Dear Friends in Music
“Life Is…” marks the international debut of Belgian singer/pianist Susan Clynes, on New York based MoonJune Records. This release was compiled from three live concerts done at two different locations, each one with a unique band configuration.
The
Archiduc, an historic Art Deco bar in Brussels dating back to 1937,
served as the backdrop for two of these performances. The first was done
in trio format with Nico Chkifi on drums and Pierre Mottet
on bass. The second was a more intimate solo performance at the Library
of The Cultural Center of Bree. The third and final performance saw the
return to the Archiduc, this time as a duet with Simon Lenski on cello. Each band configuration provided its own framework and pallet of tonal colors for these diverse sound portraits.
“A Good Man” and “Ileana’s Song”
make playful use of the drumkit and bass. These clever songs lie
somewhere between Slapp Happy-era Dagmar Krause, Elaine Di Falco’s work
with Thinking Plague, Annette Peacock and early period Kristin Hersh in
her band, Throwing Muses. The chiefly instrumental piece, “Les Larmes”,
a composition about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, is brimming with
emotional expression making excellent use of the cello as a universal
human voice.
The
distilled and emotive songs for voice with piano accompaniment bring to
mind such undervalued luminaries as Laura Nyro and Essra Mohawk.
Susan’s piano work runs the gamut from such radio-friendly performers as
Tori Amos and Fiona Apple, briefly dipping into Tony Banks-like
arpeggiations and cascades, and arriving at the jazz-inflected
polytonality of French composer, Darius Milhaud.
• Susan Clynes is available for interviews.
•
After promotional shows in her native Belgium, Susan Clynes will do a
short promo tour in the USA in Spring 2014 with possible performances in
Brazil and around Europe (planning is in process).
Yours truly
Leonardo/MoonJune
