Maxi Mounds In Action

Stranded Horse Café de la Danse

advantage of a stay in Paris, I jumped at the chance to see Stranded Horse Café de la Danse in Paris and I'll tell you this experience rich in contrasts and emotions of all kinds.

Just arrived one thing is clear to me: I am in unknown territory. The room is full of bearded men with bats hoody (this is called "hoodie" I'm told), girls working in "gaaaleries charming" and people who spend their vacations in the "small country where people are so endearing. " That said, my first impression somewhat amused and ironic was quickly corrected by the quality of silence for the two concerts in the evening. I do not know if this is the type of audience, artists or place, but contrary to what I have experienced in New Casino here, people really come to listen to music, almost religiously, even.

The first group leaves me still skeptical as I write these lines I do not really know quite what to think. Imagine a trio, not any youngster, the chief singer has fifty years in counter, within sight of a beard. Given this disparate trio, old bearded young Asian and young Flemish instruments based pan, wooden boxes, guitar pot, etc., a whole patchwork that will serve mainly percussion. And when the trio starts singing, there ... We have the right to an ode to Belgium, a small country divided into three parts (like Gaul Caesar's) and whose group Hiccups we will sing the praises town by town with a cat Dinan cake, a march in memory of Waterloo and so on. At one point we went into a soft ball stage wok'n who reprove the macarena, the room being asked to do the little things that go with the booty and wiggle. Does this mean that Hiccups is a bad band? Honestly, I do not know. But then, really. I think here it was not really music but a show, something meant to be seen ignoring the intrinsic musical quality of the thing. To the question, you see them go back, I would answer: no. To the question, music is it ugly, I say no too. At you get by that.

Time to get serious with Stranded Horse alias alias Yann Tambour Ink. Imagine a young man who does not look a good clump of brown hair, jeans and sneakers, very simple. Before him: two kora and guitar and there's even a song at the very beginning where he played the guitar and the kora at the same time. Before coming, I knew the man by name, because of his debut Clapping Music label and his current Talitres which He has just released the album "Tides Humbling. I can honestly say that I feared a little concert, having listened to a song or two but I thought it was pretty good, kora for over an hour, I had my doubts ...

And I was wrong. Besides the fact that Yann Tambour is a very good musician, he created an extraordinary atmosphere of lightness and grace, without any sentimentality. The compositions alternating guitar and kora create true harmony, away from the world music side sauce FM. Horse Stranded, alone or accompanied by Carla Pallone violin leads an audience in awe and silent after him, literally recreating landscapes seashores rainy faces behind the windows and a private life that he abandons his eyes closed, swaying almost, to which he invites us too. It's a pretty darn English blues on guitar that ends this encounter, this is the right word. If you have the opportunity to see him live, my faith, run it over, it is really worth admiring this timid in his works.

If you want to read a very good review of the album Humbling Tides, visit the Blogothèque.
And another report from the same concert on DansLeMurDuSon