The Weight of Confetti

So post number 1 of Reclaiming the Colonies 3.0 (don't ask about about my earlier attempts. Lets just say that these offerings, after a bright start faded into the Pacific sunset never to rise again the following dawn).

But even if this version of the blog is ultimately consigned to the same fate as it's predecessors lets at least kick off with a post about a couple of young Québécoise destined for a bright future.

So back in early 2012 I was perusing Bandcamp looking for some new French music (Disclaimer: I am HUGE francophone and avid consumer of French music - especially that sung by les filles - ever since - and stop sniggering at the back - I first heard L'Ange Rouge herself whilst holidaying in Brittany. Subsequently 2 1/2 years in the idyllic settings of the Suisse Romande did nothing to cure my affliction), when I came across an intriguing 5-track EP from a pair of sisters, Melanie and Stéphanie Boulay, otherwise known as Les Soeurs Boulay and was immediately taken aback by the crispness of the girls vocal harmonies. Seems like I wasn't the only one, seeing as they romped home in last year's Les Francouvertes, winning - amongst other prizes - a recording contract with GrosseBoite / Dare to Care, home of the (and words fail me) absolutely wonderful Coeur de Pirate.

But I digress. Having followed the sisters' progress from afar (I hesitate to use the phrase "cyber-stalking"), the girls announced the release of their debut album "Les poids de Confettis", scheduled for March 26th, but conveniently available for streaming (here). Trouble is, when you have such high expectations you often run the risk of being ultimately disapointed. To be honest regular readers of Guuzbourg's always excellent Filles Sourires blog are probably sick of me waxing lyrically about them (** cough ** artist of the year 2012 **cough**). So having placed Gaspé’s Boulay sisters on such a high pedestal that if they were to slip that they’d be surely shattered into a thousand pieces, would I end up eating humble pie?

So book my table at "Le Train Bleu"!

One listen and any fears were long since dispelled. The girls’ haunting melodies are still there to the fore, but there’s a new found certain assuredness which can be discerned not only in the reinterpretation of the songs off of their earlier EP, but also those debuting on this album.

There’s an added depth and warmth to the rhythmic melodies which as always complements the fresh clarity of the sisters’ vocal style – none more so than on “Un trou noir au bout d’un appât", "Lola en confiture" or the up-tempo "Des shooters de fort sur ton bras" (did I mention the ukulele)?

There’s more than a hint of early Simon and Garfunkel, especially the way their voices are almost telepathically intertwined and on “Chanson de Route” there’s the added benefit of highlighting that the girls sound as fresh (and yes, “fragile”) in English as they do French.

Ultimately this is an album chock full of songs about love, life, heartbreak. At times intimate and introverted (“Mappemonde”), others bold and extrovert (“Ôte-moi mon linge”), sometimes almost downright danceable – certainly in a toe-tapping kind of way (“Par Le Chignon de Cou”). All with faintest of country-folk tinges that makes you yearn for the ruggedness of the Atlantic coastline.

It’s March and already I have a pretty good idea as to my album of the year 2013. Check it out and expand those musical horizons... 

Les Soeurs Boulay (website)
Les Soeurs Boulay <Bandcamp)
Les Soeurs Boulay "Le poids des confettis"