to music. In 1982 Muriel met Daniel Chenevez, a talented young amateur musician who, after a brief spell studying sociology, had also launched a serious music career. Chenevez, who played guitar and keyboards, also kept up with all the latest music technology, experimenting with synthesisers and videos right from the beginning of his career.

Daniel and Muriel went on to start a relationship and would later get married, Muriel taking the surname Moreno. Around the same time the pair decided to become musical partners, teaming up as a duo under the name Ombre jaune (Yellow Shadow). Daniel and Muriel made their public debut at the “Trans Musicales” festival in December 1982 and soon went on to make a name for themselves on the thriving Rennes scene, playing in clubs and concert halls throughout the Brittany region.

In February 1984 the duo changed their name to Niagara and the following year the cultural centre in Rennes offered to finance the release of singles for four local artists. Niagara was one of the lucky four chosen and the duo went into the studio shortly afterwards to record the single “Tchiki Boum”. Muriel and Daniel were confident that “Tchiki Boum” would provide an important showcase for their sound, but the impact the single made on the national music scene exceeded even their wildest hopes. Niagara’s sweet melodies and catchy pop style proved an instant hit with major record companies and Polydor instantly snapped the group up, giving them access to national audiences. “Tchiki Boum” also proved an instant hit with record-buyers and within a few weeks of its release, Niagara went shooting into the Top 50, and many more hits were soon to follow.

From Rennes To Paris

Muriel and Daniel made a perfect duo - Muriel, definitely the more extrovert and flamboyant of the two, made a great frontwoman, dressing up in sexy Barbarella-style stage costumes and charming audiences with her sultry vocals. Meanwhile Daniel, the more shy and reserved of the duo, took a back seat during performances. Niagara’s early concerts were excitingly visual, Muriel covering herself with flowers and flamboyant jewellery and transforming the stage into a riot of neo-psychedelic colours. Needless to say, Niagara certainly got noticed! As for the Niagara sound, this was produced through a fusion of sweet, carerap pop melodies and Afro-Cuban, funk and soul rhythms.

A few months after signing to Polydor, the duo was already rolling out the hits. The chart success of “Tchiki Boum” was swiftly followed by “L’amour a la plage” and “Je dois m’en aller”. Hot on the heels of their chart success, Muriel and Daniel moved to Paris in 1986. The pair released their debut album, Encore Un Dernier Baiser, in November ‘86, scoring another huge hit with the French public. Meanwhile the duo, who excelled at live performances, kept up their busy concert schedule appearing at all the top music festivals (including Printemps de Bourges, les Francofolies de la Rochelle and, of course, the famous Trans Musicales in their hometown Rennes). Videos were all the rage in the mid-80s and Niagara came up with consistently good visuals, Chenevez stepping behind the camera to produce the videos for “L’amour a la plage” and “Je dois m’en aller”.

On 10 March 1987 Niagara brought the house down when they performed at the Olympia, the most prestigious music venue in Paris. Their lightning rise to fame continued with a hectic concert tour shortly afterwards.

Hell and Back

In 1988 Niagara were back at the forefront of the French music scene with their second album, Quel Enfer (What a Hell). This album marked a definite shift in Niagara’s image and their musical direction. The duo’s saccharine pop melodies were increasingly replaced by rock guitar riffs and Muriel’s stage costumes changed from a riot of multi-coloured psychedelia to black. Fans appeared to appreciate this change of style, however, and “Assez” - the first single release from Niagara’s second album - soon went rocketing to the top of the charts and proved a big hit in clubs up and down the country.

After their move from Rennes the duo began introducing a more serious note to their lyrics, abandoning the frivolous carerap nature of their debut album Encore Un Dernier Baiser. By this point Niagara were at the height of their career and, shortly after the release of their second album, they set off on an extensive tour sponsored by MTV. Accompanied by a dozen musicians in their tour bus, Muriel and Daniel played to audiences in fifteen different countries over the next five months.

