The Ledoux brothers, who hail from the small town of Issoudun in the Berry region (Central France), formed the group Blankass in 1990. But the Ledoux brothers' musical C.V. stretches back a lot further than this. Indeed, Johan (born in 1972) and Guillaume (in 1970) were closely involved with the music scene from an early age, accompanying their parents to all the major French folk music festivals almost as soon as they were old enough to walk.  

However, by the end of the 70's the Ledoux brothers' musical taste had undergone a radical transformation. Johan and Guillaume deserted the folk music circuit after discovering the thrilling world of punk, abandoning flutes and violins to listen to the thrashing guitar sound of the Clash and Gun Club.  

Inspired by their punk rock idols, it was not long before Johan and Guillaume decided to form their own band. In 1981 the brothers got together with two friends of their own age - Anne-Sophie Bolender (on vocals) and Franck (on bass guitar) - to form the group Zéro de Conduite. Thanks to Johan and Guillaume's mother, who worked at the local youth club, Zéro de Conduite soon began performing their first gigs.  

The young group had barely got their career off the ground when they were spotted by talent scout/artistic director Bernard Batzen. Impressed by Zéro de Conduite's raw energy and fresh-faced talent, Batzen helped the group kickstart their career. And by 1983 the Ledoux brothers and their friends would find themselves performing as support group for their punk idols Gun Club at the Printemps de Bourges festival. Zéro de Conduite had suddenly hit the big time (after all, Gun Club was supporting the Irish mega-stars U2 at that year's Printemps de Bourges!).  

Following their success at the Printemps de Bourges festival, Zéro de Conduite set off on an extensive tour of Canada. The young French rockers would then go on to fulfil another teenage dream, supporting their British punk idols the Clash. In 1984 Zéro de Conduite were also invited to perform at the inauguration of the new Paris music venue Le Zénith, where they shared the stage with a host of top French stars.  

Besides playing all these high-profile concerts, Zéro de Conduite were also busy at work in the studio. In the course of their highly successful career, the group would record five singles and an eponymous album (released on the Off the track label in 1988). In spite of their lightning rise to fame, however, Zéro de Conduite would decide to split when they were in their late teens. In the late 80's, much to the general disappointment of French music fans, the Ledoux brothers and their friends would finally decide to go their separate ways. 

However, barely two years after the demise of Zéro de Conduite, the Ledoux brothers resurfaced on the French music scene with a brand new group called Blankass. The five-strong group, who take their name from the slang term for the popular French apéritif 'blanc-cassis', is made up of the Ledoux brothers, Olivier Robineau (on drums), Nicolas Combrouze (on guitar) and the multi-talented musician Philippe Ribodeau (who alternates between flute, sax and the traditional Breton wind instrument known as the bombarde).  

While Blankass did not rocket to fame in quite the same way as Zéro de Conduite, the Ledoux brothers' new group managed to sign a recording deal in 1991 with Warner Chapell.  This was something of a feat in itself, for the group had only written six songs by this stage in their career. Christophe Karcher, the artistic director at Warner, soon took Blankass in hand, however, encouraging the group to devote more time to songwriting. Karcher also advised Blankass to get as much live experience as possible, so that they could experiment with their sound in front of an audience.  

The group certainly heeded his advice! Over the next four years Blankass would tour the length and breadth of France, playing small gigs in local bars as well as performing major concerts to crowds of 25,000.  

Developing the energetic rock style they had created with Blankass, the Ledoux brothers would soon begin experimenting with folk influences, integrating elements of traditional Celtic music and bawdy French chanson into their sound. The group's lively concerts and upbeat music would soon attract them an extensive following of fans and in 1993 Blankass were one of the lucky bands chosen to receive a grant from FAIR (a French association set up to promote up-and-coming rock bands).

While Blankass had not quite hit the big time, the group was beginning to attract a number of good reviews in the French music press. Blankass were also building up an excellent reputation on the live scene and in 1994 the group were invited to perform at a number of major music festivals such as the Francofolies festival in La Rochelle, and the Canadian equivalent organised in Montréal, Quebec. Later that same year Blankass would extend their line-up, welcoming a new bass-player, Bruno Marande, into their midst. 

By the following year Blankass were more than ready to record an album. So the group headed off to Tarare, a small town in the South East of France, and within a month their début album was ready to hit the shops. Released at the end of 1995, under the title "Blankass", the group's album proved to be a major hit thanks to the first single release "La couleur des blés", which received extensive airplay on French radio stations.

