Jorane
Country of origin:
Canada
Type of music generally:
Beautiful and fierce, sometimes ethereal-sounding, sometimes experimental-sounding, evocative/eclectic cello-based music with mostly French vocals.
Status:
Most recent release, mélopée (2014)
See also:
Jorane's official site (which takes you to her Tacca Music site)
Comparisons:
Iva Bittová, Kate Bush, Tori Amos, early Sinead O'Connor, Kathleen Yearwood, Emily Bezar, Heather Nova, mid-period King Crimson
Covers/own material:
Own and co-written
General comments:
Jorane Peltier, known simply as 'Jorane', is a ~24-year-old singer/songwriter/cellist who took us by storm here this past year. Think of "girl with a piano" but substitute cello for piano. Her album's sound ranges from quiet and folky voice/cello to soaring funky rocking full band. Something reminiscent of Kate Bush/Tori Amos in many of the songs. The lyrics are mostly in French, 2 songs in English, and a couple more are just vocalizations. (cdrouin@locus.ca)Wow. Wow. WOW. A new obsession. Jorane is a Quebeçoise cellist and singer. Really amazing music.It's unique, but to give a point of reference, to me it sounds like Iva Bittová meets Kate Bush. My partner says she sounds like early Lion and the Cobra-era Sinéad O'Connor or Tori Amos vocally. Whatever comparisons you can make, this is compelling, individual, beautiful, experimental, and just plain lovely. The stuff of obsession. Her music is really wonderfully evocative, truly beautiful and fierce, though gentle at times, too. Jorane is to the cello what Tori Amos is to the piano.
Anyone who hasn't checked out Jorane, you owe it to yourself to at least give her a listen. She's someone who will appeal to a lot of ectophiles—anyone who likes pop with an experimental flavour. Anyone who likes cello. Anyone who likes emotive vocals.... (Neile)Would like to echo what everyone has said about Jorane. Wow! She is stunning and reminds me of Sinéad O'Connor and Tori Amos. Wonderful and essential stuff. (stjarnell@yahoo.com)
she sings in French, and I'm only limitedly able to translate, so I'm not aware of the nature of her subject matter etc., but her MUSIC, oh my goodness: it speaks for itself, and it's incredible...I hear very strong resemblances to Kathleen Yearwood, Iva Bittová, Emily Bezar...she's along the same wonderful lines as Ecto's favorite experimentalists.... (John.Drummond)
Comments about live performance:
She is really quite awesome live, i highly recommend this show! (1/00, cdrouin@locus.ca)Jorane is an amazing presence. She actually played guitar on a few numbers, and also sang a song in English. Her English was quite good too. I guess since almost all her songs are in French, and much of her web site, we assumed that she didn't speak English.
She was wildly animated, both on stage and off. Once, between one of her songs, she just growled.
I was undecided about going to Folk Alliance, but seeing that Jorane was going to be there was what finally made up my mind. I was crushed to only see her perform 3 songs, but they were incredible. And she was hilarious to talk to. You have to be careful talking to Jorane. She could put your eye out, she's that animated. (2/01, neal)Definitely give Jorane a listen. She sings in both French and English, and can be kind of scary-intense, but her voice, songwriting, and cello playing are all pretty wonderful. (burka@jeffrey.net)
Jorane is really impressive and intense live. I saw her with just a guitar player and she didn't need more, in fact her music was every bit as impressive when she was playing the guitar herself. She's emotive and funny onstage, and her voice every bit as powerful as it is when recorded. If she's playing near you, see her. (4/05, Neile)
Recommended first album:
Vent Fou
Recordings:
- Vent Fou (1999)
- 16mm (2000)
- Live (live, 2002)
- Jorane (2003, compilation)
- evapore ep (2004)
- je naime que toi (movie soundtrack, 2004)
- You And The Now (2004)
- Vers á soi (2007)
- Dix (2-disc compilation, 2008)
- Une sorcière comme les autres (covers, 2011)
- L'instant aimé (2012)
- mélopée (2014)
Vent Fou
Release info:
1999—Tacca Musique (1445, Lambert-Closse #300, Montreal, Quebec Canada, H3H 1Z5)—TACD-4513
Availability:
Available in Canada and Canadian online stores
Ecto priority:
Highly recommended
Group members:
Jorane—voice, violoncello, classical guitar, bonhomme disto, pieds, arrangements
Guest artists:
Alexandre Dumas—electric guitars, classical guitar
Bernard Falaise—electric guitars, fuzz bass, guitar, vibraphone archet, orgue, pieds, vibraphone, acoustic guitar, arrangements
Jean-François Lemieux—electric bass
Alexis Martin—batterie, percussion, grosse caisse
Patrick Camire—trumpet
Sebastien Nasra—vibraphone
Produced by:
Bernard Falaise and Jorane (executive producer Mark Lazare)
Comments:
