Saturn63

Description

An idea runs through the career and discography of Seb Martel, one of the most exciting yet underrated guitarists on the French scene. This idea is that an instrument can, and must, continually reinvent music, deploy new textures, and bring new nuances. It was evident in his solo albums: Ragalet in 2003, Coitry? in 2007. It was perceptible in his collective productions (Vercoquin, Olympic Gramofon, Las Ondas Marteles) or his experiences as a studio musician (for -M-, Alain Chamfort, Femi Kuti, or Camille). It is just as striking when listening to his new album, "Saturn 63", named after the latest model of electric guitar discovered during a collaboration with the Musée de la Musique. This third long-form album, openly focused on experimentation, is indeed the fruit of a long reflection, made possible by a collaboration between the Philharmonie de Paris and InFiné: begun with Arandel's "InBach", it continues today through a record entirely conceived on the guitar, an instrument relatively little highlighted within the catalog of the French label. For several months, Seb Martel thus had access to the lavish collection of electric guitars housed by the Musée de la Musique. There, left alone in these corridors filled to the brim with instruments of great rarity, and therefore precious, the Frenchman was able to draw on the sounds of other eras, other continents, break free from conventional forms, leap from one genre to another, and team up with other enthusiasts of the six-string. That is how we find -M-, never the last to abandon the radio format and head toward less beaten paths, Vincent Ségal, whose eclecticism and sense of sonic exploration need no further proof, Mathieu Boogaerts, always torn between his taste for song and craftsmanship, but also Martin Gamet, spotted with Camille.