Jazz Action Valence
7 mars 2019
French harpist, singer-songwriter and producer Laura Perrudin first came to the limelight in 2015 with her first album Impressions, prompting reviews in the BBC, Le Monde, FiP and Les Inrocks. Poisons & Antidotes followed in 2017 – a pop phenomenon blending soul and jazz music with electronica and experimental folk, based on the original use of the electric chromatic harp, an instrument created just for her. Using her unique voice to delve into all kinds of research and electronic manipulations, Laura Perrudin’s very personal universe materializes wonderfully during concerts where her “perfect geek” panoply swells to higher effects using pedals, laptop and multitrack looper to boost both her harp and voice.
In her last record, she is digging deeper into pop, soul, electric and danceable music. Perspectives & Avatars is an album of songs featuring such prestigious guests as Becca Stevens, Emel Mathlouthi, Philippe Katerine, Mélissa Laveaux, drummer Ian Chang (Son Lux, Moses Sumney)… It is based on a simple concept, whereby each song is a character – an avatar.
Laura Perrudin has performed for international live circuits, attending indie events for groundbreaking artists (Transmusicales – Rennes, Eurosonic Noorderslag – Gröningen, The Great Escape – Brighton, PopKultur Festival – Berlin, MaMA – Paris…) and taking on the most prestigious jazz scenes (Théâtre Antique – Jazz à Vienne, Jazz in Marciac, Winterjazz Fest NYC, EFG London Jazz fest, Jazz à la Villette, Paris Jazz Festival…).
Jazz Action Valence
7 mars 2019
Reviews:
“Perrudin’s strong melodies and poetic imagery make each song uniquely compelling.”
-The Guardian
“An arresting work by an artist destined for greatness”
“A dreamy confection of electronica, neo soul and psychedelic folk, threaded with vocal experiments and multi-tracked harmonies that soar and soothe”
-The Evening Standard
“This beautiful album brings together classical, folk, hip hop, rock and jazz: it’s a personal, original and highly musical vision.”
-London Jazz News
“Could we just say we LOVE the amazing Laura Perrudin and her superb album. Go listen!”
-BBC
“The harp is like a texture box that Perrudin can make sound like a drum, a heart beat, a guitar… or a harp”
– NPR – PRI’s The World
“Music in the gray areas between the musical classifications by an artist who ignore the usual boundaries between genres”
-New Sounds
“Laura Perrudin loops chanting vocals, percussive bars of beatboxing and layers of her custom-made chromatic harp to create enchanting experimental jazz and hip-hop”
-The Line of Best Fit
“She mixes darkly magical, dream-inspired imagery with curious and slightly queasy sound design. Perrudin’s silky voice is the bow that wraps it all together, keeping it loosely tied to the surface while exploring the murky depths”
-The Monitors
“She helps us to rediscover the harp, far from the clichés usually associated with it.”
“It’s rather as if Björk had chanced upon Herbie Hancock in a Dublin pub”
-FIP
“Laura Perrudin ignores the stereotypes. It is stunning to listen to the thousand games of a tightrope artist, her cheerful and spontaneous radicalism, definitely modern”
-Les Inrocks
“All combined: Laura Perrudin suggests a thought, a universe, a being.”
-Le Monde
