Rosie Valland

I may have raved once or twice last year (four times actually, but who's counting?) about the - so insanely talented that I am not worthy to write about - young Québecoise auteure-compositrice-interprète Rosie Valland. Her debut album "Partir Avant" was quite rightly one of the albums of the year.

"Nord-Est" is Rosie's brand new EP - a collection of half-a-dozen songs released a mere five months after "Partir Avant" - that while outwardly sounding reassuringly familiar, offers a noticeable change in atmosphere. So while there's that trade-marked and atmospheric reverbed guitar alongside her haunting and mesmerising vocals, the mood is lighter - the dark journey chronicled in "Partir Avant" has been completed, that album's release proved incredibly cathartic - Rosie herself has moved on and "Nord-Est" is confirmation of that.

The EP's opening and title track encapsulates Rosie's new found spirit, as it captures the moment that she leaves her past behind her and escapes to - while primarily a fictitious destination - a place of newfound peace. Keyboards flirt with the subtle electric guitar; Rosie's voice floats and swirls delicately in the breeze  before breaking forth with joyous emotion... Which leads to my only criticism; Rosie's voice is so delicate, so nuanced, that the words tend to blur into one another. A lyric sheet or booklet would have been greatly appreciated - especially for us non-native French speakers.

And so apologies if I've got the context of the songs all wrong, but to my ear "Nos guerres" with its catchy and bouncy rhythm - resonant, reverbed guitar and metronomic percussion - is sort of a love song. It's not actually a love song in the traditional sense, more an affirmation of a long-standing friendship. The battles, the wars of the song's title will be faced together and ultimately overcome together.

In many respects "Concession" is the highlight of this EP. There's a simple fluidity that belies the song's 6' 14" length and a warmth that is at odds with the theme of a dark, long winter. While the languid and spellbinding guitar reminds me of The Stereophonics "Mr Writer", the vocal effects - distortion and subtle use of a vocoder - add depth and bizarrely clarity. The end result is an effortless and hauntingly beautiful number. The guitar is once again to the fore on the rock-infused "L'isle." Here Rosie's vocals are more strident - perfectly in-tune with the song's powerful chords.

The EP closes with the two-part "Calmer le vent." The atmospheric and synth-and string driven instrumental that is "Part 1" fades into the minimalist "Part 2." Gosh - similar to the opening track - this is yet another delicately beautiful number. There's a gossamer quality to Rosie's voice as it drips with emotion. The song is Rosie's first experience of co-writing, with the lyrics largely written by Marie-Félixe Baril-Nadeau to which Rosie affixed the melody.


Once again, the record was produced and arranged under the watchful gaze of Jesse Mac Cormack with able backing from Les frères Levac (Jean-Philippe and Frédéric) and the cello of Anaïs Constantin.

There's a magnetic quality to both Rosie's voice and compositions - which while difficult to explain becomes apparent the moment you hear her on disc. And while Blogueurs have compared her to the likes of Cat Power or Feist, I'd cast my gaze somewhat closer to Québec, placing Rosie shoulder-to-shoulder with a certain Salomé Leclerc. Praise doesn't come any higher...

Rosie Valland (Website)
"Nord-Est" (Bandcamp)