The tale of New York electro-rock outfit Heloise & the Savoir Faire reads like an especially juicy gossip item, involving luminaries from the worlds of fine art, film, television, underground music and even music veterans. This all makes perfect sense once you’ve become acquainted with the charismatic pop polymath that is lead-singer Heloise Williams.

And who wouldn’t want to become familiar with them after hearing the band’s jubilant debut, “Trash, Rats And Microphones? The album was self-produced and engineered by Andrew Schneider at Translator Studio in Brooklyn, New York; and the result became these twelve originals that marry New Wave rock, disco rhythms, and effervescent synth-pop to Heloise’s succinct, idiosyncratic lyrical style. On the underground hit, “Odyle,” she lampoons New Age aphorisms, while “On Fuego” paints a vivid picture of a fiesta out of bounds, equal parts wet T-shirt contest and Mexican hat dance. The giddy opener “Illusions” mixes funky bass, bongos and a pumping beat to push the excitement meter into the red. Heloise even flips effortlessly from erotic whisper to full-throttle wail, then back again against the mechanized handclaps and squelching low-end of “Datsun 280Z.” Deborah Harry of Blondie fame drops by to join the fun on “Canadian Changs” and the lean and sinewy “Downtown.”

Growing up in small town Minnesota with British parents and a passion for music conspired to keep Heloise from growing up normal. “I used to force my brother and sister to sit on my bed and watch me perform, literally, with a hairbrush in front of the mirror. I loved Prince, and was a super-fan of the Solid Golddancers.” In high school, she demurred when the choir director tried convincing her to belt out Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” backed by a 200-voice chorus, but knew showbiz was in her blood.

While attending Vermont’s Middlebury College, her opportunity arose. Heloise was recruited to sing and play flute with a popular eleven-piece jazz band. Her star began to ascend; Trey Anastasio even asked her to work with Phish. But after four years of warbling Mingus, Monk, and Sun Ra – and trying to carve out her own niche in such a big ensemble – she resigned. It was then that the seeds of Heloise & the Savoir Faire were planted.

Craving fresh outlets for her creativity, as well as cultural stimulation, Heloise set out for New York City. By chance, she wound up with writer and artist Danny Moynihan (author of the art world send-up Boogie Woogie) as her landlord. With her degree in English and Studio Art, the two clicked. “Every time we had a conversation and I said, ‘I want to be your assistant, he’d reply, ‘You should concentrate on music’,” Heloise recalls.

And concentrate she did. As she chomped at the bit to play live, Heloise decided her new act required another element. In Vermont, she had befriended dancers Joe Shepard and Sara Sweet Rabidoux. Joe and Heloise once made a series of comic videos, about a troupe of hopeless amateurs, determined to make it in New York. “We would just film ourselves doing improvised dance.” Whenever anything went awry – which was often – the stars would simply shake it off and cry “savoir faire.” Viola! The fleet-footed Savoir Faire Dancers were born.

Early appearances at clubs like Don Hill’s featured just Heloise plus Joe and Sara, accompanied by a laptop computer. But she knew how to make that set-up work, having spent several months working in the road crew of provocative artist Peaches. “She inspired me to know I could pull it off. What I do is so different from her, but she is such a dynamo, a one-woman show. And I thought, ‘If she can do it, I can, too.'”

What Heloise & the Savoir Faire lacked in numbers, it made up for in visual flair. How they looked – their wigs, makeup, and costumes – was just as vital as the movements and sounds. “I used to wear my Mom’s clothes in elementary school,” Heloise remembers. “I would take her silk blouses and leg warmers, hide them in my locker, and then change. Once I even got a note on my report card: Heloise’s fashions are distracting to the rest of the class.” Little did her teachers realize that someday, Heloise and her cronies would graduate to featuring everything from cabana togs paired with gorilla masks to oversized Tootsie Roll berets offset by ghoul makeup.

Over time, Heloise missed performing with live musicians. Drummer Luke Hughett was already a fixture in the audience at shows, and Heloise’s boyfriend, guitarist James Bellizia was easy to rope in. “It was just an experiment,” she admits. “But we were all surprised at how weird it didn’t sound. It sounded good.” With the addition of bassist Jason Diamond, the new line-up was complete.

Luck continued to favor the band. Small labels and producers started calling, but Heloise was hesitant. None of the offers seemed right. Enter Elijah Wood. The Lord of the Rings star instantly took a liking to the band and he was also starting his own record label, Simian Records. “He is such a humongous music lover,” Heloise notes, “It was basically a dream come true: he said, ‘You can do whatever you want.'” In turn, Wood brought them to the attention of the producers of England’s “The Graham Norton Show,” who booked Heloise & the Savoir Faire to make their UK debut on the program.

But the strangest, happiest encounter of all came following a performance at the Knitting Factory in New York. Designer Todd Thomas trotted up to Heloise and said, “You’ll never guess who is here – and wants to meet you…” The answer? Deborah Harry. Heloise was dumbfounded, awestruck. “It was very weird for me. I almost wanted to cry.” Harry doled out compliments, asked for an autograph. The two women began exchanging e-mails, seeing each other out, and grew to be great friends. Eventually, after much nail-biting, Heloise mustered the courage to ask the star if she would sing on her record. Harry responded with, “Say no more, I would love to guest on your album.”

New York, London, Los Angeles… Heloise & the Savoir Faire continue making new friends and fans wherever they go. Why? Because the songs of Trash, Rats And Microphones, and the band’s shows, are tailored to electrify a wide variety of patrons.

Heloise & the Savoir Faire look like a million bucks, and have boundless fun on stage. “But not we’re super-super cool or pretentious jerks.” The ice queen drill team routine on “Members Only,” or the raunchy office politics of “Givin’ U the Bizness”? Those are just poses. Don’t take them too seriously.

“I’m writing with a sense of, ‘Let’s have a good time,'” concludes Heloise. “We’re poking fun at everyone, and everyone can point fun at us. Everyone is in on the joke.”