Oh my. The sound samples on her site don't BEGIN to do this one justice. I would definitely file this under the "essential ecto" category, as in every member of the list NEEDS this in their collection. Lush, dreamy, dark, lovely, wonderful. Wow. The new artist discovery of the year. Haunting, ethereal, crunchy, and lots and lots of cellos. What more does one need? (meth@smoe.org)could this album be any more brilliant? doubtful. simply mind-boggling. (burka@jeffrey.net)
No real coherent comments here. I keep coming back to this album because I find it intriguing as well as beautiful. In many places haunting and mysterious also, particularly the solo voice and cello tracks. One of the most original artists I've come across in a long time. I find more special things about it with every listen. So even if this isn't a very good description of the music, it is a VERY enthusiastic endorsement. Beautiful. Intense. Haunting. No point in going on. If you haven't gotten it yet after all the discussion here, there's no convincing you :). a must must must for French and cello enthusiasts and ectophiles. (JoAnn Whetsell)
All of the positive feedback on the list prompted me to add her disc to my collection. It is an extraordinary work! I believe that Jorane's music is a very interesting mix of Tori Amos, Heather Nova, and mid-period King Crimson (when the extraordinary violinist, David Cross, was in the band). I can see how many here would consider this CD to be essential Ecto fare. (wpm@value.net)
Yeah. Strange. Exotic. Compelling. Disturbing. Definitely an artist to watch. Still a little rough around the edges. Many of the songs sound more like improv than well-crafted tunes, but fascinating none the less. (jjhanson@att.net)
I was massively impressed at first, but I must admit it hasn't survived repeated exposure all that well. Originally I expected it to place much higher than #10 on my top 10 of the year.... (afries@zip.com.au)
16mm
Release info:
2000—Tacca Musique/DKD (1445 Lambert-Closse, suite 300, Montréal, Québec, Canada H3H 1Z5—TACD-4518
Availability:
Available in Canada and Canadian online stores
Ecto priority:
Highly recommended
Group members:
Jorane—vocals, cello, upright bass, percussions
Guest artists:
Genevieve Jodoin—vocals
James Darling—cello
Thomas Babin—upright bass
Alexis Martin—percussions
Francis Dupuis-Rivet—vocals
Frédéric Boudreault—electric bass
Alexandre Dumas—guitar
Produced by:
Izabel Chevrier, Mark Lazare, executive producers; Sara Fortier—production coordinator
Comments:
More experimental than her last, with vocalizations and not real lyrics. Different moods, mostly darker, some playful. At one point, I get a hint of Ani noodling around; another song reminds me of The Moon Seven Times. Not all fans of Vent Fou will like this, or like it as much, but I probably play it more than Vent Fou. (JoAnn Whetsell)I have to say that if anyone is going to try Jorane for the first time, do it with Vent Fou rather than this one. As her comments about it have said, these are not really lyrics but vocalizations. The sound is more towards the loose/unstructure/experimental than the song-oriented pieces in Vent Fou. In fact, once or twice I found myself thinking that moments here seemed to me a little self-indulgent. Funny, because despite its extravagances Vent Fou never seemed that way to me. I guess what I'm saying is that I'm happy I have this and I will listen to it (and maybe the things I don't like so much about it will grow on me) but I'm guessing that people who are song-oriented won't like this so very much. I can tell I'll never like it much as I adore Vent Fou. It's much more abstract. (Neile)
I'm really surprised this is as unpopular than it is. I just got my copy about 2 weeks ago, and have only listened to it twice, but I thought it was really great. I'm particularly surprised that Neile doesn't like it more, as the thing it most closely reminds me of is the Iva Bittová/Vladimír Václavek disc inferno. While I haven't listened to 16mm anywhere near as much as Inferno, I thought the way the songs layered and the vocals were in a similar vein. (neal)
I'm sure fans of Jorane will like 16mm too. The first thing to strike me about the CD was its art—it's beautiful. It's a black digipak with gorgeous art/photography. I really hope she'll have t-shirts and posters with this art. The music itself is in the same vein as vent fou, kind of a Tori-meets-Beethoven thing. Maybe it's the cello, maybe it's because she sings in a language I can't understand (she sings in French, for those who don't know), or because her writing is influenced by her classical training, but her music has a certain timeless feel to it. One track in particular comes to mind, ironically named "Nouvelle", in which she plucks almost medieval-sounding chords on her cello. Her opening track, "Ghost" also has an oddly medieval feel to it.