"La couleur des blés" ("The Colour of Cornfields") also proved a great success with French music critics who hailed it as "a rural rock hit", "a new brand of chanson réaliste" and a wonderfully "populist" single. In fact, the critics were eager to fit Blankass into a neat pre-existing category, but the group's innovative folk/rock sound soon proved that it was not so easy to pigeon-hole after all.

In July 1996 Blankass were invited to play at the Château de Blois, where they performed with the famous French folk group Tri Yann - a group the Ledoux brothers used to go and watch with their parents twenty years ago! By 1997 Blankass had established an excellent reputation for themselves on the French music scene, and it came as no surprise to anyone when the Sacem (the French Musical Copyright Association) elected Blankass as Best French Group of the Year and presented them with the Prix Roger Seiller. 

Following this triumph, Blankass went on to perform a successful mini-tour, bringing the house down in Paris at Le Bataclan on May 13th 1997. On May 31st the group would score another major hit when they appeared at the Salle Wagram. During this concert the group would perform a memorable duo with the boxer Fabrice Benichou, singing an innovative cover of the legendary Edith Piaf classic "L'homme à la moto".  

Since then Blankass have continued their steady rise to fame. The group's début album, which was practically self-produced, has gone on to sell phenomenally well - indeed, at the beginning of these year sales of "Blankass" topped the 100,000 mark! In February Blankass were also nominated for Best Group of the Year at the 1998 "Victoires de la Musique" awards.

In the autumn of 97 Blankass returned to the studio to begin work on their second album, "L'Ere de rien" - which turned out to be a long labour of love, for it was not released until September 2nd 1998! Unlike the group's first album (which was a result of months of touring), "L'Ere de rien" was entirely written and recorded in the studio. Mixed in studios in Wales and England, the album was released on a new label and marked a whole new era in Blankass's extremely promising career.

Between November and December 98 Blankass performed a successful national tour, playing 20 dates up and down the country and, needless to say, the group brought the house down when they performed in Paris at Le Bataclan on 14 December. Meanwhile, the group's second album "L'Ere de rien" continued to go down well with the French public, selling 50,000 copies in the space of just a few months. Blankass's record company is now hoping that the album will end up selling 200,000 - which, we're sure you'll agree, is a more than decent score for the Ledoux brothers and friends!

In April 2003, the release of their new album "L’homme fleur" celebrated the band’s comeback on the musical front. It came out on a new label (Up Music, Warner Bros). Faithful to acoustic rock’n roll, the album revealed the six musicians’ new maturity. Guillaume dealt with the lyrics, Johan with the melodies. The first single was entitled "La Croisée". The album also featured an interesting cover of Pink Floyd’s "Another brick in the wall". A few days after the release of the album, Blankass set off for the French roads, a tour that should last until the end of Spring.

The tour, which lasted right through until the end of the year, included no less than 85 dates across the length and breadth of France.

Blankass made a welcome return on the album front in 2005, recording their fourth studio album, "Elliott", between January and May of that year. (The title was a tribute to the singer Elliott Smith). The majority of the tracks on the album were recorded under live conditions with John Hanlon, producer of the legendary American singer Neil Young. "Elliott" was mixed by Ian Caple, best known for his work with French star Alain Bashung, and featured a guest appearance by Manu (from the group Dolly) who provided vocals on the song "Qui que tu sois." "Fatigué" was chosen as the first single release from the album.

Despite its considerable budget and its more mainstream pop influences, the album "Elliott" (released in October 2005), failed to take off with the mainstream public. Blankass hit the road again in November, playing another extensive national tour.

Blankass also made their mark in the songwriting domain, composing the song "Clémence" which appeared on Johnny Hallyday's album "Ma vérité" (released in November 2005).

Over the next two years, Blankass made regular appearances on TV and radio shows, but fans were disappointed at the band's general lack of dates on the concert circuit. On 14 April 2007, Blankass took to the stage at the Théâtre de Verre in Châteaubriand to record the first live album of their career. The album, simply entitled "Un concert", featured live versions of fifteen of the group's songs including their biggest hits: "La couleur des blés", "La croisée" and "Fatigué." The album release was accompanied by a DVD featuring six songs performed live on stage at Châteaubriand, a series of video clips and a documentary which included footage from the group's own private archives.

Following the release of "Un concert" on 25 March 2008, Blankass reappeared on the live circuit, performing a series of concerts across France throughout 2008.

April 2008