For Émile Proulx-Cloutier, Jean-Pierre Ferland is an artist who has never been afraid to dare, at all stages of his long career. “In an era where we are collectively led to believe that we have an expiration date, it’s fun when artists like him show us the opposite,” explains the artist.
Met on the sidelines of the launch of his new opus, My hand in the fire, on May 4, Émile Proulx-Cloutier had only good words for Jean-Pierre Ferland. If he did not personally know the author of You are beautifulthe latter certainly marked his career and his artistic vision.
“I am a great admirer of his work, he is a goldsmith of songs which were truly capable of being profoundly simple and at the same time, capable of explosion and excess,” explains the 41-year-old multidisciplinary artist. .
“Even late in his life, he knew how to bring relevant things into the world and renew himself. He was able to bounce back, be reborn and change skin, while remaining himself and that is superb!”, he adds, referring in particular to the album don’t listen to that delivered by Jean-Pierre Ferland who was then in his sixties.
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The singer-songwriter says he has understood even more, over the years and through his reading of parts of Jean-Pierre Ferland’s life, the courage that the little king showed by constantly reinventing himself.
YELLOW: the courage to combine influences
He remembers that listening to the album YELLOW by Jean-Pierre Ferland reinforced his idea that several styles of music could be found in the same work, or even the same song.
“In my opinion, The cat from the artists’ café reconciles various universes. The drums greatly prefigure hip-hop, the orchestra is reminiscent of cinema, it is at the same time very lyrical in the violins, very sloppy in the brass and the choirs sing something at once naive, terrible and bewitching. It was proof that when you give yourself permission, you can combine influences that might not seem reconcilable, but which can become so,” he explains.
Émile Proulx-Cloutier also praises the writing of Jean-Pierre Ferland who charms with turns of phrase and images that are sometimes cruel, sometimes childish, and always well chosen.
“We’re still talking about someone who managed to make us admire a song which talks about a guy who offers to be eaten by a cat in order to stay longer with the people he loves… It’s is completely broken. There is something really beautiful in taking risks and having all kinds of tones within the same work,” continues the singer and musician who will present his new album on stage in Montreal and Quebec at during the next year.
