Feufollet - the sweetest Acadian band around - has an album out that moves into new territory while keeping to traditional standards. The songs of En Couleurs have an old feel to them, with moments that are lovely and new. After listening over and over to the album, it becomes clear that the arrangements move through old patterns, in turn evoking new ones. The instruments - fiddle, guitar, accordion, bass, drum, glockenspiel, omnichord - and the voices blend in a way that reveals the deep allegiance to Louisiana and all things French Acadian. The foundation and tradition of Cajun songwriting and performing is revealed and then opens up into dimensions that are quirky, beautiful, somehow sad and imperfect. But what seems imperfection is in essence a new kind of truth. The old crosscut with the contemporary results in a new kind of Cajun music, chansons colored with reeling, playful attitudes.
And here, inside of these songs, is the kind of storytelling that you can dance to. Sad narratives set to lively music, surreal and longing tales surrounded by the haunting sounds of fiddle and lead singer Edmiston's layered, ever-changing vocal chords. To understand the stories, you don't necessarily have to know French, though that certainly makes the experience all the sweeter.
Merci, merci! A beautiful album by a group of talented, inspired musicians!
Anna Laura Edmiston - lead singer, guitar
Chris Stafford - vocalist, fiddle
Chris Segura - fiddle
Philippe Billeaudeaux - bass
Michael Stafford - drums
Andrew Toups - keyboard