From the outset, I must confess my bias. I never miss an opportunity to praise Avec pas d’casque. I’ve already seen them three times since their big comeback on stage, marked by the release of Cardinal, but it has to be said that on Friday night at Les Foufounes, something singular happened. The audience – dense and attentive – seemed suspended by an intoxicating quiet force.
Stéphane Lafleur arrived with confidence from the very first chord. Never had the music and his voice seemed so perfectly matched; the world of Avec pas d’casque blazed in its fullness. The sobriety of the riffs and the purity of the embellishments reflected an economy of means, with every sound choice designed to serve the text. It was just bare enough to be clothed in a deep, universal benevolence. What is striking is the intention that runs through each of the songs. Disarmingly precise: not a word too many, not a note too many.
Then I heard lyrics that had always eluded me when listening at home. This kind of realization rarely happens in concert. Antoine Goulet’s work at the console undoubtedly had a lot to do with it. Stéphane Lafleur’s voice was rendered with striking clarity, carried in all its nuances, down to its most minute fluctuations. He sang with the quietude of someone who humbly knows it’s right.
After a few songs, Stéphane Lafleur proudly slipped in that he would follow the advice of Mathieu Charbonneau – keyboardist, baritone player, all-round noisemaker of sorts – who is said to have told him, “We’re at Les Foufounes, we just play bangers!” Those who have been listening since the early days have been in for a treat. As for Avec pas d’casque’s repertoire, bad songs are hard to find, testifying to a remarkable law, principle and constant.
To see languorous slows being danced at Foufounes is both rare and welcome. The crowd hummed along. It sounded like a single, warm, unified breath carrying that of the performer. They concluded with Nos corps (in D flat), from Effets Spéciaux. A song that’s more beautiful than ever: “Et ce soir dans tes bras / C’est la paix dans le monde”.
Well, it’s not the kind of thing you want to read in a show report, but you had to be there.
