press-kit - Le grand Bateau
Transcription
press-kit - Le grand Bateau
le grand bateau l’eau de vie le grand bateau ‘Girl singing in French, some accordion passages here and there… it must be French chanson’; anyone who takes this as a reason to listen to the group will have wasted their time. Le Grand Bateau produces a sound entirely its own, incorporating a wide range of influences. It’s no easy task to label or categorise their music and if one could it would immediately be superseded. The lyrics determine the music, regardless of genre. The lyrics and music are inherent to the material and each depends on the other. Although the numbers seem to sound lively, they are accompanied by rather more melancholy lyrics. As is often the case in songwriting, the inspiration was taken from personal experiences and stories heard ‘at the bar’ or in conversations. Although many of the numbers are about people, what they do above all is visualise a genuine emotion. There is story behind every façade. In spite of this contradiction and diversity, there is a thread that ties it all together. The members of the group spin this thread very informally, and the truly intriguing nature of the songs arises out of the members’ individual lifestyles. All with different tastes in music, views and characters; it is to this that the music owes its complexity. But to express it in an uncomplicated manner, we can say that they play numbers that are above all appealing, genuine and lively. A delight to listen to and a pleasure to see them play. They are neither black, nor white… but more like grey (like Belgian weather). They offer you a ‘chanson Belge’. l’eau de vie They have now taken the time to record their second official album (which ultimately became an EP of their best new numbers) called L’eau de vie. For this they have taken a new crew member on board in the shape of Jean-Marie Aerts (TC Matic, Absynthe Minded and others) who has taken on the responsibility for production. The songs were recorded at the ICP Studios in Brussels. Aerts succeeded in pointing up the personality of this group using the right sounds and the songs selected for the EP, and allowed them to record completely live… on tape (when J-M Aerts is in the studio, it’s the old school approach). L’eau de vie sounds riper and slightly darker than La mesure, their first album, which was much more of a musical exploration. Their characteristic themes of fear, passion and loss still provide the undertone, but are accompanied by their distinctly spontaneous style. Yves Meersschaert Yves Meerschaut has been playing the piano since he was seven. The first of his own melodies were born the instant he made the acquaintance of the instrument. He wrote several fine French chansons for the duo Derek and Vis. His song Petit Lapin was a radio hit in Flanders and the Netherlands. In 1999 he brought out the first solo album of his own work, called Mon Paradis. It was on the basis of these compositions that the Ministry of the Flemish Community selected him to tour the cultural centres of Flanders. Since 2000 he has been the resident composer with the Ultima Thule figuretheatre company in Ghent. Since 2004 he has been the composer and conductor of the Propere Fanfare in Ghent, which has more than 100 members. As a pianist and producer he has worked with Lieven Tavernier, Warre Borgmans, Herman Brusselmans, BJScott, Derek, Bruno Deneckere and Wim De Wulf. Aster van Vaerenbergh Aster graduated from St Lucas College in Ghent as an illustrator and artist. Since 2011 she has been working as a tattoo artist and has run her own business, called ‘The House of Dis’. She also still works as an illustrator and provided the visuals for the previous album, La mesure. Aster is a self-taught vocalist, but she has had a passion for music since her early years. She has worked with Kid Fear, Arne Van Haecke and others. In 2010 she opted decisively to become the lead singer with Le Grand Bateau. Thomas Noël The musician and photographer Thomas Noël (1971) studied classical piano under Sonja Moortgat at Antwerp Conservatoire, and jazz piano, guitar and composition under Mike DelFerro, Erik Vermeulen and Lucien Posman at the Conservatoire in Ghent. He currently works as a pianist and multi-instrumentalist and also as a freelance photographer. He is also the composer and driving force behind Frontiera npo and ‘The City’s song’ (http:// www.frontiera.be) and is, moreover, actively involved in numerous other music and audiovisual projects. As a director he is regularly engaged in theatre projects for De Vieze Gasten and De Centrale intercultural centre (e.g. as initiator of the BOXART project in Ghent in 2010). In 2014, together with the violinist Wouter Van Den Abeele, he took part in the Yolda project (http://www. projectyolda.be) set up by the Handelsbeurs as part of the Istanbul Ekspress festival. Thomas has worked with Blindman, De Filmfabriek, Literaturhaus Innsbruck, theater bij De Vieze Gasten, Huis Van Alijn, Yawar, the Standaard group, D&D productions, CC De Markten, BOZAR, De Handelsbeurs, ICC De Centrale, Radio Panguana (Melbourne), Pitti Pollack, Pop in Wonderland, Lieven Tavernier, John Snauwaert, Catherine Delasalle and others. His exhibitions have toured several cultural centres in Flanders and abroad. Sophie Cavez At barely 30 years old, this young self-taught accordionist, extremely gifted and a fanatical worker, is solidly rooted in the world of ‘musical buttons’. Engaged in her own projects and offering her talent to others, in just a few years she has taken a new diatonic sound that combines power, charm and sensitivity to concert stages in both Belgium and abroad. For the last three years she has also been in action with her bass and has provided vocal accompaniment for several chanson projects: Urban trad, Dazibo, KV Expess, Montanaro/Cavez duo, Julien Padovani, Malyka, Kaline. Wouter van den Bossche Wouter Vandenbossche was born in Wetteren on 6th April 1984. He learnt his first drumbeats at the age of 10 with the local brass band in Sint-Lievens-Esse. His interest in drumming developed there and he later enrolled at the music academies in Herzele and Aalst. Later, at the Conservatoire in Ghent, he was taught by Mimi Verderame, Arnoud Gerritse, Toon Van Dionant, Teun Verbruggen, Marc Godfroid and Frank Vaganée. In June 2010 Wouter obtained his Master’s degree in Jazz and Light Music there. He has played with such bands as Smashdance (a disco-pop cover band), the Royal Navy Band, Contraband (folk), Big Band 86, Major Five (Liliane SaintPierre’s backing group), Le Grand Bateau (Frenchlanguage pop), The Vintage Jazz Cats (swing band) and Crosstown Traffic (Jimi Hendrix tribute band). Collaboration One of the sources of inspiration for the composers Yves Meerschaut and Thomas Noel was Le Dernier Brame, a strip cartoon by Jean-Claude Servais. Their fascination for the interactive sensuality between body and nature, the sparkling energy that animates Servais’ work, led them to convert this imaginary world into a musical opus on a grand scale with original drawings from the book, plus videos and photos. Together with their band, Le Grand Bateau, Meerschaut and Noel provide the music. This vintage pop group writes French songs permeated with the bronze green colours of the forest. The singer Aster Van Vaerenberg adds even more atmosphere with her superb voice. Le Grand Bateau recorded its debut album in 2010. Credits l’eau de vie music: le grand bateau lyrics: Yves Meersschaert producer: Jean-Marie Aerts recording studio: ICP mastering: Alan Ward lead vocal: Aster Van Vaerenbergh guitars, hammond: Thomas Noël piano: Yves Meersschaert drums: Wouter Van den Bossche bass guitar: Sophie Cavez el guitar: Jean-Marie Aerts backing vocals: Aster, Thomas, Sophie, Yves artwork: Bram Blondeel, Jesús Azogue, Aster Van Vaerenbergh lay-out: Bram Blondeel, Jesús Azogue art direction: Jesús Azogue label: CLICK www.legrandbateau.com ℗ 2014 Le Grand Bateau / © 2014 CLICK