Fans of francophone pop will now have to count in singer Amay Laoni and her sidekick Étienne Chagnon, producer, beatmaker, and multi-instrumentalist. With few exceptions, Étienne’s tracks, on which Amélie Larocque (real name) lays her powerful voice, are robust, muscular, dynamic, and eminently attractive. Rigorously arranged and mixed, the grooves presented here have enough thickness and textural diversity to find their place in francophone Europe (generally not very inclined to Quebec productions of this type), or even in the dense global synth-pop jungle. For some songs, the duo opted to co-write, enlisting the services of Mike Clay, Loud, Eli Rose, and Benny Adam. The mass potential is more than obvious, so few French-speaking acts in America reach this pop level without suffering from some global lag. Certainly, Le Tournant has the qualities necessary for mass distribution… and for acclaim, which is extremely rare in the musical landscape. A few extra touches in the beatmaking and writing of the lyrics could eventually make the difference between a work of its time and an outstanding one. We aren’t there yet, but this new chapter marks a real step forward for the duo. Obviously, these young people with a winning spirit are very serious! A career to be followed closely.