Niagara’s evolution continued over the next couple of years and in April 1990 the duo returned to the spotlight with their third album Religion. This time round Niagara took their rock sound one step further, mixing hard rock with catchy pop melodies. Muriel’s stage outfits changed accordingly, the sultry star appearing in concert dressed in full leather gear. Niagara’s new image was supported by aggressive vocals and hard-hitting lyrics and new songs included “Pendant que les champs brulent” (While Fields Are Burning), “le Ciel s’est dechire” (The Sky Ripped In Two) and “Chemin de Croix” (Stations of the Cross). The group’s new single “J’ai vu” (I Have Seen) was a powerful track about war.

Niagara continued their dizzy rise to fame over the next few months, keeping up a hectic schedule of tour dates and promotional interviews. This exhausting schedule soon began to take its toll on Muriel’s health, however, and in 1990 the singer suffered a bout of depression and nervous exhaustion and had to stop work for a few months to rest.

In 1991 Niagara were back on form, however, bringing the house down when they performed at Le Zénith in Paris on 6 February 1991. In June of that year Muriel and Daniel hit the road again, performing another major international tour. Niagara proved a particularly big hit in Moscow where they played to a stadium packed with 15,000 fans.

Slowing Down

By 1992 the Niagara craze was beginning to subside. Muriel and Daniel’s relationship came to an end, but they decided to continue working together in their professional life. Enthusiasm was at a low ebb, however. Niagara’s label invested a huge amount of money in the production of the duo’s new album La Vérité (The Truth) - which was to prove Niagara’s final swansong. Recording kicked off in the ICP studio in Brussels (where Niagara had recorded their last three albums) and finished up in New York in August in the Electric Ladyland Studio. La Vérité was the biggest production of Niagara’s career - in fact, no less than forty-five musicians worked in the studio with the duo! But this time round Niagara’s rock sound failed to impress either the critics or the record-buying public.

On 25 March 1993 Niagara performed at Le Zénith in Paris, but later that year Muriel and Daniel finally decided to go their separate ways. The group’s demise did not seem to be altogether final, however - every now and then rumours would go round that the duo were about to re-form and release a new album together!

Meanwhile, Moreno and Chenevez went on to put out a series of individual solo albums, none of which managed to achieve the same success as the Niagara records. Muriel experimented with electronic influences on her three solo albums - “Toute seule”, “Required Elements” and “Surviving the Day” - released between 1995 and 2001.

Chenevez was also busy in the studio, working on his debut solo album, “Excentrique”, released in 1996. As in the good old days of Niagara Daniel flew out to Brussels to record his new album, an eclectic selection of songs featuring everything from electro experimentation to soaring string sections and a bit of scratching. The first single release “Je suis mou” was a playful reference to the singer’s reputation for being indolent and laid-back. (But don’t be fooled by reputations, Chenevez is, in fact, a hard-working perfectionist in the studio).

After having taken a back seat to Muriel throughout Niagara’s career, Daniel finally got the chance to step centre stage and show off his own vocal skills. “Excentrique” made as little impact as Muriel’s solo album, however, neither the critics nor the record-buying public taking much interest in it. Daniel spent the weeks following the release of his new album rehearsing for a tour with his new all-girl backing group. (One of the highlights of this 1996 tour was Daniel’s concert at the Café de la Danse in Paris).

Daniel returned to the spotlight in 1999 with a second album entitled “Hypnose”. This second album, written and recorded in his own studio, was a decidedly more electro affair and this time round the critics gave him good reviews. However, on a commercial level, “Hypnose” turned out to be a complete flop. Chenevez returned to the music news in the spring of 2000, however, embarking on a mini concert tour.

Meanwhile, a compilation of the duo’s greatest hits was released on 9 April 2002. Entitled Flammes, the album proved a huge hit with the French public. Indeed, burgeoning sales meant the album went gold within two months of its release. But Muriel and Daniel refused to come out of Niagara “retirement” and promote their greatest hits compilation - as far as the duo are concerned their Niagara days are well and truly over!

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