We have talent in Quebec. That’s a given. Then there’s also the fact that the music industry is under a great deal of pressure, first and foremost because of the unpredictability of public reception to cultural productions in general, and to our limited market. This can sometimes lead to a certain mimicry: artists take inspiration from what works well, to increase chances of success. How many male singer-songwriters currently doing post-Jimmy Hunt soft-rock/indie folk can you name? Me, a lot.
Alexandre Fournier, aka Alix Fernz for this project, certainly doesn’t belong on that list. The young singer-songwriter blithely touches on danger, night, raw, distortion, anxiety, altered vocals, and reverb, not necessarily in that order. The artist has something unique to offer, with his shaken, synthetic glam rock, blinding like a lamp shone on the eye when you’re surrounded by darkness. This little Bizou, made up of generally brief, punk-energetic pieces, contains some pleasantly disconcerting tracks that require several listens, such as the very new-wave “Défigurée,” or the rock-opera-like ballad “Bizou.” But elsewhere, we find this tendency to borrow from other creators, namely of the post-punk (a catch-all word, by the way?) wave from Quebec of recent years. Crabe, La Sécurité and Victime come to mind. If Alix Fernz could free himself entirely from these idiosyncrasies, he – and we – would be all the happier, more sincere, and even more interesting as a creator.
