Just the Tonik

The first major dance movement to come out of France since the cancan is a world away from high kicks and petticoats.Christina Quaine throws some shapes on the streets of Paris. Photography by Laurent Villeret

It’s a sunny Saturday afternoon and I’m standing on Rue Legouvé in the trendy Canal Saint-Martin neighbourhood of Paris, waving my hands around and attempting to speed step in time to hard electronic beats coming out of a boombox. God knows what I look like, but people are stopping to gaze and someone even throws some loose change into a hat.

Paris has a long tradition of street dance, ever since breakdancing and body-popping crossed the Atlantic and blew up in the city’s suburbs in the 1980s. Today, in the name of journalism, I’m attempting to learn the latest dance – one born right here in Paris – and it’s known as Tecktonik.

With me are two hip-looking kids widely acknowledged as the star dancers of the genre – a cross between electro, hip-hop and breakdance, with a bit of 1980s voguing and 1990s glow-stick hand waving thrown in. Treaxy, 20, and Nemo, 22, have cajoled me and passer-by Mèlody – a lithe 18-year-old with angular features and big hair – into trying a taster session. There’s a lot of pouting and popping going on.

“Do you think she knows what Tecktonik is?” I ask Patrick Gravity (not his real surname), who represents the dancers and organises numerous Tecktonik club nights alongside the movement’s acknowledged founders Cyril Blanc and Alexandre Barouzdin.

“Of course,” he says, looking at me as if I’ve just arrived from outer space. “Everyone in France knows about Tecktonik.” What started in a smattering of Parisian underground clubs a decade ago slowly spread via YouTube videos of teens dancing in bedrooms across the world and is now a global phenomenon.

The story started back in 2000 at Le Metropolis nightclub in Rungis, a southern suburb of Paris. Cyril and Alexandre, both friends, were tired of the usual clubbing scene, so they started organising nights called Tecktonik Killer, where thousands of clubbers would step to the heavy sounds of Belgian techno and “hardstyle” (a mix of hard trance, hardcore and rave). More and more dancers started choreographing routines and dressing in the same style, and Tecktonik was born. The name was inspired by tectonic plates, signifying the meeting and clashing of cultures.

It struck a chord with teenagers who loved the freedom it gave them and the fashion style it has become associated with. Millions started watching the online video posts of kids performing in the streets around the Eiffel Tower and Pompidou Centre.

“I love the Tecktonik look,” says Nemo. “It’s all about tight-fitting jackets, fluorescent colours and slim jeans. It’s quite 1980s.”

The mullet is the hairstyle of choice for the Tecktonik dancer (male and female), although Treaxy has recently abandoned his in favour of a shorter style. Treaxy is Tecktonik’s poster boy. He has danced on CNN, taught the routines in fitness centres across France, and earned a starring role in a music video for French electro band Yelle. The clip for their track A Cause des Garçons remixed by TEPR has had over 20 million views on YouTube.

“I’ve been hip-hop dancing since I was eight years old, and Tecktonik was a natural progression,” he says. “For me, it represents liberty – it’s an energy and a way of thinking. It’s my mission to take Tecktonik to the world.”

It seems that ambition is paying off too, as cool kids from Kazakhstan, Russia, Mexico, Morocco, Ivory Coast and Tunisia are all becoming au fait with Tecktonik. Treaxy is presently touring these nations with big club nights organised by Patrick Gravity and the whole Tecktonik collective. “It’s amazing in these countries because everyone knows exactly how to dance it,” he says. A little bit of Paris has reached the world.

So, how does one actually dance Tecktonik? At 30, I’m a good few years above the average dancer’s age bracket but, hey, I can still move.

“There are basic moves, but you can adapt them to your personal style,” says Nemo. “It’s all about expressing yourself. If you’re feeling angry you dance hard, if you’re happy dance soft.” The music begins and I tap my foot in a self-conscious bid to limber up. Tecktonik is apparently 80% arms, 20% legs – so, with this in mind, I raise my arms aloft. Nemo’s limbs are stylish and snake-like, while I wave my hands like a chimp conducting an orchestra. Everyone smiles politely.

Mèlody is far more suited to this kind of thing, and fares a little better. I ask for her thoughts on the craze. “It can look impressive when danced by the professionals and it’s kind of fun, but I think their tight pants are a little ridiculous,” she says. “I’ve never danced Tecktonik before and I don’t really like electronic music, either.”

So perhaps it hasn’t quite achieved world domination just yet. Still, when founders Cyril and Alexandre realised they were onto something big they registered the Tecktonic trademark, and have made it big business. They produce CD compilations and a clothing line, including super-tight T-shirts and gloves that will make those all-important hand movements look extra special. Check out Atelier Self Creation for official Tecktonik gear (83 Rue des Archives, tel: +33 (0)14 277 3586).

Towards the end of the afternoon, as I am doing an impression of a raving octopus in a day-glo headband, an elderly man shuffles along Rue Legouvé. He stops in front of us and watches for a while, looking baffled, then tuts and slowly carries on. There may be Facebook fan groups and the world may now know about Tecktonik, but I’m willing to bet my skinny jeans he doesn’t have a clue what it is.

WHERE TO GET YOUR GROOVE ON:

LE METROPOLIS, RUE DU PONT DES HALLES, RUNGIS, TEL: +33 (0)14 686 8666, www.METROPOLIS.FR

The birthplace of Tecktonik has four dance floors and plenty of flashing lights.

REX CLUB, 5 BOULEVARD POISSONIERE, TEL: +33 (0)14 236 1096, www.REXCLUB.COM

The go-to club in Paris for techno, drum and bass and electronic music lovers.

MIX, 24 RUE DE L’ARRIVEE, www.MIXCLUB.FR

This multi-level Montparnasse club offers plenty of space for your moves.

BEGINNERS’ GUIDE TO TECKTONIK

If you’re the right side of 25, possess hair that’s straight out of a Toni & Guy advert and feel comfortable in fluorescent clothing – and, more importantly, don’t resemble a steward at a pop concert – then take yourself off to the Eiffel Tower or one of the Tecktonik clubs to strut your sexy stuff. But get some practice in first, by learning a few of these moves.

THE POINT

Pretend that you’ve spotted something fascinating in the sky, then look up and point your finger.

THE ARM ROLL

Extend one arm out from your body, bend your elbow at a 90° angle and rotate your arm in a circle. Stop when it becomes boring and/ or painful.

THE HAIRCUT

Alternate between each arm by bringing it over the back of your head, as if you were giving your “Barnet” a nice combing.

POPPING

Quickly contract and relax your muscles to create a jerking effect (a pop) in your body. You can concentrate on specific body parts or your entire being, just make sure you have adequate insurance in case of injury.

VOGUING

Channel your inner Kate Moss to strike a series of fashion model poses. See Madonna’s Vogue video for inspiration.