What it sounds like
French house — sometimes called French touch — emerged in mid-90s Paris when Daft Punk, Cassius, Bob Sinclar, and Étienne de Crécy started making house records that sampled obscure 70s and 80s disco, soul, and funk, then ran the whole thing through a filter envelope so the sample bloomed in and out under a four-on-the-floor kick. Music Sounds Better With You (1998) is basically a four-bar Chaka Khan loop with a filter on it, and that’s the whole song, and it’s perfect.
A bar in and you’ve got it: a chopped disco/funk vocal or guitar loop running on top of a steady kick, with a slow filter sweep opening through the verse and closing into the breakdown. The chord motion is ii–V or I–vi–ii–V from jazz harmony because the source material was jazz-trained 70s session players. Sidechain compression makes the loop breathe with the kick.
The chord moves
French house lives on jazz turnarounds — I–vi–ii–V is the canonical move because it cycles forever without ever feeling done. Add maj7 and m7 colors to every chord; plain triads sound wrong in this style. Sometimes you’ll use a vi–ii–V–I loop instead, or iim7–V7 in a one-bar repeat.
The trick is the voicing: french house chords are stacked tightly in the middle register — root in the bass, 3rd-7th-9th in close position around middle C. Use --voicing closed and let the filter movement do the work.
The groove
4-on-the-floor at 120–126 BPM. Snare/clap on 2 and 4 with a touch of plate reverb. Closed hat on 16ths, open hat on the offbeats. Standard French disco-house drum kit — usually a chopped vintage break filtered to taste.
The bassline walks. Often it’s part of the sampled loop; if not, it’s a synth bass that follows the chord roots on the offbeats. Sidechain pump is essential — set the chord pad and bass to duck hard on the kick; a 4-on-the-floor pump is the sound of the genre.
The sounds
- Sample loop: 70s/80s disco, soul, or funk. 1-2 bars, looped, run through a filter. Lean toward Chaka Khan, Earth Wind & Fire, Patrick Adams territory.
- Filter: a Moog-style ladder lowpass with envelope on cutoff. Sweep it slowly through the verse and crash it open at the drop.
- Kick: vintage 909 or a sampled disco kick. Tight, short tail.
- Pad/Chords: if not sampled, a warm Juno-style poly playing the chord stack. Layered low so the sample sits on top.
- FX: vinyl crackle for warmth. Phaser sweeps. Slight tape saturation on the master.
Production tells
Want it modern? Use cleaner samples (or original recordings), tighter sidechain, slightly wider stereo. Master loud at -8 LUFS.
Want it 1998-Daft-Punk-vintage? Saturate everything. Run the master through a tape emulation. Use heavily filtered samples that sound like they came off a dusty 12”. Mix at -14 LUFS so the dynamics breathe. Don’t EQ-clean the sample — let the muddy frequencies carry the warmth.
Cmaj7 → Am7 → Dm7 → G7
Click to hear it.
Listen to
Three records that show the style at full strength. Read them as listening pointers, not templates to copy.
Around the World
Daft Punk
listen ↗
Music Sounds Better With You
Stardust
listen ↗
1999
Cassius
listen ↗
Six recipes
Six ways to cook French house.
One starter recipe, three variations that each take the style in a different direction, one sectioned recipe, and one curated Live handoff recipe. Each one cooks from a Markdown recipe — edit it before the MIDI lands in your DAW.
Starter
Filtered Disco Chop
Tight major-seventh chops, octave bass pulse, house-shuffle drums, and pentatonic hook fragments for the first French-touch cook.
Study: Stardust, “Music Sounds Better With You” (1998). Use the reference for filtered-loop patience and sidechain feel, not for chord, sample, or vocal copying.
python jamburgr.py --config configs/recipes/french_house/french_house_filtered_disco_chop.mdVariation
Bass Filter Loop
A bass-forward lane where octave pulse and chopped chords stay simple enough for filter automation to carry the hook.
Study: Daft Punk, “Da Funk” (1995). Use the reference for bass confidence and filter movement, not for riff copying.
python jamburgr.py --config configs/recipes/french_house/french_house_bass_filter_loop.mdVariation
Sidechain Chord Lift
Brighter chord lift with sidechain-gap rhythm, major color, and restrained pentatonic fragments for a glossy French-house sketch.
Study: Alan Braxe, “Intro” (2000). Use the reference for lift, brightness, and compression feel, not for chord or sample copying.
python jamburgr.py --config configs/recipes/french_house/french_house_sidechain_chord_lift.mdVariation
Vocoder-Space Chops
A vocal-space lane with clipped chords, simple lead gaps, and sample-search-ready room for vocoder or phrase ideas.
Study: Modjo, “Lady” (2000). Use the reference for vocal/chord balance and polish, not for melody or vocal copying.
python jamburgr.py --config configs/recipes/french_house/french_house_vocoder_space_chops.mdSectioned
Filter-Open Section Sketch
A full-song French-house sketch with filtered-chop section MIDI files, bass loop patience, and sidechain space for DAW import.
Study: Cassius, “1999” (1999). Use the reference for loop development and filter-open pacing, not for sample or hook copying.
python jamburgr.py --config configs/recipes/french_house/french_house_filter_open_section_sketch.mdLive handoff
Live Filter Session
A French-house pack with filtered-chord sound cards, section MIDI files, and sample-search prompts for vocal phrases, disco loops, and texture.
Study: DJ Falcon, “Honeymoon” (1999). Use the reference for filtered-loop sheen and arrangement patience, not for sample or chord copying.
python jamburgr.py --config configs/recipes/french_house/french_house_bridge_ready_filter_session.mdReady when you are
Cook a French house pack.
Drop this in your terminal and you'll have a Standard MIDI pack in a folder, ready to drag into Live. Edit anything, swap any sound, throw out what doesn't work.
python jamburgr.py --key "C major" --style french_house --progression I,vi,ii,V --pattern pulse --output-mode pack --out ./jams/french-house