Pop. The Rennes collective led by Ghislain Fracapane releases a sumptuous third album in which the song is gaining momentum. Dominique A is one of the vocal guests.
Mermonte is a funny creature. Eight to twelve on stage, many multi-instrumentalists, male and female vocal talents, up to four guitars, and an assertive taste for the vibraphone, this giant all-metal xylophone.
"The vibraphone is an instrument that is both rhythmic and melodic. Rhythms, their
variations, are still the bases of Mermonte's compositions , " says Ghislain Fracapane. The 37-year-old guitarist is the exclusive composer of the astonishing, full-bodied and hyperactive orchestral pop songs that make up the band's style. This time he undertook to purify them, chasing the too intersecting melodies to draw clear melodic lines.
Unmasked heroes
The Beach Boys' pocket symphonies are easy to conjure up as soon as the pop prunes themselves with vocal harmonies, orchestral instruments and structures that go beyond the usual verse-chorus. Ghislain owes more to the Germans of Can, the American composer Steve Reich and the minimalist electro-pop and shimmering Stereolab.
The French singer of this cult British group sings for once in her native language in the beautiful Caller's Call. She is one of the vocal guests of this third album which steals the voices less in the mix. Dominique A is also singing on a Force of the Elsewhere with an elegant 70s film music ambience.
"My music always has a hybrid side, between classic and pop rock. I made a rejection of the voice for a long time, admits Ghislain. Because it easily takes up too much space and focuses all the attention. "
If instrumental or quasi-instrumental pieces do not need anyone at the microphone, he was right to let the vocals speak more clearly to others. Stuart Smith's (This Town Needs Gun) delicate tone is perfect on the X13X3 carillon guitar ballad, while Devin Yucel's (Delta Sleep) is the link between the highly contrasted parts of Time Travel.
After an Air recalling that Mermonte knows how to play rollercoaster with his army of guitars, a final piece on acoustic guitar pays tribute to John Fahey (1939-2001), fabulous American guitarist too little known. Mermonte has enough personality not to hide his heroes.
Movement. Room Records / Differ-Ant. 12 titles, 38 min.
November 10 at the Antipode of Rennes and January 31 at the Barakason in Rezé (Loire-Atlantique).