The French really are a group apart. From the Revolution onwards, they’ve had artists, musicians, performers, and even circus freaks appear on the international stage doing something completely different and altogether their own. Nouvelle Vague think they are, but they’re actually not.

The novelty of having a modern artist cover a range of tunes is hardly new – nor is it groundbreaking, personality-defining or any such claptrap. Indeed, the group did it originally some two years ago, on Nouvelle Vague Vol. 1, where they similarly took post-punk progenitors such as Joy Division, Depeche Mode and others and redefined the songs in acoustic, bossa nova numbers.

Well, they’ve done it again with this album, the name coming from a Jean-Luc Goddard flick (tres chic). This time they draw upon Echo and the Bunnymen, the Buzzcocks, Blondie, and New Order. They also look to more mainstream staples who emerged from the same vat, such as Billy Idol and Yazoo, both acts that were originally influences by the punk explosion of the late 1970s before developing more mainstream ideals.

Where Nouvelle Vague go from here is anyone’s guess – they’re yet to look to American acts like Black Flag, nor Australian acts such as the Birthday Party. So there’s plenty of artists from whom they can use as a template. But without any of their own tunes, and instead just a range of interesting interpretations, they’re the sort of group who are great fun but ultimately inconsequential.