Love Song Proves Uplifting For Montreal Pop Duo Sky

From Billboard, June 19 1999 by Chuck Taylor

LOOKING TO THE SKY: For the Montreal-based pop duo of Antoine Sicotte and James Renald, the sky's the limit.

With the release of their first U.S. single, "Love Song," the members of the act, known simply as Sky, hope to capitalize on the success they've already seen at home, where the track topped the Canadian singles and the MuchMusic video channel charts.

The supporting album on EMI Canada, "Piece Of Paradise," has been designated double-platinum (sales of 200,000) after debuting at No. 6--the highest launch ever for any new Canadian artist there, according to the label.

Certainly, part of the appeal of the guys, both 26, is that they're the guiding forces behind their craft. All songs are written by the two, who also oversee bass, keyboards, guitars, electronic programming, arranging, and nearly all vocals. They also handle production, along with Peter Mokran (who produced recent recordings by Maxwell, R. Kelly, and Michael Jackson) and Euro Syndicate Productions (whose members include the Berman Brothers, Jeff Copland, and Joe West).

In its first weeks at radio in the U.S., nearly 50 Broadcast Data Systems-monitored stations have given the hook-happy, guitar-helmed uptempo pop track spins in markets including Seattle, San Diego, St. Louis, and Tampa, Fla. In smaller markets, it was the No. 1 top 40 add its first week out at the end of May.

"I can't compare this with anything that's out there right now, which is what is so cool about it," says Joe Haze, music director of top 40 KHTS San Diego, which has been on "Love Song" for two weeks. "One of my colleagues said that the hook is like heroin. You just can't get enough. It just has a really good feel to it. And yes, it is a stand-out summer song.

"It's just a really good-sounding song," adds Dave Decker, music director of top 40 WZPL Indianapolis. "It sounds really great on the air and fits the mix well. We're already getting some curiosity calls with people thinking it's cool and wanting to know who it is. I think it's going to do really well."

So does Arista, which signed Sky in the U.S. in February 1999. In fact, label president Clive Davis has made breaking the duo one of his primary personal goals for the year.

"When I was first listening to their music, I was flabbergasted at how one song after another was so special and unique," he says. "They're edgy but contemporary in the best tradition of pop.

"Then when you witness their personal charisma, you can see that special something that makes them stars," adds Davis. "It adds up to the very kind of things you look at from where I sit. They're definitely a creative talent who are able to create and stamp their own music and transcend all boundaries. I see them in the same vein as Simon & Garfunkel."

For James and Antoine (who use only their first names in the business), fame comes after six years of working to collectively achieve a sound that pleased the two very diverse individuals.

The two met in 1992 at music production/songwriting school, became housemates, quit school, and focused on writing and demoing music at a hastily assembled home studio. They concede that they seldom agreed about much else.

"We're just two completely different individuals who have a really strong bond for music," says Antoine, self-professedly the more outgoing of the two. "Naturally, we were broke, so we had a little apartment with the studio in the living room. The learning experience was in seeing what we could bring to each other as songwriters and producers. I think it's a good thing that we're so different, because our ideas are so different; it's sort of a yin-and-yang situation."

"Tony is so different from me," says lead vocalist James. "He's loud and outgoing, and he has a different way of working. I'm someone who doesn't like to sit on the subway, because people are looking at you."

That didn't keep the two from putting out a five-song EP in 1997 on their own Phat Royale label, which led to airplay of the track 'America" (included on "Piece Of Paradise") on 43 radio stations in Quebec. Within a month, the duo was courted and signed to EMI Canada for both publishing and record deals.

The act's first hit there was "Some Kinda Wonderful" (think Paul Davis' "'65 Love Affair"), which catapulted into the top 10 of the singles chart.

After recently completing an initial monthlong radio tour in the U.S., Antoine and James have held their differences at bay and united for the cause. Those radio programmers who have met the two during their recent radio tour describe both Sky members as charming and energetic.

"I saw them during a live performance in Connecticut, and they were very nice and really excited about getting their record released down here in the U.S.," says Jim Reitz, PD of top 40 WFHN Providence. R.I. "And they were thrilled that Clive Davis had taken an interest in them."

"They did an acoustic performance for us here at the radio station and were just real nice guys looking for a break," says Tony Bristol, PD of WPRO, WFHN's crosstown competitor. "We talked with them about writing their own music and the process of producing an album. They were good guys."

"They charmed everyone at radio," says Adam Sexton, VP of product placement for Arista. "They're incredibly personable guys, and we got that feeling of a lot of love coming back from everywhere.

It's logical enough that Antoine and James would unify via the spirit of talking about their music. Both have an equal passion for the art of creating a variety of pop styles that hook listeners with instant melodies and richly layered harmonies, as evidenced on the highly diverse "Piece Of Passion," set for U.S., U.K., and Japanese release on Arista June 29. The compelling album is rooted in classic soul but runs the gamut from smooth and easy to funked-out juicers and jagged rock-lite-all without a hint of the trendy hip-hop beat box.

I really love commercial music," James says. "I love radio-friendly hooks, and I feed off of that."

But does their admitted pop leaning spell out danger at top 40, where the likes of Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync, 98[degrees], and Britney Spears are already pushing the style en masse?

"At first, I was like. 'Oh no, not another one of these boy groups,' but when I saw their live show, I found that their hooks stood out more than most of those other artists," says Reitz. "In any case, I think if the music is good enough, it will get played and heard. Cream will always rise to the top."

"They definitely don't have the bubble-gum sound," adds Haze. "These are not your average young boy-band guys. They sound more mature, more like a Savage Garden than a Backstreet Boys." Another distinction is Sky's songwriting talent.

"They write their own stuff," Haze notes. "I think that matters, because if you can write one hit, you can write another, as opposed to relying on someone else to come up with another one. They know what's inside to be able to write as artists."

Coming up, Sky will return to the States June 20 for a three- to four-week tour of specific regions, with hopes for some TV appearances to ramp up marketing efforts. In addition, the act will be making stops in Denmark, Germany. Italy, Japan, and Australia before returning to Canada.

"We've already really begun to form our identity in Canada," says Antoine. "Now we're looking forward to putting together a hand by the new year so that we can look forward and be the best that we can be."