Tag: Chocolat

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Paupiére’s Julia Daigle Releases a Crafted and infectious Single

With the release of their first handful of releases — 2016’s Jeunes instants EP, 2017’s full-length debut À jamais privé de réponses and 2019’s Jettatura EP — the rising Montreal-based indie electro pop duo Paupiére, visual artist Julia Daigle and Polipe’s and We Are Wolves‘ Pierre-Luc Bégin, quickly established a sound that finds the duo meshing elements of 80s synth pop and New Wave — think  The Human League, Depeche Mode and others — with French chanson. But under their breezy pop melodies and catchy hooks, the duo’s work thematically touches upon naive, adolescent and hedonistic romanticism, disenchantment and ennui.

continues their ongoing and successful collaboration with We Are Wolves’ Vincent Levesque, who produced all of their previously released material. Over the past couple of months I’ve written about two of that album’s previously released singles:

“Coeur monarque,” a playful, hook-driven mix of  Phil Spector-era pop and Ace of Base-like synth pop centered around shimmering synth arpeggios, skittering polyrhythmic beats and boy-girl harmonies. Despite the infectious nature of the song, thematically the song as the duo explained, is much darker: “‘Coeur Monarque’ is an imaginary tale about a girl, who lives her life according to her moods. Her freedom contributes to her isolation and she loses herself in it. ‘Coeur monarque’ is a light and poppy piece, just like the protagonist of the story. 
“Sade Sati,” a sugary, sweet pop confection centered around an enormous hook, shimmering synth arpeggios and Daigle’s plaintive vocals singing lyrics about the movements of the planets — in particular Saturn — and how they impact and influence all things in our lives.

Adding to a busy year, Paupiére’s Julia Daigle steps out into the limelight as a solo artist with her full-length debut, the Dominic Vanchesteing-produced Un singe sur l’épaule. Slated for a November 5, 2021 release through Lisbon Lux, Daigle’s forthcoming debut effort is a decided sonic departure from her work with Paupiére. Featuring a backing band of impressive local talent including Chocolat’s Guillame Ethier, Marie Davidson’s Asaël Robitalle, Jackson Macintosh, Phillipe Roberge, Alex Crow and Dominic Vanchesteing, the album’s material is a slick synthesis of contemporary alternative pop, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Quebec-based 70s prog act Contraction paired with storytelling-driven lyrics.

Un singe sur l’épaule’s first single is the sleek “Usage Domestique.” Centered around shimmering and looping mandolin, atmospheric synths, an infectious, motorik-like groove and an enormous hook paired with Daigle’s sultry yet insouciant vocals, the song finds Daigle and her collaborators crafting glossy, radio friendly pop with an art rock scene in a way that brings Kate Bush and Steve Nicks to mind. “‘Usage Domestique’ talks about an object of us,” Daigle explains. “The life span of a material and its value are directly linked to its solidity. When the object of use is abused for ornamental purposes, its life span is shortened b because being subject to fashion, it is doomed to die sooner.”

and White Night, the recently released video for “Usage Domestique” is an intimate peek at Daigle and her collaborators in the studio, rocking out to the song’s infectious groove.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Now, if you’ve been frequenting this site, you may recall that I’ve written about Montreal-based psych rock/indie rock quintet Chocolat — and with the release of their 2008 full-length debut effort, Piano Elegant, the Canadian act received critical praise for material comprised of sophisticated arrangements with a gritty garage rock sound that also simultaneously drew from yeye and indie rock. And as a result of the attention from the press and blogosphere, the band played several dates with the renowned Jay Reatard — that is before quickly and completely disappearing from the public eye. Interestingly, as it turned out, the band had gone on an extensive and somewhat unannounced hiatus in which several members pursued other creative pursuits — in particular, Ysaël Pépin played bass and toured with Demon’s Claws while Jimmy Hunt focused on a solo career as a singer/songwriter, collaborating with producer Emmanuel Ether and Organ Mood‘s Christophe Larmarche-Ledoux on his 2013 effort, Maladie d’amour. 

According to press notes, the members of the Montreal-based indie rock band were brought back together by a strange force of nature for their 2014 release Tss Tss, an album that was released to international acclaim for a sound that drew from psych rock and krautrock, and was supported by several tours both nationally and internationally. And building upon the buzz that they received after the release of Tss Tss, the Canadian band will be releasing their third full-length album, Rencontrer Looloo on November 11, 2016 through Beyond Beyond Is Beyond Records. And as you would have heard “Ah Ouin,” the album’s first single, the single suggests that the band has been heavily experimenting with their songwriting approach — the material is heavily modal-leaning while with that single possesses elements of skronking and screeching experimental, avant-garde jazz, surfer rock, surfer metal and psych rock. The album’s second and latest single “Le Falcon el Chacal et le Vaisseau Spatial” begins with a twinkling analog synth introduction reminiscent of 80s cartoons followed by lengthier section consisting angular guitar stabs, swirling electronics, bop jazz-like syncopation, followed by a much more anthemic section  consisting of angular power chords and a steady rhythm, twinkling synths and a fiery guitar solo to craft a song that not only sonically and structurally sounds indebted to prog rock but nods at psych rock and classic, arena rock.

 

 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Dark Psychedelic Sounds and Visuals of Chocolat’s “Ah Ouin”

The band’s third and forthcoming effort, Rencontrer Looloo is slated for a November 11, 2016 release through Beyond Beyond Is Beyond Records and while being the band’s second post-hiatus album, it also has the band experimenting with their songwriting approach and sound as the band’s material is heavily modal-leaning while possessing elements of skronking experimental jazz, surf metal and psych rock as you’ll hear on the menacing and trippy yet strangely radio-friendly new single “Ah Ouin.”

Directed by Jonathan Robert, who also designed the album’s artwork, the recently released animated video for “Ah Ouin,” according to the band was inspired by 60s psychedelic cartoons and sci-fi cartoons of the 70s and 80s. As the members of the band mention “It’s like a meeting between Yellow Submarine and sci-fi comic book Heavy Metal — and in fact, it employs the same bright yet darkly surreal imagery.