Camille @ Shepherd's Bush Empire
- Posted on October 6, 2006 3:53 PM
- 0 comments
I saw Camille performing with 'Nouvelle Vague', this French band that covers New Wave songs in a Bossa Nova fashion. Their music is quite clever, the transformed result of the original material sometimes sounds ever better. Plus the band name and what they do are synonyms in French, English, and Portuguese.
I haven't been listening to her solo material, but i liked her voice, and I knew about her taste for experimentation (I like experimentation). Plus that's not every day you get the Shepherd's Bush Empire stuffed with Francais.
There was only one problem: where to meet up with my crowd in a bar that is not too far from the venue, and that is not a Walkabout type? I found just what I needed : an oasis of a wine bar that is cozy, a really decent wine list, good affordable wine food (Manchego cheese and Serrano ham with fresh figs...), a fantastic old fashioned atmosphere and literally 2 minutes from the venue. http://www.gonumber.com/albertine
A few bottles of wine later, we get to the venue just on time for the beginning of the performance...
On Stage : A ¼ piano, a double bass, an electric bass, a guitar. Camille arrived solo, filled the venue with her distinctive voice, soon joined by rotating backing band members. Who occasionally took turn on human beat box. Camille does not fit in a category. She'll be equally slightly influenced by middle age cantiques and Georges Brassens, hip hop, trip hop, Barbara, Dominique A... But just a touch. She seems to be quite involved on her singing, and her words jumps from pataphysician rhetoric to musical threads that recalls hopelandic, this made up language created by Sigur Ros.
The backing music was also taking multiple directions, from classic popular French song type based on piano & accordion to hypnotic eletronica (mostly produced vocally), via expected Latin fragrances, always accommodated with Camille own special brew.
Camille started the show wrapped in a king of lacy veil, that shot off the stage during the performance , and traveled around the venue, always covering a good 1/8 of the audience. That is a possible reference to her latest release 'Le Fil'.
I have to get her records now, simply because that was a really good show, very original, minimalist and well produced. The French crowed seemed very pleased.
http://www.camille-lefil.com/
by Ben Levy
Tags
ben levy, camille, concert, french, gigs, music, Nouvelle Vague, review, seatwave, shepherd's bush empire, sigur ross, sis
Post a comment
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.seatwaveblogs.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/48
