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Rating:
Well yes, this is a matter of the heart; comments or no comments, target or not, patience, let it go as it should, I write this review primarily for myself, because this album deserves it, because it inspires me with a lot of beautiful sensations, and consequently a lot of nice thoughts, always very pleasant to put in writing. So here we are again with Etienne Daho, this is the third time I talk about him, three reviews for three completely different albums; "Le chansons de l'innocence retrouvée", fire, "La notte, la notte", air, "Eden", water; I really think he has never made an album of earth, it is not in his style and character. Etienne truly has an exquisite taste even for album covers; he has always put his face on them, and after all with such a face I challenge anyone to do otherwise, but, despite this "stylistic limitation," let's call it that, by observing one of his covers you can already get an idea of how the album will be, ideas and expectations that are punctually confirmed by the listening. Let's take this one specifically: salt and pepper hair, relaxed look, therefore maturity and confidence; in the background a marine landscape, blurred, unreal, it almost looks like a minimalist style painting, with four distinctly separated color bands. For the sounds and atmospheres this album offers, it truly fits like a glove.
"Eden" is his sixth album of new material, year 1996, and you can tell. During that period Hooverphonic, Olive, and Mono with "Formica Blues" were debuting, the latter an interesting but ephemeral flash in the pan. Artists who brought trip-hop, the electronic sound of the moment, into a more elegant dimension, mixing it with soft atmospheres, orchestrations, dressing it in high fashion garments. It is also worth remembering "Reserection", the EP in collaboration with Saint Etienne the year before; a bit disappointing, a missed opportunity that could have been better exploited by both parties, but undoubtedly contributed to creating the right backdrop for an album like this. But let's go back to the comparison with Hooverphonic, the most interesting in the economy of the review: in '96 they were still raw and absolutely negligible, Etienne Daho was exactly one step ahead of them, with "Eden" he was already proposing that visionary and imaginative sound that the Belgian combo would later develop with "Blue Wonder Power Milk" and then "The Magnificent Tree".
Listening to "Eden" is like a lazy swim in a calm and warm sea, then a walk on the shoreline, with gentle waves caressing your feet and a light breeze drying your skin; a balm for the senses, a pleasure to be savored wisely. Songs like "Les passagers", "Un serpent sans importance", and "Me manquer" envelop the listener in silky atmospheric chiaroscuros, taking care of every minute detail, seducing with a truly uncommon refined brilliance. Ah Etienne, you spoil me, perhaps even too much, some might think, but I like it this way, I like being pampered, and when I hear the sweetness of "Les pluies chaudes de l'été", velvety electro-lounge, or "Soudain" with those orchestrations and that atmosphere of sunset on the sea, or again the languid and sensual flow of "Quand tu m'appelles Eden", I really feel in an ideal earthly paradise. I perceive an artist in continuous search of Beauty, just like me, and a connection sparks, a chemical empathy. His music is made especially for me, it's exactly what I'm looking for. Priceless.
And then there are the surprises, the idyll of "Eden" manifests in many forms: "Au commencement" is a piece in perfect Hooverphonic style of "Blue Wonder Power Milk," but two years in advance, grandiloquent strings, an enveloping rhythm, liquid, atmospheres that stimulate feelings of adventure and charm, "C'est la magie absolue", so sings Etienne, summarizing it all in a single verse. "Les bords de Seine" is enriched by a special guest like Astrud Gilberto, but the piece sounds anything but Brazilian, it even reminds me of some things by Marc Almond from the "Mother Fist..." period, with that sax, that swaying, muffled pace, a bit shadowy, of a decadent and absolute charm; staying on the same theme, there's also "L'enfer enfin", hypnotic, intense and nocturnal electro-orchestral alchemy, an open window to the future, to the sounds of "Le chansons de l'innocence retrouvée".
