Bernard Lavilliers releases new album
Bernard Lavilliers, an 80-year-old French musician, released his twenty-third studio album, Rite cruel, on October 23. The album is described as a dense work with minimalistic rock and is intended as a prelude to a tour.Musical style and influences
The album includes the title track, in which Lavilliers sings, "Fight with words / In a real body-to-body / No gifts / It's a death struggle," in a smooth and firm voice. He returned to minimalistic rock, drawing inspiration from his 1980 song Traffic and emphasizing a "music made by hand" without software loops.Themes of resistance and struggle
Lavilliers stated that the album is not dark or submissive but rather one of resistance and struggle. He remarked, "since the times are tough, let us be tough," and mentioned a detour through Congolese rumba and Brazilian bossa nova, introduced to him by Lokua Kanza and friends in Rio.Language, poetry, and historical references
In an interview, Lavilliers discussed the importance of language and resistance. He remained faithful to poets and mentioned the reissue of La Résistance et ses poètes, 1940-1945, an anthology compiled by Pierre Seghers. He also referenced the song Berceuse des enfants d'Europe by Louis Cauchois, which he set to music due to its rhythmic language.Career reflections and future plans
Lavilliers recently sold 135,000 copies of his 2021 album Sous un soleil énorme. He mentioned facing three options with his new album: "Rite cruel" being the album too many, another album, or a new album that people will want to listen to and discover on stage. He expressed a preference for the third option, despite sometimes experiencing stage fright.
