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Hear Champions League’s Balearic Balm ‘In Case You Needed Reassurance’

Champions League

Champions League’s first single was fantastical, summery dance-pop that made no secret of its inspirations. The Paris duo’s hometown ode “Paris Is Our Playground” has a song title in the tradition of Saint Etienne’s “London Belongs to Me,” Air France’s “GBG Belongs to Us,” and Elite Gymnastics’ “Minneapolis Belongs to You.” The label that released the song, France’s 25 Years & Running, takes its name from a track by like-minded Swedish duo the Tough Alliance. “In Case You Needed Reassurance” leaves behind its predecessor’s piano-house influence but remains entangled in the lush, Balearic, faux-orchestral verdance of Air France or the Avalanches, with a wispy earnestness pioneered by U.K. indie Sarah Records. The specific reassurances are a bit hard to make out, but the feeling is all over.