And finally, in an album titled "Eden", could a piece like "Rendez-vous au jardin des plaisirs" be missing? Certainly not, an enticing, stylish, danceable electro-pop, with a rhythm that pulses fast and lascivious. Rightly so, Eden must be Eden to the fullest, peace, glimpses of absolute beauty but also tempting serpents, lustful visions, dark alleys. How wonderful Etienne, seriously; an album like this and then a confirmation on these same, very high levels with the following "Corps et armes", performances of a true champion. For those who pursue charm and elegance, for those who are aesthetes and dreamers, for those who seek the pleasure of moods in music, an adventure in lush scenarios and even a hint of healthy hedonism, Etienne Daho is a guarantee for life. He is for me, and I will never stop thanking him.
"Eden" is his sixth album of new material, year 1996, and you can tell. During that period Hooverphonic, Olive, and Mono with "Formica Blues" were debuting, the latter an interesting but ephemeral flash in the pan. Artists who brought trip-hop, the electronic sound of the moment, into a more elegant dimension, mixing it with soft atmospheres, orchestrations, dressing it in high fashion garments. It is also worth remembering "Reserection", the EP in collaboration with Saint Etienne the year before; a bit disappointing, a missed opportunity that could have been better exploited by both parties, but undoubtedly contributed to creating the right backdrop for an album like this. But let's go back to the comparison with Hooverphonic, the most interesting in the economy of the review: in '96 they were still raw and absolutely negligible, Etienne Daho was exactly one step ahead of them, with "Eden" he was already proposing that visionary and imaginative sound that the Belgian combo would later develop with "Blue Wonder Power Milk" and then "The Magnificent Tree".
Listening to "Eden" is like a lazy swim in a calm and warm sea, then a walk on the shoreline, with gentle waves caressing your feet and a light breeze drying your skin; a balm for the senses, a pleasure to be savored wisely. Songs like "Les passagers", "Un serpent sans importance", and "Me manquer" envelop the listener in silky atmospheric chiaroscuros, taking care of every minute detail, seducing with a truly uncommon refined brilliance. Ah Etienne, you spoil me, perhaps even too much, some might think, but I like it this way, I like being pampered, and when I hear the sweetness of "Les pluies chaudes de l'été", velvety electro-lounge, or "Soudain" with those orchestrations and that atmosphere of sunset on the sea, or again the languid and sensual flow of "Quand tu m'appelles Eden", I really feel in an ideal earthly paradise. I perceive an artist in continuous search of Beauty, just like me, and a connection sparks, a chemical empathy. His music is made especially for me, it's exactly what I'm looking for. Priceless.
And then there are the surprises, the idyll of "Eden" manifests in many forms: "Au commencement" is a piece in perfect Hooverphonic style of "Blue Wonder Power Milk," but two years in advance, grandiloquent strings, an enveloping rhythm, liquid, atmospheres that stimulate feelings of adventure and charm, "C'est la magie absolue", so sings Etienne, summarizing it all in a single verse. "Les bords de Seine" is enriched by a special guest like Astrud Gilberto, but the piece sounds anything but Brazilian, it even reminds me of some things by Marc Almond from the "Mother Fist..." period, with that sax, that swaying, muffled pace, a bit shadowy, of a decadent and absolute charm; staying on the same theme, there's also "L'enfer enfin", hypnotic, intense and nocturnal electro-orchestral alchemy, an open window to the future, to the sounds of "Le chansons de l'innocence retrouvée".
And finally, in an album titled "Eden", could a piece like "Rendez-vous au jardin des plaisirs" be missing? Certainly not, an enticing, stylish, danceable electro-pop, with a rhythm that pulses fast and lascivious. Rightly so, Eden must be Eden to the fullest, peace, glimpses of absolute beauty but also tempting serpents, lustful visions, dark alleys. How wonderful Etienne, seriously; an album like this and then a confirmation on these same, very high levels with the following "Corps et armes", performances of a true champion. For those who pursue charm and elegance, for those who are aesthetes and dreamers, for those who seek the pleasure of moods in music, an adventure in lush scenarios and even a hint of healthy hedonism, Etienne Daho is a guarantee for life. He is for me, and I will never stop thanking him.
Tracklist and Videos
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