16mm seems a bit darker in tone than her debut effort, as far as I can tell without being able to understand her lyrics. But then sometimes she doesn't sing words anyways, and with Jorane it can be a wonderful thing, because it frees one to concentrate on the quality of her voice, which is enough to bring me near tears on songs like "Film III", which flip-flops between passages where she sings in a "solo" voice that soars, delicate and beautiful and alone, and passages where her vocals are heavily layered, almost Enya style, the whole time accompanied only by cello (also layered), and some fairly subtle percussion.
Anyways on the whole a beautiful record. I don't think I love it as much as her first, and for those new to Jorane I'd recommend that they start with that, but it's still a terrific disc that will surely spend a lot of time in my CD player. (kamesan@geocities.com)I have been totally into it. I don't understand why people don't like it as much as the first album. It is full of so many interesting layers and textures. It reminds me a lot of Iva Bittova on her Inferno disc. (Neal)
Live
Release info:
2002—Tacca Musique/DKD—4526
Availability:
Canada
Ecto priority:
Highly recommended for Jorane fans and those curious about her work
Group members:
Jorane—voix, violoncelle
Guest artists:
Geneviève Jodoin—voix
James Darling—violoncelle
Thomas Babin—contrebasse
Alexis Martin—batterie, percussions
Produced by:
Executive producers: Jean-Jacques Dugars, Roxane Stock
Comments:
In feel this is more like 16mm than vent fou, perhaps because it also feels a little abstract. (Neile)A good live CD from a fabulous musician—but not as compelling as I thought it could be, based on seeing her live (if only briefly). (jjhanson@att.net)
evapore ep
Release info:
2004—Tacca Musique/DKD—TACD 4529
Availability:
Canada
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Group members:
Jorane—voix, violocelle, contrebasse, harpe, hang, cumbus
Guest artists:
Turtle Island String Quartet—quatuor à cordes
Michael Brook—cumbus
Jason Lewis—percussions
Dave Palmer—piano
Daniel Lanois—guitare électrique, voix, percussions, pieds, ukulele
Produced by:
Mathieu Drouin
Comments:
A six-track ep. This is an odd mix. At first I found this to be more of 16mm when I really would much rather have had more vent fou, but on further listenings it's not really much like either. "Cucaracha" is a slow, dreamy piece. "Evapore" is also slow, with a Middle-Eastern flavour and a sense of sad inevitability to it (I don't have a clue what the lyrics say—this is only from the sound of the song). "Cornelia" has sad, lilting vocals. "Help" reminds me of 60s songs in some way: the earnest stripped-down sound and self-harmonies (partly sung in English). "Film IV" has some lovely vocal weavings and mixes of sound, and a little more variety than in most of the songs here. "Pour ton sourire" has a very 80s/90s Daniel Lanois feel to it, which makes sense as this is the track he contributes to. Jorane has a knack for doing the unexpected, which can be both a good and a bad thing. I still haven't decided about this one, though it certainly is intriguing, especially "Film IV". (Neile)
je naime que toi
Release info:
2004—Tacca Musique/DKD—4530
Availability:
Canada
Ecto priority:
Recommended for Jorane and soundtrack fans
Group members:
Jorane—violoncelle, voix
Produced by:
Sébasten Nasra et Avalanche Productions
Comments:
Soundtrack to the movie of the same title. This is a series of mostly brief tracks all cello with some vocals (more vocalizing than singing lyrics). Drifting, with some lovely moments, but overall a little repetitive for close listening. It sounds very distinctively Jorane, which must make for an interesting background to the film. (Neile)
The You and the Now
Release info:
2004; 2005—Six Degrees Records—657036 1108-2
Availability:
Wide
Ecto priority:
Essential
Group members:
Jorane—vocals, cello, upright bass, 6-string bass, CS80, piano, guitar, brass arrangement, string arrangement
Guest artists:
