If her voice came down to us in 2007 during the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia, Emel is above all a talented artist who released this year a second strong album, imbued with traditional music and electronic arrangement both dark and powerful.
There is Bjork in her titles, almost Lisa Gerrard. We are close to rock, we sail on electro, we climb in apotheosis on ethnic rhythms and this song … Who seizes you, takes you to the guts. Emel's music is uncompromising, raw and sparkling. Dazzling even, of this light that makes the eyes squint as it is intense.
Ensen, a sensory experience
It is difficult to remain insensitive to Emel Mathlouthi's voice; A voice that has kept this traditional Tunisian texture but is also vibrant with modernity. His compositions are deeply marked by oriental influences and the instrumentation is affected, but the clever mix with the machines make it a music apart, organic and moving. So certainly, we feel the licked and soaring production of Valgeir Sigurðsson (Sigur Rós, Feist), but we lose nothing of Emel's own originality.
Women's music
Beyond the music, there are the words and the will of a woman from North Africa to be heard and to break down borders. We think of course of the A-wa sisters we met last year and we welcome that women's projects (feminist?) are growing with this vocation to unite and federate around a universal and contemporary sound. "I hope people see Ensen as a reminder of all that women create every day, and a tribute to the strength it takes to do so." says Emel proudly when she talks about the obstacles she had to face to release this second opus.
But what to expect live?
A lot of tenderness, but especially chills. Already we can perceive listening to this album the sensitivity of an artist invested in her songs. It will surely be a wonderful moment that Emel will offer us on April 18th at Badaboum. She often explains that she prefers the stage to the studio. We hope that she will be well surrounded in any case and we will tell you about it soon on Justfocus.
Ensen is available since February 24 on Partisan Records and we strongly recommend that you come listen to him live to soak up his intoxicating singing.
