Méridiens

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Ten years after his first psychedelic daydreams on debut album 613, Chapelier Fou continues exploring the art of intertwining electronic and acoustic music. Méridiens is the first part of a two-part project which will be completed by Parallèles in the spring, both originating from the same studio session and forming a captivating balance between two distinct styles. While the first track L’Austère Nuit d’Uqbar allows the French musician’s talent for the violin to shine through, the following Constantinople and the haunting Insane Realms are slowly but surely conquered by electronica and modular synths, blending in with the strings. It’s a direct approach to electroacoustic music which creates some interesting moments and songs in two acts, like Asteroid Refuge which starts off loud and feels like it belongs in a club or a sci-fi film before morphing into a strange dialogue between a drum machine, a synth and prestissimo strings. It’s a similar process on Le Désert de Sonora: the first part is played on the violin, while a synth slowly encroaches on the sonic landscape until the climax gives way to a new wave-style instrumental verse, completely overturning the structure. Chapelier Fou breaks all the rules and takes all the risks: all the better for us. © Smaël Bouaici/Qobuz