The second edition of the “Crazy Week !!!” festival opened its doors yesterday with a vibrant lineup! After an introduction by a local band (a festival tradition), Hannah, comprised of two musicians, a singer-guitarist and a drummer-vocalist whose chemistry and love for the stage were palpable, it was the legendary bands The Do and CocoRosie that the Thรฉรขtre de Verdure stage in Nice was awaiting. A quality first evening that places Patrice Bouchon, producer of this “crazy week,” among the leaders of the best concerts offered in the region.
The essential duo, consisting of Dan Levy and Olivia Merilahti, who made a splash with their first album, “A Mouthful” in 2008, returns to the forefront with a new album, “Both Ways Open Jaws,” featuring sounds that almost seem to cast a voodoo spell. It is, in fact, with brown polygonal patterned stockings that Olivia’s slender legs move like two animated, possessed totems. Once her mane is let loose, dancing before her eyes, head down, the beauty extracts sounds from her otherworldly voice, while Dan, with a keen gaze, open mouth, and an inhabited body, inflames his keyboard, bass, or sax in turns, sometimes even together, for hypnotic sounds.
Accompanied on stage by four other (excellent) musicians, the band offers an auditory festival that immerses us in an idyllic coma (whew, it’s still less dangerous than an alcoholic one). We want to watch! The image is almost as enjoyable as the sound, making it hard to miss a moment, and yet… When we close our eyes, we feel the full power of these compositions that alternatively take us on a voyage by ship (thanks to the trombone), or a walk through a forest at night to glimpse African rituals, dances, flames, spirits, or again, sirens, cars, police, the city, the escape… It’s an endless race, tossed from right to left within these enchanting melodies, leaving us unsure of where to focus.
But as I was saying, most of the time, we watch. We even keep our eyes wide open, and for good reason… Doesn’t Dan bear a resemblance to the marvelous Johnny Depp, with his unsettling smiles and a similar creativity? And Olivia, whom we knew as a brunette and is now a redhead, doesn’t she remind us of Emmanuelle Seigner? The dazzling duo brings us to discover a universe, to open a door, perhaps the 9th (cf. Roman Polanski’s film featuring these two actors) or its parallel, for a truly remarkable show. Let’s not forget to mention the incredible guitarist hired by the band with a rugged look and balanced, graceful swaying, who will at one point handle percussion, and the surprising young woman who also plays several instruments (drums, sax…) with notable commitment to the group’s music.
No need for Mylรจne Farmer-style special effects or a symphony orchestra to dazzle us. The Do, that’s art, that’s music, that’s originality!
COCOROSIE
And to continue the evening with this hallucinogenic vibe, it’s the sisters Coco and Rosie who slip onto the stage to close this first night of madness with their new album, Grey Oceans. The two Americans with very peculiar music, which one might not necessarily listen to on repeat at home, offer flavors in live performances that we quickly appreciate. Once again, it comes out of nowhere, resembling nothing else, and our sight is as much tantalized as our hearing.
The blonde and the brunette take the stage, clad in completely quirky costumes, so much so that at first, one might even wonder (when not particularly familiar with the band) if it’s a joke. One arrives with a white, pointy balaclava on her head, inverted so that the eye and mouth holes are at the back and her face appears as if there’s a bonnet, letting filaments drop over her face preventing one from seeing clearly who it is, but that’s not all. Underneath this white canvas, a Japanese-style makeup appears, worthy of a tragic opera ending in hara-kiri, with white lace tights, a diaper, a yellow surfer T-shirt, and dark dreadlocks reaching down to her waist. Meanwhile, the other sister, whom we were used to seeing with very short hair, has also adopted dreadlocks (blonde) to her waist, wearing a parka that entirely covers the young lady’s body, topped with a rally pilot’s cap. As the parka falls, fans in Nice discover her sharp calves in a long jean shorts down to the knee, suspenders, a large chain, and the perfect outfit of a rapper both tough and glam. It’s this musical style that she adopts, offering a ‘rapped’ phrasing with a voice straight out of a manga, while her half-blood partner rises in lyrical highs, like a singer with butterfly-like graceful gestures.
In the background, a man whose face won’t be visible if you’re on the right of the stage, plays the grand piano and synth whose sound bank comes from a computer placed on the royal black instrument. And a very special “drum box,” as it’s human, appears at the back of the stage, with frizzy hair and cat makeup, to mimic all the necessary percussion sounds for CocoRosie’s psychotic, astounding music!
The audience was present last night, applauding as they should this headliner that took us far, very far, from the everyday routine of our radio and TV waves.
Bravo for this beautiful programming choice and see you tonight for the continuation of “Crazy Week !!!” with Nono (from Trust) and Louis Bertignac! Love of rock, when it grips us…
Photo credit: Flora Doin
