Les Hay Babies
A year after romping home in the 17th edition of Les Francouvertes, Moncton, New Brunswick’s finest banjo-twanging, ukulele-strummin' , Chiac-parlezing, cowpunking trio - Julie Aubé, Katrine Noël and Vivianne Roy - collectively better known as Les Hay Babies - returned last month with the release of their eagerly awaited debut album "Mon Homesick Heart." I'd already been blown away by the girl's Folio EP, but the band were now following in the footsteps of previous Francouvertes winners (and blog favourites) Chloé Lacasse and my favourite siblings, Les Soeurs Boulay, both of whom had subsequently delivered timeless debuts.
So, no pressure...
And if there was any it doesn't show. In fact what a fabulously enjoyable album this is. Across eleven nigh-on peerless tracks, the trio deliver a faultless selection of Acadian-tinged country-folk songs, charming, plaintive ballads and Cowpunk-infused indie-pop - all wrapped up in Acadian-French and Chiac (an at times confusing mix of Franglais or Fringlish - which if anyone wants to send me a Acadian-to-French or English dictionary, I'd be most grateful!)
The album opens with "Bonnie and Clyde" - an ode everyone's favourite modern-day Robin and Marion - with it's banjo, Katrine Noël's rasping vocals and spot-on harmonies, this song immediately remind me of why I so like this band... Which if I wanted another reason why I now love this band, it's here on "J'ai vendu mon char" and "Des fois j'me demande." On the former especially there's a great reverbed guitar sound and rhythm that is so reminiscent of Whitehorse's "Éphémère sans repère/Devil's got a gun", but again with those Acadian accents to the fore... This should be the album's next single release (IMHO, obviously...)
So, no pressure...
And if there was any it doesn't show. In fact what a fabulously enjoyable album this is. Across eleven nigh-on peerless tracks, the trio deliver a faultless selection of Acadian-tinged country-folk songs, charming, plaintive ballads and Cowpunk-infused indie-pop - all wrapped up in Acadian-French and Chiac (an at times confusing mix of Franglais or Fringlish - which if anyone wants to send me a Acadian-to-French or English dictionary, I'd be most grateful!)
The album opens with "Bonnie and Clyde" - an ode everyone's favourite modern-day Robin and Marion - with it's banjo, Katrine Noël's rasping vocals and spot-on harmonies, this song immediately remind me of why I so like this band... Which if I wanted another reason why I now love this band, it's here on "J'ai vendu mon char" and "Des fois j'me demande." On the former especially there's a great reverbed guitar sound and rhythm that is so reminiscent of Whitehorse's "Éphémère sans repère/Devil's got a gun", but again with those Acadian accents to the fore... This should be the album's next single release (IMHO, obviously...)
By way of contrast, the whole feel of the single “Fil de téléphone”, with it's thigh-slapping sing-along-chorus and distinctive vocals of Vivianne Roy, reminds of the Cowpunk scene in the UK during the late-eighties (especially the Boothill Foot Tappers); and while all that's missing may be the wash-board, there's a strong resemblance between Cowpunk and the Acadian-rooted indie-infused ("Dirty") folk of Les Hay babies and Lisa LeBlanc.
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| Fille de téléphone? |
The album is not all uptempo indie-folk though. The slower ballads sound great and offer a contrast in styles, in particular the melancholic "La toune du Soundman" and "Me reconnais-tu"; the haunting "N’importe quel gars", all soft harmonies and great pedal steel guitar; "Trop frette" with it's melodic keyboard and electric guitar (there's that Whitehorse reference again...)
There's one wholly English language song on the album, "Salsa sea," which has a totally (deliberately?) different feel from everything else on the album and which together with "Homesick heart", a haunting instrumental that starts with an organ-like keyboards which is rapidly overlaid with percussion and guitar, shows that the girls are more than capable of turning their hands to a variety of styles.
However, "Néguac and back" with it's references to the towns of New Brunswick (Dieppe, Paqueteville and the Néguac of the title) is arguably the stand-out song on the album. The lyrics bemoan the relentless urbanization of the region, as local population emigrate to the larger centres while home communities wither and die... It should resonates to all of us who have seen the vibrant small towns and villages of our youth stagnate and die, as employment and commerce migrate to the large and increasingly centralised (and increasingly soulless) conurbations...
In comparison to this album, the band's earlier "Folio EP" has an almost demo-like quality. As befits a recording contract and some quality studio time, this album is very polished. However, a lot of credit has to be given to producer François Lafontaine (Karkwa), who has succeeded in not diluting any of the girls' natural warmth and enthusiasm.
April was a pretty stellar month that saw album releases of the highest calibre in both English and French (albeit the year-listed English album was from a Norwegian band!) To that list you can add "Mon Homesick Blues" - an album you'll be hearing more of come year-end...
Les Hay Babies Website
Les Hay Babies "Mon Homesick Heart"
There's one wholly English language song on the album, "Salsa sea," which has a totally (deliberately?) different feel from everything else on the album and which together with "Homesick heart", a haunting instrumental that starts with an organ-like keyboards which is rapidly overlaid with percussion and guitar, shows that the girls are more than capable of turning their hands to a variety of styles.
However, "Néguac and back" with it's references to the towns of New Brunswick (Dieppe, Paqueteville and the Néguac of the title) is arguably the stand-out song on the album. The lyrics bemoan the relentless urbanization of the region, as local population emigrate to the larger centres while home communities wither and die... It should resonates to all of us who have seen the vibrant small towns and villages of our youth stagnate and die, as employment and commerce migrate to the large and increasingly centralised (and increasingly soulless) conurbations...
In comparison to this album, the band's earlier "Folio EP" has an almost demo-like quality. As befits a recording contract and some quality studio time, this album is very polished. However, a lot of credit has to be given to producer François Lafontaine (Karkwa), who has succeeded in not diluting any of the girls' natural warmth and enthusiasm.
April was a pretty stellar month that saw album releases of the highest calibre in both English and French (albeit the year-listed English album was from a Norwegian band!) To that list you can add "Mon Homesick Blues" - an album you'll be hearing more of come year-end...
Les Hay Babies Website
Les Hay Babies "Mon Homesick Heart"
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