Pitchfork

When it came time for Jean-Benoit Dunckel-- one half of French electronica poster boys Air-- to choose a name for his solo getup, he really set those cogs in motion, concluding after much deliberation that "dark" sounds and looks substantially sexier than "dunck." Genius! Hence, the world gets Darkel, who, as previously reported, has a self-titled album of Air-y electro pop coming out on Astralwerks on September 19.

Darkel is now streaming assorted tracks from the album on his sci-fi sound effect-happy official website, as well as his MySpace-- or, for ad-free, instant gratification, click the stream links below. iTunes fiends can also download Darkel's first single, "At the End of the Sky" from the iTunes store now.

Air, meanwhile, are putting the wraps on their latest long-player, tentatively due for release in early 2007. If you need an Air fix this year, however, and can't wait until Darkel drops, try French actress/singer/hottie Charlotte Gainsbourg's new disc 5:55, due August 28 in Europe and September 5 in the UK, and featuring music composed by your favorite French space cadets. Then chase that Gainsbourg/Darkel with a hit of Air's contribution to the Sofia Coppola-directed flick Marie Antoinette, opening this fall.