Satnam Ramgotra—cymbal (1), tabla (6)
Francis Dupuis-Rivet—vocals (2)
James Darling—cello (2, 5)
Thomas Babin—upright bass (2, 5)
Alexis Martin—percussion (2, 5)
Jason Lewis—drums, percussion (3, 4, 11, 12, 13, 14), cymbal (7), tabla, percussions (11)
Richard Evans—bass (3, 6, 11), programming (4, 11), brass arrangement
Dave Palmer—piano (3, 14)
Mark Hollingsworth—sax (3)
Lee Thornberg—brass (3, 6)
Turtle Island String Quartet—strings (4, 6, 11, 12, 13)
Geneviève Jodoin—vocals (5)
Ramy Antoun—drums (6, 8)
Michael Brook—bass, guitar (6), guitar/treatments (7)
Éloi Painchaud—guitar (8, 12)
Brett Simons-bass (8)
Daniel Lanois—electric guitar, vocals, ukulele, percussion & stomp (9)
Produced by:
Michael Brook
Comments:
Jorane's first album in English and her first U.S. release is her first album since vent fou that I've truly loved. This is a little mellower than vent fou mostly, but is a fine collection of catchy, evocative songs (most were co-written, some with Simon Wilcox) in Jorane's distinctive, emotive style. The album is full of Jem's, and I even like the disco cover! Highly recommended. (Neile)
Vers á soi
Release info:
2007—Tacca Musique/Avalanche Productions—TACD 4551
Availability:
Wide
Ecto priority:
Highly recommended
Group members:
Jorane—guitar, cello, contracello, gu zheng, bells, glockenspiel, synth, xylobasse, voice
Guest artists:
Stefan Schneider—drums, percussion
Miles Perkin—contrabass
Éloi Painchaud—alto flutes, electric guitar, ukulele, percussion, Wurlitzer, sampling, glockenspiel, Moog Taurus, synths, programming, slide
François Lafontaine—keyboards
Produced by:
Éloi Painchaud and Jorane
Comments:
Jorane's new one, vers á soi, is great. It's not as pop as The You And The Now, nor as difficult listening as 16mm and co. This is utterly wonderful and growing on me by the minute. (Neile)Successfully bridges her later, more pop work and earlier, more experimental work. An album that both demands and rewards repeat listening. (JoAnn Whetsell)
Une sorcière comme les autres
Release info:
2011—VEGA Musique—VEGA-3971
Availability:
Canada
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Group members:
Jorane—vocals, cello, bass, harp, ukulele, glockenspiel, melodica, guitar
Guest artists:
Alex McMahon—bass (2, 3, 6); baritone guitar (2); piano (2, 4, 5, 9); drums (2, 3); Rhodes (30; programming (3); synth (4); percussion (6); organ (6)
Éloi Painchaud—acoustic guitar (2); electric guitar (3)
Produced by:
Sébastien Nasra, Marie Lamarre, Matt Zimbel
Comments:
Jorane does an album of covers of songs by Quebec songwriters, giving them a uniquely Jorane twist. It's not as essential as her own work, but has some lovely moments, in particular the title track by Anne Sylvestre, and the first two, "En Pleine Face" by Serge Fiori, and "Marilyn et John" by Franck Langolff and Étienne Roda-Gil. However, I am sadly of the opinion that the world doesn't need another cover of Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne", even in French, and sung by Jorane. Overall interesting and fans will likely love it, but not essential for me. (Neile)
L'instant aimé
Release info:
2012—Avalanche—AVA2-0003
Availability:
Canada
Ecto priority:
Recommended
Group members:
Jorane—vocals, cello
Guest artists:
Hugo Larenas—guitar
Alexis Martin—drums, percussion
Julien Compagne—marimba
Jean Massicotte—clarinet (1, 3); percussion (1); celeste (2, 3, 4, 9); piano (4, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11)
Cédric Dind-Lavoie—bass (1, 2, 3, 7, 8)
Miles Perkins—bass (4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11)
Produced by:
Marie Mamarre and Sébastien Nasra, executive producers
Comments:
Alarmingly, considering how huge a fan of her earlier music I am, I keep forgetting that I even own this album. I think it's because the only song here that really gets my attention is the lovely, lively third track, "Farfedet." The rest seem fairly unexceptional to my ears, alas. (Neile)
Thanks to JoAnn Whetsell for work on this entry.
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