“December in Summer,” Da Silva’s first album, has the strength and clarity of new beginnings. At 29, Da Silva already has several lives behind him, from Clermont-Ferrand to Dijon, passing through Nevers, Marseille, Lyon, or Brest. “Since I was 17, I have never settled anywhere.” It was in Dinan that he laid the groundwork for his album: about a dozen short and dense songs, like vignettes. “I wanted to say as much as possible, in a concentrated form. I don’t like to dilute.” Getting to the core. Such is the intention of an album that today establishes a unique author and universe. Before writing songs in French, Da Silva composed in English and Spanish, released records on independent labels or self-produced, and performed many concerts.
“December in Summer” was composed on the roads of France, while Da Silva was working as a representative for a multinational record company. In two years, about thirty tracks came to life, refined in hotels along the way. On the car radio, the records of Syd Barrett, Joseph Arthur, or Elliot Smith replaced those of the Ramones. His next record will be intimate or it won’t be at all. Still, there’s no question of giving up the tension. It’s there, underlying, at the turn of each chorus of an album that is sometimes dark and always alive. “I wanted to make something stripped down, direct, incisive. An album that resembles my demos.” With a resolutely rock tone. “I don’t feel close to French song, except for Miossec or Daniel Darc,” he confides.
A year after being discovered as the opening act for Cali on tour, Da Silva defends his songs on stage with colossal energy. Calm but bubbling, the artist sees “December in Summer” as the natural continuation of his many musical experiences. “I feel like I’m doing the same thing as when I played in industrial bands. The only difference is that now I express them with an acoustic guitar and a voice.”
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