Le sens des paroles

Over the course of the last decade, Alaclair Ensemble was arguably the flagship of franglophone rap in America, prescribing aesthetics, flow, beatmaking and stage presence. Five albums bore the marks of Maybe Watson, Vlooper, KenLo Craqnuques, Claude Bégin, Robert Nelson, Eman and Mash. Released last year, Le sens des paroles can be considered their mature album, for its playful qualities and parodic passages, for its offbeat critiques, its soul/R&B, trap, Afro-Cuban, breakbeat and digital treatments, and for its beautiful balance between engaging expression and formal experimentation.