Melody Gardot made her public debut aged 24 with My One and Only Thrill in 2009, released on Verve Records. Many thought she’d pursue the glamourous, sophisticated and mysterious image conveyed by this record and forge a music career as a “jazz singer”.  However, just a quick glance at her eclectic discography proves that this singer-songwriter has done anything but, using each new release as an opportunity to reinvent herself and reveal a new part of her personality. After returning to her soul-rock roots on Currency of Man, (which celebrates the music of her native Philadelphia), and the barque hybridisation of The Absence (which borrows its rhythms and orchestral sounds from the various countries she’s spent time in over the last few years, such as Argentina and Portugal), Melody Gardot’s Entre eux deux is an intimate and romantic record that reflects on her relationship with France—more specifically with Paris—which she’s called home since 2016 (at least for most of the year). Conceived, composed and recorded in close collaboration with French pianist and composer Philippe Powell (son of the great Brazilian musician Baden Powell), Entre eux deux makes the most of the emotional proximity afforded by the duet format. It utilises a whole range of nuanced emotions and forms by using a repertoire that mixes legendary French songs (such as Francis Lai and Pierre Barouh’s masterpiece, Plus fort que nous), Brazilian classics (Samba Em Preludio by Baden Powell and Vinicius de Moraes) and original compositions that are effortlessly sung both in English and in French. The whole album is enhanced by the scenographic sound field created by the intentionally impressionistic piano harmonies, which forge an incredibly natural link between Bill Evans, Claude Debussy and the world of bossa nova. Melody Gardot’s deep and sensual voice resonates with great sophistication and sensitivity, exploring the mysteries of love songs through consistently beautiful melodies imbued with ineffable nostalgia. She plays into a few stereotypes (crazy love, Paris romance) in order to create an ironic sense of distance (listen to the lyrics of A la Tour Eiffel and Fleurs du dimanche, which are subtly disenchanted). Melody Gardot has never seemed more in control of her art than she does in this intimate record. © Stéphane Ollivier/Qobuz

The title might be French for "fool the world," but with Trompe le Monde, the Pixies weren't fooling anyone: this was essentially Black Francis' solo debut. It focuses on Francis' sci-fi fascination and lacks any Kim Deal songs; even her backing vocals are far and few between. Yet the band sounds revitalized on Trompe le Monde, as if it were planned as their last hurrah. The raucous "Distance Equals Rate Times Time" and the explosive cover of the Jesus and Mary Chain's "Head On" are fairly straightforward, but the lyrics remain quirky on "Planet of Sound," a song about a Martian who lands on Earth, and "Palace of the Brine," a tribute to sea monkeys and Utah's Salt Lake. He even disses hipsters and pretentious students -- basically, the Pixies' fan base -- with nasty little digs like "Subbacultcha"'s "I was wearing eyeliner/She was wearing eyeliner" and "U-Mass"' "It's eduuucaaationaal!" Musically, "Trompe le Monde"'s psychedelic sheen and "Alec Eiffel"'s atmospheric keyboards prove that the Pixies' sound wasn't defined by Steve Albini-style rawness. There's also more emotional depth: "The Sad Punk" features the strangely poignant bridge "And evolving from the sea/Would not be too much time for me/To walk beside you in the sun," and "Letter to Memphis" is a heartfelt, if cryptic, love song. Though Trompe le Monde doesn't sound quite like the Pixies' other work, Come on Pilgrim's spooky beginnings, Surfer Rosa's abrasive assault, Doolittle's deceptively accessible punk-pop, and Bossanova's spacy sonics helped make Trompe le Monde a rousing swan song and a precursor to alternative rock's imminent success. Whether that means their music remained pure or they missed their chance to cash in is debatable; either way, the Pixies are one of America's greatest, most influential bands. © Heather Phares /TiVo

Notorious for their regular lineup changes, Eiffel's fourth studio album, A Tout Moment, is their first since the departure of Christophe Gratien and Hugo Cechosz , the reunion with original drummer Nicolas Courret, and the recruitment of Dolly guitarist Nicolas Bonniere. Featuring a collaboration with Noir Desir's Bertrand Cantat (Minouche), the French rock outfit's 2009 follow-up to Tandoori also includes the singles "A Tout Moment la Rue" and "Sous Ton Alle."© Jon O'Brien /TiVo

Bryce Dessner is a guitarist with the alternative rock and Americana band the National, and this album with the Kronos Quartet appears not on its longtime label home of Nonesuch but on the rock-oriented ANTI imprint. The sound, from the standpoint of classical music, is a bit overheated, but Dessner certainly fits with the quartet's long-term goals of commissioning music from younger composers and reaching out generally to music lovers of whatever genre. Each work has a fairly specific program. The title piece, "Aheym," which was written for a concert in Brooklyn, New York's Prospect Park, denotes the concept "homeward" in Yiddish and is dedicated to the memory of Dessner's own Polish Jewish ancestors. It is questionable as to whether the listener would intuit the programs without knowing them in advance, for the music is written in what might be called a turbo-minimalist style that remains consistent, building as each work proceeds. The third piece, "Tenebre," features triple-layered vocals at the end from new-folk singer Sufjan Stevens, as well as an octuple-layered Kronos Quartet, but certainly the most interesting piece is the last one, "Tour Eiffel." Here, Dessner modifies his minimalist language and forges a three-unit texture consisting of a children's choir, a small band led by his own guitar, and the quartet. These three play off each other in simple but original ways, each refracting a text by Chilean poet Vicente Huidobro about the Eiffel Tower. It's a novel conception, and it makes one want to hear more from its young composer. Recommended for those interested in classical-rock fusions.© James Manheim /TiVo

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