When not running the Freaksville label, Benjamin Schoos is concentrating his efforts into producing lush, string-laden, melancholic and very French pop. Here, on his North American debut, he’s working with guest vocalists including Laetitia Sadier (Stereolab), Mark Gardener (Ride), Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders) and Parisian icon Marie France.

Previously, multi-instrumentalist Benjamin Schoos produced, composed and arranged songs for a variety of cult figures in the French pop scene, including ’80s synthpop star LIO, debonair dandy Alain Chamfort, Michel Moers and Marc Moulin from electronic group Telex.

However more recently, Benjamin found himself inspired by the technical genius of orchestrator Jean Claude Vannier (Serge Gainsbourg’s Histoire De Melody Nelson), who he met in 2006, and the creativity of New York noise producer Kramer (Shimmy Disc, Galaxie 500, Low, Bongwater), with whom he has worked on three albums. Benjamin took some time away from his label and production work to unleash his inner soundscapes on China Man Versus China Girl.

Composed and recorded in nights at the Freaksville Lab, Benjamin has created a rich, rhythmic FM pop sound drawing on the glossy melody and soaring synthesizers of ’70s soft rock with orchestral flourishes taken from the besy of French cinema soundtracks.

Touched by the charm of Benjamin’s songwriting, Chinaman Versus China Girl has a few guest appearances: a duet with Laetitia Sadier (Stereolab) on t “Je Ne Vois Que Vous,” lead vocals by Mark Gardener (Ride) on the romantic, “Barryesque Worlds Away” and Chrissie Hynde duetting with Parisian chanteuse Marie France on caustic ballad “NAME,” in which they play the role of femmes fatales digging their claws into the male population

With the occasional nod towards surrealist poet Arthur Craven and great American boxer Jack Johnson (to whom Mile Davis dedicated an album),  “It’s the perfect soundtrack of a drama movie about wrestling,” says Schoos. “Wrestling is a great sport and a metaphor of love – or pretending to be in love.”