AUSLANDER (vinyl)

Description

Bass + looper + vocals = Miët from Nantes, France. Noise rock for fans of Deity Guns, Bästard, Swans and the early years of PJ Harvey... Does solitude lead one to go and meet the other? Although always alone on stage as in the studio, Miet expresses how the discovery of otherness nourishes her creation, to the point of choosing a German title for this second album: Ausländer. For the Nantes native, this term means the magic of an unexplained but familiar word. This “stranger,” or more precisely this “other” in question, seems to take the form of a character one would learn to discover throughout the album’s ten tracks. In this new album by Suzy LeVoid, we find what has always been her leitmotif: abrasive rock with never gratuitous fury, a blend of sound loops, hypnotic rhythms and powerful, distorted bass lines. Vocals still occupy, and more than ever, a central place in her work. Her voice reveals at times her softness and passions, as on the poignant The Path, and at others her anger and rage on I Belong to the Dead. Miet once again demonstrates her ease in moving from one register to another, adapting and making them her own. This second album overflows with multiple emotions, like this Ausländer whose state is in perpetual motion, and the opening track Ones sets the tone: “How could you see my face, when I have a million ones” (“how could you see my face since I have a million of them”). Less minimalist than the previous Stumbling, Climbing, Nesting, Ausländer is richly layered, both in composition and in the writing. Strongly inspired by the work of Walt Whitman, Miet, like the American poet, subtly uses repetition to give her lyrics a hypnotic quality. This sensation of hypnosis is greatly heightened by the chaining of sound loops, creating a perception of an infinite cycle and thus giving birth to an almost mystical atmosphere. Then there is the bass, long streaks of four-string lines looping over and over until the original tone is lost. This bass is dominant, crushing at times, often distorted by the many effects used. Miet manages to push the limits of her favorite instrument. On her second album, the Nantes native also opens up to new sounds, notably with the repeated use of synthesizers. The album’s final track, The One that Loves, is a fine example. It surprises with its introspective and dreamlike character. At times witch, at times warrior, Miet presents several facets, none of which hint at what the next will be. The encounter with this Ausländer makes us perceive, as she herself expresses it, the diversity of possibilities, the multiplicity of angles, as in a meeting where the first glance could never be enough if the subject is worthy of interest. A concept brilliantly illustrated by the striking artwork of this album. In this initiatory journey, which by definition drives us toward the unknown, we will always be another’s Ausländer.