When they sing together, Anique Granger, and Benoît Archambault become Prairie Comeau.
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June 6, 2020-4: 00 am
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Prairie Comeau: old memories for the new generations
Yves Bergeras
The Right
The two lovers that are Anique Granger, and Benoît Archambault launched, “for the pleasure of uniting their voices”, a project of the couple in addition to their musical career, respectively.
The result of their inter-weavings voice called Prairie Comeau. A double-blink of an eye. First, the crooner, italo-american Perry Como (1912-2001); then to the Prairies of Saskatchewan, Anique Granger being Francophone.
The release of their first album is scheduled for Friday, June 12. This record self-titled brings together 11 amazing covers of songs of a certain age, classic or forgotten, both in English as in French, served in new clothes folk. A folk delicate flavor acoustic, carried by the wedding-harmonic of both of their voices perfectly tuned.
Reflected this already extract The sky blends with the sea, published last week. The song is borrowed from Jacques Blanchet. Like the other parts that takes Prairie Comeau, she has had time to age in oak barrels.
The duo revisits, in the francophone side, Félix Leclerc (Our path), Brassens (Song for the auvergnat), Guy Béart (The living water), or The time of the cherries. Dust off with the same gentleness americana in any standard English: Smoke Gets In Your Eyes (The Platters), How Wild The Wind Blows (Molly Drake), Speak Low (Kurt Weill), and even the anthem of baseball “Take Me Out To The Ball Game.
Nothing that was written or composed after 1960, since this was the constraint that was imposed on the duo by setting this joint project. “I have always found that there is a freedom in the constraint,” explains Benoît Archambault (My Ancestors; the series of Why ?).
The spouses “whisper of the air of another time”. Of the song “distant”, not completely forgotten, but that, “often float a little in our unconscious” collective, says the singer. “I love text and I love to rediscover. Put them in a different light [musical] allows you to rediscover them otherwise”, she says.
The pleasure, in the margin of the work
“Born out of the desire to play together”, their project took shape when the two lovers are discovered a common passion for Perry Como, including Anique Granger had a few old vinyl records. They have had a coup de foudre particular for Hot Diggity (Dog Ziggity Boom), song of Como “completely absurd,” agreed the singer, the duo has managed to take “a version pretty pretty”.
In a relationship for three years, they have had the opportunity to be heard on stage, on rare concert performances together in recent years. On the boards, the duo offered “songs are obvious, such as Elvis Presley and the Everly Brothers, [with which] people have a relationship that is very intimate”, noted Benoît Archambault.
The tracks ‘speak’ spontaneously to the older audience, in which they awaken old memories. But these times also know how to appeal to young people. They are likely to find a favorable response among the fans of the Sisters Boulay, by their invoice harmonic. In the show, “one big tent”: the new generations are not insensitive to this directory, which allows them to produce in turn their own memories, notes Benoit Archambaut, delighted.
In spite of its few performances on stage, Prairie Comeau had not yet to disk to offer lovers. This is the odd repaired.
“It is not of great guitarists, but the two of us together, [voice], the harmonic richness is really fun! ”
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Benoit Archambault
The acoustic duo Prairie Comeau takes over the fashion folk americana songs classic, not forgotten, but that “float a little in our unconscious” collective.
Courtesy, Camille Gladu-Drouin
Our projects [respective personnel] take a lot of space, and it can become [condemning]. We wanted to take the time and the pleasure of making music together, in the margins of the work. The fun: this is what I found, in Prairie Comeau,” said Anique Granger.
It was confirmed: this pleasure is felt from one end to the other of their album. It exudes a kind of obvious natural as if these parts had always been destined to be this skin folk.
Sweetness and intimacy
“We went there in the sweetness. Vocally, it allows me to do things I couldn’t do before,” she said. Something of the order of the “facility,” says Anique Granger.
“We always worked very instinctive”, is full of his love, evoking the “game of ping pong really fun” of creation as a duo, both in the selection of the songs in the ideation of the arrangements and vocal harmonies.
The pieces are carried by two acoustic guitars. But “there are arrangements very strange, sometimes,” he stressed. The recovery of Brassens, for example.”
“It is not of great guitarists, but the two of us together, [voice], the harmonic richness is really fun.”
In addition to the guitar, Benoît Archambault handled from time to time the accordion, while their accomplice Simon Proulx (not one of the Three Agreements but the one that accompanies Gilles vignault who worked) was the mandolin, acoustic bass, lap steel and percussion. It is this last that has made this album recorded last winter at Studio Slipper.
Easy to carry
The result ? A bubble of softness, lightweight and… easy-to-transport stage, when the tours will again be allowed.
“We want to do small shows, concerts house, go to places close to people. […] We like to chat with the public, tell. Figuratively, there are Prairie Comeau a close we want to exploit,” announces the Saskatchewan.
“The purpose of the album, it is to sell shows, not disks, accurate, Benoit Archambault, who does not have little illusions about the commercial viability of the disc by 2020.
