Héra Ménard
And here is another auteur-compositeur-interprète from la belle province. Winner of the 2013 edition of Le Festival le Tremplin de Dégelis, Québec City's Héra Ménard released her debut EP "Et si..." earlier this year and in the process introduced a quintet of melodic songs which encompass both pop and the expansive country and folk roots of "Americana" (this is after all Québec that we are talking about) which suggests - alongside the nouvelle vague of artists such as Véronique Bilodeau, Laura Babin and Geneviève Racette - that this genre is going to be in safe hands.
The EP's opening and title track is delightfully up-tempo and merrily bounces along at a fair lick. At first Héra's bubbly yet confident vocals intertwine with just ukulele and guitar, but before long piano, percussion and even the plucked strings of a mandolin are added to the mix. The vocals are multi-tracked into a soaring and heavenly refrain and before long you're whistling this tune at the most inappropriate moments...
Crystalline vocals, perfectly complemented again by guitar and mandolin also feature prominently on the equally upbeat and foot-tapping "Le vide." There's a similar upbeat refrain and nice choral touches - but lest you get the impression that Héra only has one string to her bow - there's a sudden softening of mood and change of pace as the song draws to a close. Indeed, live - in session - with just a slight change of emphasis and vocal inflection sees the song takes on a slightly melancholic tinge, as the video below demonstrates.
Featuring an electric guitar that you'd swear is almost crying the country-tinged "Je pense encore à toi" and the melodic folk-pop of "Les dernières heures" are achingly beautiful songs. Both demonstrate the softness and soulfulness of Héra's ethereal vocals, while the addition of violin, low whistle and accordion add a haunting Celtic air to "Les dernières heures." This later song is by far this EP's most melancholic and thoughtful number - and arguably the strongest. It is unsurprisingly my favourite.
Now I'm usually ambivalent to the thought of native-French speaking artists performing in English, but there is something in Héra's disarmingly engaging voice that make "Lullaby" such a heartwarming and captivating song. Accompanied just by her ukulele, Hèra at first suggests seductively before imploring that since there is no where else for her love to go, staying with her tonight is the only logical thing to do. It's a beautiful and romantic number upon which to close out this EP.
As I've eluded, Québec seems to produce more than its fair share of country-folk artists, so standing out from the crowd can be a challenge. With "Et si...", Héra Ménard suggests she has more than enough strings to her bow to make a mark.
Héra Ménard (Website)
"Et si..." (Bandcamp)
The EP's opening and title track is delightfully up-tempo and merrily bounces along at a fair lick. At first Héra's bubbly yet confident vocals intertwine with just ukulele and guitar, but before long piano, percussion and even the plucked strings of a mandolin are added to the mix. The vocals are multi-tracked into a soaring and heavenly refrain and before long you're whistling this tune at the most inappropriate moments...
Crystalline vocals, perfectly complemented again by guitar and mandolin also feature prominently on the equally upbeat and foot-tapping "Le vide." There's a similar upbeat refrain and nice choral touches - but lest you get the impression that Héra only has one string to her bow - there's a sudden softening of mood and change of pace as the song draws to a close. Indeed, live - in session - with just a slight change of emphasis and vocal inflection sees the song takes on a slightly melancholic tinge, as the video below demonstrates.
Featuring an electric guitar that you'd swear is almost crying the country-tinged "Je pense encore à toi" and the melodic folk-pop of "Les dernières heures" are achingly beautiful songs. Both demonstrate the softness and soulfulness of Héra's ethereal vocals, while the addition of violin, low whistle and accordion add a haunting Celtic air to "Les dernières heures." This later song is by far this EP's most melancholic and thoughtful number - and arguably the strongest. It is unsurprisingly my favourite.
Now I'm usually ambivalent to the thought of native-French speaking artists performing in English, but there is something in Héra's disarmingly engaging voice that make "Lullaby" such a heartwarming and captivating song. Accompanied just by her ukulele, Hèra at first suggests seductively before imploring that since there is no where else for her love to go, staying with her tonight is the only logical thing to do. It's a beautiful and romantic number upon which to close out this EP.
As I've eluded, Québec seems to produce more than its fair share of country-folk artists, so standing out from the crowd can be a challenge. With "Et si...", Héra Ménard suggests she has more than enough strings to her bow to make a mark.
Héra Ménard (Website)
"Et si..." (Bandcamp)
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