Les Bruyères Session

Description

Les Bruyères Session, the fifth episode of an exciting series and a new step in the life of the French electric blues combo The Marshals. A long format that identifies itself through the very evocation of an original place name, and formalizes the exploration of a renewed sonic experience. Invariably for a few years now, the three musicians invoke this inspiring ritual of the session, to unleash the Mojo of their vibrant and inhabited music. There is something both deeply sensory and subtly spiritual in this artisanal desire to come together, stripped of the superfluous, to better grasp these unique moments of truth. To penetrate the energy of a building lost in the middle of nowhere, at the imagined crossroads of the famous intersection where it all might have begun one full moon night. Turn the key, and immediately breathe in and soak up the atmosphere. Touch the stones, caress the wood, listen to the silence of the walls. But above all, set up a studio, where others must have certainly eaten, feasted, laughed, and perhaps even cried. Plug in the guitar, choose the right pair of drumsticks, take one last deep breath before letting go completely. Wait for the right moment, feel that thing floating in the air, which will never reveal its name, and rude as it is, will never give a warning. It’s better to be ready, as the bass drum keeps the beat, when suddenly the distortion takes over the tempo and the harmonica responds unwaveringly. Fortunately, the tape is rolling and the magic will not be just a simple memory. The rough and contrasting music of Julien, Laurent, and Thomas reveals itself more than ever in this remote simplicity, close to the earth. Thousands of kilometers away, another laboring land gave birth in the humid warmth of the Southern United States to one of the most fascinating popular expressions of the 20th century. Beyond the words, the chords, and this primal pulse, it is also this story that this penetrating new album extends, a human story, imbued with doubts and melancholy, hope and anger, love and humanity. As worthy heirs of the precious legacy left by this illegitimate child of popular exile music, The Marshals draw with chalk an imaginary line connecting the "swamp rock" of Tony Joe White and Creedence Clearwater Revival to the "Electric Mud version" of Muddy Waters. And yet, as with all freehand drawings, the gesture can slip at any moment, veering off its trajectory, carried away by its momentum and the exhilarating euphoria of the jam. Generous and inspired, the Bruyères Session thus confirms the well-deserved status of a current French reference in terms of refined and pure rock, while revealing new, unprecedented facets of a camaraderie that warms the heart and makes you want to listen to them until the end of the night. Laurent Thore