A fragile, haunting and inventive album. Out 29th of May on Labelman.
Camille Willemart is a singer-songwriter and multidisciplinary artist from Belgium.
‘Bottle Song’ instantly lets you know this isn’t going to be something ordinary. The first half is the alternating sound of a note being produced by blowing into a bottle set against Willemart trying to produce a similar note with her voice. Then birdsong joins in and finally a guitar enters. The guitar is like most of the rest of the album, slow finger picking and strumming. Willemart sings in English here, she mixes between English and French on the album as the mood takes her. ‘Le vent’ (The Wind) follows, the deceptively simple guitar building and maintaining an atmosphere that grows towards the climactic conclusion as everything builds in measured intensity.
‘Dove or the Devil’ might be one of our favourite tracks yet released this year. Simple, minimalistic yet devastatingly beautiful. As much about the space between notes and words as the notes and words themselves. ‘In a Song’ feels positively maximalist in comparison with two guitars and some alternative percussion. It is utterly effortless to lose yourself in. Stick on your favourite headphones and crank up the volume. Take a time out from the world. Drift away to this folk tinged landscape. ‘Saga’s Lullaby’ keeps you right there. ‘Enchanted Sea’ feels more epic at a luxury six and a half minutes.
We have been enjoying ‘J’ai rêvé’ for several months. Another magical highlight of this album. The vocal performance is incredible. Until the two minute mark it could be being performed by a band of medieval minstrels. ‘Piano Song’ is another with a luxurious run time. It is indeed a piano track and has no lyrics. Willemart generates and holds a range of notes with her voice to complement the instrument.
After another magic track in ‘Dans Ce Paysage’ (In This Landscape) the album ends on ‘Humming Song.’ Yes, you guessed it, just as ‘Bottle Song’ did exactly as it said on the tin ‘Humming Song’ features Willemart humming over her guitar with the sound of rain in the background.
This is an album of rare magic. There is a fine line between brilliance and missing the mark, and this album keeps mostly on the right side of the line. I can see it not connecting with everyone but if you give it room to breathe, and at least a few listens, you will find yourself with a deeply rewarding listening experience.
Essentail Tracks: ‘Le Vent,’ ‘Dove or the Devil,’ ‘In A Song,’ ‘Saga’s Lullaby’ and ‘J’ai Reve.’
Leave a Reply