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There is a phrase in this album that I love madly, one I would have tattooed somewhere if I felt like it, a motto that is also my motto, my approach to all music: "If you wanna dance the samba we need no school or teacher, the samba flows like blood in the veins, what we need is just you and me". That's me in a nutshell, as they say, but before I embark on a crazy ego trip, better go back immediately to Isabelle, a truly delightful singer, with a jazzy and elegant tone used also in a very lively way, a fine example being "Brazilian Dorian Dream", an electronic fantasy where she launches into spectacular vocalizations, displaying remarkable vocal technique and range, but above all brightness and charisma. Isabelle Antena, a complete musician and interpreter of great personality, what more could you ask for?
First half, interlude, and second half, "French Riviera" can be divided more or less like this; a structure I've noticed in other albums before, doesn't always work, there's always the risk of creating a strong half and a weak one, but fortunately, that's not the case here, the level remains constant throughout the album, which starts off very bubbly. Elegant and classy but still effervescent, with Brazilian colors, vibrancy, and rhythms; the samba's praise in "Just For You And Me" and the multicolored fluttering of "Brazilian Dorian Dream" indeed, but not only that, the initial title track, light and sinuous, opens the dance with a flowing rhythm, perfectly dosed electronics combined with acoustic sounds, a somewhat playful and cheeky refrain; a journey on a dance step and on the wings of a dream, from the French Riviera to Rio. And then we continue to dance with the right dose of style, "Sunshine Express", with a sax that magnificently holds the scene and an irresistible melody, away with all negative thoughts, those who want to be happy should be, because there's no certainty about tomorrow seems to say Belle the Magnificent ideally inviting them not to miss out on this mythical sunshine express. With "All For The Music" the rhythms already begin to slow down, the bass is highly prominent, orchestral inserts pop up from time to time, we get to the heart, at the peak of groovy without any rush; it's a moment Isabelle dedicates to herself, to her inexhaustible passion for music, to the thrill of the show. No horrible piano-death rhymes though, just one last dance, the sexiest one, the ideal closure for a perfect cycle.
End of the first half, a moment of pause, "Histoire a Paris", a vaudeville interlude in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, 60s sounds, adorably naive and easy-listening, Belle's voice sounds delightfully light, it's the right time to rest a bit, maybe sipping an aperitif, ready to enjoy the second half. And here we completely change pace, slowing down, veering towards an elegant jazzy-bossa nova fusion; "Like There's No Tomorrow" reiterates what was already said by "Sunshine Express", but with a haunting and soft electronic, lounge rhythm, and imaginative and allegorical lyrics, capturing with a sophisticated, almost enigmatic grace; thus setting the stage for a glacial serenade, and "Dans le jardin d'Eden" makes its entrance with a stealthy step and almost aristocratic nonchalance, all wrapped in its exquisite piano lines. The approach is different, but in fact, this second part is almost perfectly mirrored to the first, here too Isabelle grants herself a moment, "Fly Away", an enchanting velvety and semi-acoustic bossa nova where the memory of the girl on the cover resurfaces, a somewhat special girl, who dreamed of flying and exploring distant worlds, and with "Under The Moonlight" she concludes again with charm and sensuality, jealousies, desires, regrets, everything is lost in a dance, in a languid night under a starry sky. End of the show, full satisfaction, and many applause, but most of all a warm welcome to Isabelle Antena; welcome to my court of miracles, from today with a touch of style and many more colorful hues.
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