Ambient duo Nic Godin and Jean-Benoit Dunckel (aka Air) are releasing a highly eclectic mix CD of their favourite songs next month, which includes tracks from Black Sabbath, Japan and classical composer Ravel.

The Late Night Tales compilation sees them following in the footsteps of the Flaming Lips, Four Tet, and Belle & Sebastian, though chatting to Skrufff last year, Nic stressed their commitment to following their own individualistic ethos.

“It’s a good achievement to influence other bands, it’s better to be a leader than a follower,” said Nic, “Air is not a sound, it’s a spirit so when people try to copy our sound they go the wrong way. Especially with the way we compose, it’s not about the instruments or whether someone uses a Moog. We can do Air music with any instrument.”

The 30-something French star also emphasised their sartorial individuality, demonstrated by their enthusiam for wearing suits.

“Too many people seem to have a job of being a pop star, they wear a uniform and it’s definitely not something that interests us,” he continued.

“When we do Air we like to dress correctly, for example, when I go on stage I wear proper shoes and a tie just because we’re following the tradition of the music hall. We’re influenced by the Rat Pack, people like Frank Sinatra and David Bowie. Men should be classy when they’re over 30.”

Air- Late Night Tales is out on October 2.

http://www.latenighttales.co.uk